CHINA Crime Pays

Did you know that Jack Nicklaus has been involved in illegal activities in Beijing? So has his son, Jack II.

And they aren't the only golf architects who've run afoul of the law in China's capital. So have Nick Faldo, Peter Thomson, Graham Marsh, Ron Fream, and more than a dozen others.

Their crimes? They've designed golf courses in and around the city.

As you know, it's against the law to build golf courses in China and has been for many years.

Despite the prohibition, Beijing has seen plenty of golf development. The list starts with Pine Valley Golf Resort, which has an 18-hole Nicklaus "signature" track and 27 holes by Jack II, and it includes Faldo's Honghua International Golf Club, Marsh's Huatang International Golf Club, and Fream's Win-River Golf Club.

Thomson is a two-time offender, with Grand Canal Club and Beijing Links Golf Club.

Some other prominent scofflaws are Bob Shearer (Yaoshang Golf & Country Club), Brad Benz (Beijing Golf Club), and Scott Miller (Huanggang International Golf Club).

In fact, according to a statement by a member of China's parliament, only one of the golf courses in metropolitan Beijing -- the Chinese government says there are 20, but I found more than 30 -- has been built legally.

So if you're a member of Beijing International Golf Club, the first course built in Beijing (in 1986), you can breathe easy.

The rest of you? Up against the wall, hands above your heads. Spread 'em.

I'm just kidding, of course.

But so is the Chinese government. And everybody knows it.

Even the guy who blew the whistle on Beijing's golf courses, Sun Anmin, quickly gave the industry a pass. He told Beijing Youth Daily that the illegal courses could be legalized simply because they've created jobs and preserved green space.

If that's all it takes, why persist in the charade?

Clearly, China is one of those places where it's easier to ask for forgiveness than to ask for permission.