Spey Bay Golf Club in Scotland has been sold to US-based online golf community Links Golf Club, which has plans to invest significant sums in its renovation and redevelopment.
The club, which boasts a spectacular 18-hole links-style course, clubhouse, driving range and a caravan site, is located on a stunning part of the Moray coastline at the mouth of the River Spey, 15 miles east of Lossiemouth. The guide price for the property was £750,000, although the final sale price has not been made public.
Designed by the legendary Ben Sayers, Spey Bay Golf Course was opened in 1907. Former British Prime Minister Ramsay Macdonald was a member and the magnificent club championship trophy, which remains at the club, was presented by him.
Neil Calder, partner in the Inverness office of Shepherd Chartered Surveyors, which handled the sale, said: “We are delighted to have secured a sale. There was an extremely competitive closing date and offers well over asking price were received. It is a rare opportunity to own a true links course in Scotland, the home of golf and we wish the new owners well in their venture.”
Euan MacCrimmon, Director at Strutt & Parker, which handled the sale as joint agents with Shepherd Chartered Surveyors, added: “The volume of enquiries for Spey Bay golf course was incredible, and we received enquiries and offers from a wide range of UK and international interests. We are delighted to secure this deal with LinksDAO and wish them all the best with their exciting plans for the course.”
Property owner Colin Murray of Colin Murray Development stated: “We were delighted to appoint both Strutt & Parker and Shepherd Chartered Surveyors to be the joint selling agents on our behalf. The professional approach by both Euan and Neil gave us complete confidence from the outset. Their marketing approach to the proposed sale was excellent, which captured a huge interest from far and wide.
Founded in 2021, Links Golf Club is an online-based golf collective of over 5,400 members located throughout the world, although most are based in the United States. The founders – CEO Jim Daily, head of strategy Adam Besvinick and Mike Dudas, describe Links as a ‘modern, inclusive membership that is looking to spend their discretionary income on unique golf experiences’. The club offers members various promotions and discounts with partner companies like Callaway, TopGolf, DraftKings and Ship Sticks, as well as reciprocal playing benefits at over 500 courses throughout the world. A vote by Links members was required to put forward the bid for Spey Bay, with 88% of members voting in favour.
Besvinick said that the club has already sought input from several architects regarding possibilities for remodeling the Spey Bay course. The concept, Besvinick said, is to create “something that’s unique and different than everything else that’s on that trail, something that’s compelling for members and feels more fun and engaging for our membership than the standard 6,500-yard, 18-hole course with four par 3s, four par 5s and 10 par 4s.”
Spey Bay sold to US-based online golf community
