With great interest in golf and genuine fondness for hickory play and golf history in the sport's homeland, Scotland, Lars Otto Bjørnland from Norway has registered to play at the 3rd China Hickory Open.
Bjørnland (right) with Norwegian PGA Tour player Viktor Hovland
Bjørnland’s interest in hickory golf ties directly to Scotland. He has been like a Scottish pro for over 40 years, meeting with numerous Scottish friends. Three to five times a year he visits the homeland of golf. Over the years he has played nearly two hundred courses there including the Orkney Islands and the Outer and Inner Hebrides. He has been a member of several Scottish golf clubs. After being a member for 15 years at St Andrews Golf Club, he joined the Crail Golfing Society (founded in 1786). For 10 years he has also been a member of Panmure Golf Club (established in 1845), which has hosted two World Hickory Opens.
Bjørnland was one of the founders of The Norwegian Hickory Golf Society together with Claus Mæland, among others, who has participated in the first two China Hickory Opens in 2024 and 2025. Although retired now, he is still the Rules Official and Tournament Director of the Norwegian Golf Federation.
Norway Hickory Golf Society Founders
Bjørnland’s love for China and Hong Kong has been imbedded with his professional life as an Olympian. During the Olympic Summer Games in 2008 and the Olympic Winter Games in 2022, both in Beijing, he was part of the Norwegian Olympic Team.
Bjørnland at 2018 Beijing Olympic Games
As Press Attaché (Media Director), Bjørnland stayed close to the athletes in many different sports. The Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics made an unforgettable experience for Lars Otto Bjørnland. It was the first Olympic Games hosted in China. The spectacular event created a new culture in the world's second most populous country, thanks to hundreds of thousands of volunteers and officials. He also remembers his trip to Hong Kong where Equestrian was organized at the Hong Kong Sports Institute. The 2022 Beijing Olympic was unfortunately affected by the corona pandemic, but it was still a great success.
Bjørnland at Olympic Village
As Press Attaché of the Norwegian Olympic Team was both exciting and demanding. The Olympic Games are a huge event and a lot happens in a short time. Much of the work is about communications, press and helping the athletes deal with the attention that comes with competing at a high level. A Press Attaché must be well prepared, available 24/7 and be able to solve problems quickly. The press must have access, but at the same time the athletes must be protected in order to perform at their very best.
Bjørnland with Norwegian Olympic Team Members
Bjørnland says he is really looking forward to returning to Hong Kong and play the 3rd China Hickory Open together with Claus Maeland at the Jockey Club KSC Public Golf Course. The two players will represent Team Norway to compete for the National Team Trophy on November 16 and play at the Open on November 17-18. He plans to visit the Hidden Grace Golf Museum in Shenzhen, next to Hong Kong, after the event before returning to Norway.
