Exclusive|Takeover of Hong Kong Golf & Tennis Academy’s Central club postponed by 2 months

The takeover of an exclusive Hong Kong sports club’s top venue in Central has been postponed following opposition from some members, the South China Morning Post has learned. A source said that following a meeting involving members of the Hong Kong Golf & Tennis Academy (HKGTA), the date of the merger of operations for its Town Club at Central’s New World Tower with private members’ club Carlyle & Co would be pushed back by two months. Until as recently as last Friday evening, the HKGTA had told the SCMP that it would go ahead with the merger on June 8. “This is not just a small win, holding off for two months after all these high-profile adverts is quite big,” a meeting attendee said. “We hope we will be able to arrive at a good middle ground at the end.” The latest development stalls previous plans to allow members of the two clubs to use their facilities reciprocally. The SCMP reported on Saturday that some HKGTA members had deemed the takeover unfair as they had paid up to HK$2.68 million (US$342,200) for their memberships, whereas Carlyle & Co’s fees were significantly less, as low as under HK$50,000. HKGTA members also argued that the two clubs catered to different clientele. They said the Town Club was patronised by more professionals, including lawyers, bankers, doctors and corporate executives, whereas Carlyle & Co’s younger membership base included key opinion leaders, entrepreneurs and those in the insurance and service industries. In addition to its venue in Central, the HKGTA has a club in Sai Kung. Carlyle & Co is based at the Rosewood Hong Kong hotel in Tsim Sha Tsui. The HKGTA is part of New World Development, and the Rosewood is owned by Chow Tai Fook Enterprises, controlled by the family of tycoon Henry Cheng Kar-shun. Rosewood is headed by his daughter, Sonia Cheng Chi-man. Sources said the recent meeting saw more than 70 HKGTA members join remotely, with the management of the HKGTA, the Rosewood and Carlyle & Co also present. The latter included Rosewood chief operating officer Andrew Ingham, Carlyle & Co global vice-president Jonathan Frolich and HKGTA general manager Andrew Yang. Another HKGTA member said the management’s decision to postpone the merger appeared to be aimed at buying time. “As to what will happen next, it was not known,” the member said. Another source said that since Adrian Cheng Chi-kong, the elder brother of Sonia Cheng, stepped down as CEO of New World, the Town Club had been managed by her team. The situation meant that New World had effectively become a landlord instead, the source said. The SCMP has reached out to the HKGTA and Rosewood for comment.