With the same fervor of the gold rush, some golf industry professionals have looked east to China in search of what the Chinese call "green opium."

Since the first golf course opened on mainland China in 1984, the need for imported expertise in design, construction and maintenance has created lucrative jobs for experienced professionals such as Eugene Baston, a Georgia native who is now superintendent of the Tianma Country Club in Shanghai.

Darren Cribbes says finding qualified maintenance employees is a major challenge.

Baston, a former president of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA), says the "opportunity to be a part of the golf expansion in China" lured him to the country 10 years ago. At the time, only one course existed in Shanghai, and seven were under construction. Today there are 27 golf courses in the city and four more under way.

After receiving a turf degree from Pennsylvania State University, Lee Sellars started his professional career at the Loxahatchee Club in Jupiter, Fla. He moved on to a superintendent position at Wycliffe Country Club in Palm Beach. After working there for a year, an industry friend called to tell him about a superintendent position at the Discovery Bay Golf Club in Hong Kong.

If you build it, they will come

"I was nervous, but Hong Kong sounded exotic," Sellars says. "I had already made up my mind [to go there] before I hung up the phone."

After spending 10 years living and working in Asia, Sellars has discovered the secret to surviving as a foreign superintendent in China — the willingness to adapt to existing cultural norms, both personally and professionally. It wasn't easy, though. Adjusting to a different lifestyle abroad took time.

Mission Hills' 7,400-yard Olazabal Course, designed by Jose Maria Olazabal, features seashore paspalum on fairways and TifEagle on greens.

"I came here with a two-year contract with every intention of going back home," he says. "I'm still here. I really want to be able to maintain a golf course standard that I maintained in Florida. Every year I step closer to that standard. That's what keeps me going. Plus, I love Hong Kong. I love the culture, my friends and my lifestyle here."

Baston and Sellars have found good fortune in the Chinese golf industry. However, the Chinese government has placed a three-year, nationwide moratorium on new course constructions. The restriction represents a concerted effort to address water conservation and slow the pace at which valuable farmland is being gobbled up by golf course developers.

Eugene Baston makes a point to one of his crew members. Baston is proud to be part of the "pioneering spirit" of golf course maintenance in China.

Few worry the ban will bring an end to the golf rush in China, however.

"We are in a wait-and-see mode to evaluate the impact of this restriction," Baston says. "But I believe golf will continue to grow in China. I think it will be a lot slower than some of our industry friends would like it to be, but certainly it will grow on a scale to meet the demand."