China’s "nouveaux riches appear to have met their match: the English men in blazers," according to Ahmed, Ford & Ram of the FINANCIAL TIMES. Reignwood, the Chinese owners of Wentworth's golf course for the past 18 months, "backed down on Friday from plans to expel most of the existing members and substantially raise fees" in the face of a "fierce campaign" against the proposals. The Asian leisure conglomerate, which bought the club from restaurateur Richard Caring for £135M ($195M), made a "series of concessions intended to placate Wentworth’s membership," dominated by businessmen, City financiers and celebrities. Wentworth Residents Association, one of the groups that challenged the plans, said the club had "caved in" over proposals to cut membership from 4,000 to 888 and charge existing members a one-off fee of up to £125,000 ($180,400). Under the new proposals, existing members "will no longer have to pay the new fee" of up to £125,000, which Reignwood describes as a "debenture." All existing members will have their current status at the club retained. Residents of Wentworth who are not members of the club "will be given the chance to purchase debentures" at a £25,000 ($36,000) discount. The move marks a "dramatic climbdown for Reignwood’s owner, the Thai-Chinese multi-billionaire Chanchai Ruayrungruang, also known as Yan Bin." The Chinese group’s concessions "may forestall legal challenges from residents of the surrounding Wentworth private estate," many of whom are also members, who had hired the law firm Quinn Emanuel (FT, 3/18).
