Walter Prochoren (pictured) is a Ukrainian-American golfing
enthusiast with a serious handicap - he's stuck in the
very middle of a country which is totally devoid of golf
courses! As General Director of the GOIden Gate Golf Club
project, it's a problem he is attempting to resolve. He's
not the only one either. There are a number of projects
currently under way which are geared at building golf
courses in and around Kyiv.
The question remains, though, of just how a super-sporty
nation like Ukraine with such famously lush greenery could
still be without a single golf course nearly eleven years
after Independence. On closer inspection, the Ukrainian
golf course story is a customary post-Independence tale
of big money ambitions, labyrinthine bureaucracy, rampant
corruption, and unrelenting enthusiasm that dates back
to the very early days.
Surprisingly, there has actually been a Ukrainian Golf
Federation sinced 1992, when it was established by the
then-Minister of Health Yuriy Spizhenko. In ten years,
however, the organisation has not managed to set up a
course, focusing efforts instead on mini-golf. Other groups
have moved somewhat faster. Walter, who came to Ukraine
in 1995 with a view to setting up a golf course after
years of experience building courses in the Far East,
first came close to setting up a course in the late 1990s,
only to see the land he'd ear-marked for the course get
snapped up by oligarchs looking for prime dacha locations.
That was out in Konche Zaspa, and Prochorenko's dream
remains to establish a course in the stunning countryside
to the south of Kyiv.
The proposed site for the Golden Gate Golf Course, as
his dream will one day be known, is located in Konche
Zaspa and occupies 76 hectares of government reserve between
a tributary of the Dnipro and an elite riding school.
On the opposing bank of the river stand rows of million
dollar dachas owned by the richest men in the land. "Brodskiy
sold that one to Praveks Bank recently," explains our
guide, pointing to a palatial property featuring a waterfall
in the back garden and security guards on the patio. The
plot of land set aside for the golf course is about as
exclusive as you could hope to get, situat- ed right in
the middle of one of the most sought-after real estate
areas on the fringes of Kyiv, an area that will surely
have become exclusive suburbia within a few years. Indeed,
while it used to be fairly uncontroversial to talk about
the absence of a middle class in Ukraine, in the last
couple of years the number of people with substantial
disposable incomes has increased significantly as the
stable economic situation begins to bear fruit. Studies
have estimated that there are twenty-five thousand potential
golfers in Ukraine, enough to fill the clubhouses of up
to ten courses. For the time being, though, Kyiv's golf
fans would settle for just one.
Prochorenko is hopeful of getting the final clearance
and permission he needs to start building and landscaping
work, but a few bureaucratic stumbling blocks remain,
and he is fast losing patience with corrupt local officials.
"You think you're covered then a new guy comes in with
a whole new set of requirements," he comments, complaining
of being 'bounced around' within various government structures;
It has reached the point where Prochorenko is ready to
call it a day if he doesn't see results by the end of
the year. "I've been here seven years trying to do this;
I can't wait any longer!" he says. Prochorenko actually
feels that Ukraine is selling itself short with its lack
of golf courses, arguing that many foreign companies,
particularly Asian, will not locate offices in Ukraine
or invest in the country until executives can enjoy the
leisure options offered by a golf course.
Interestingly, whenever Kyiv does finally get its own
golf course, it will not be the first ever in the Ukrainian
oo*o"- - o capital, as legend has it that there was a
course in Kyiv at the end of the nineteenth century. Apparently
the course was built by a Russian aristocrat, but its
location remains a mystery. For golfing enthusiasts desperate
to get a round in, this talk of lost courses will be of
little comfort. There is, however, talk of holding a six-hole
tournament this June on the territory of the future Golden
Gate Golf Club, so watch this space for more news.
Words and Photography: Boleslav Malinovski
