Dalian Red Flag Valley Golf Club

Notable Observations

• National Forest Park Setting The 36 hole course sits within the core area of a National Forest Park, with rolling hills, large elevation changes, and extensive native vegetation fully integrated into the design.
• Extensive Native Vegetation Protection The vast majority of rough areas are maintained as natural vegetation with no managed practice, creating continuous habitat for wildlife and birds across the course.
• Naturalised Slopes and Shaded Areas Steep slope areas are fully naturalised, and shaded ground beneath trees is covered with pine needles collected on site, reducing erosion and eliminating the need for turf maintenance.
• Reduced Managed Turf Areas Under guidance from the course architect, maintained turf areas have been intentionally reduced, keeping only essential playing surfaces and lowering energy and input demand.
• Late-Autumn Coring Practice In contrast to common regional practice, core aeration is carried out in late autumn, resulting in improved turf quality and soil condition.
• On-Site Recycling of Grass Clippings Grass clippings from fairways and roughs are recycled on site, supporting nutrient reuse and reducing waste transport.
• Inclusive and Non-Discriminatory Policies Membership and visitor policies explicitly prohibit discrimination across age, gender, sexual orientation, religion, and ethnic background.
• Strong Charity and Education Engagement The club regularly hosts charity golf events, including those supporting guide dogs, youth golf development, and medical treatment for disadvantaged families. It also welcomes university students for educational golf and course management visits

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“Dalian Red Flag Valley Golf Club features rolling hills, a vast area of native vegetation, and a large elevation difference, making it the most impressive mountain type golf course in China. With the full protection and utilization of native vegetation, the continuous use of local plants, and the implementation of more natural and low carbon practices in the golf course maintenance, the habitat environment for wild animals and birds will be greatly improved, and the biodiversity will become more abundant. It can be expected that the golf course becomes green, sustainable and more natural, and is perfectly blended into the nature, not only providing sports and leisure functions for golf enthusiasts, butalso creating environmental and ecological benefits for the public and society.”

Jumming Zhang (GEO accredited independent verifier)