Future still looks bright for Narin & Portnoo
THE future of links gem Narin & Portnoo remains bright with world-renowned architect Gil Hanse standing by to revamp the course.
While the club looked set to be close to its members today due to lack of funds, US-based businessman Liam McDevitt, who bought the club’s debt from vulture fund Cerberus last year, has major plans for the future.
The members voted to by a clear majority at an EGM last year to go ahead with a settlement that would see them relinquish ownership and control of the entire golf course and all associated facilities and assets to Mr McDevitt’s company, Knather Acquisitions.
However, the deal with Mr McDevitt, whose father hails from the area, has been delayed by red-tape as a local landowner owns part of the first, second, 17th and 18th holes, which are leased to the club.
The crisis began when membership plummeted from 700 to 350 following the economic crash of 2008 and the club’s loans — totalling €1.7m for the construction of a new clubhouse and course improvements — were transferred by Ulster Bank to US investment firm Cerberus last year.
The debt was bought by Knather Acquisitions, which is owned by Mr McDevitt and he has offered to ‘forgive’ a €1.7m debt and provide a license agreement to guarantee the future of the club.
Course designer Hanse — creator of the Olympic Golf Course for the Rio Games — has agreed to take on the project as soon as the legal bottleneck over the transfer of the sporting lease to a private company is overcome.