Spey Bay Golf Course officially sold to US based online cryptocurrency community LinksDAO
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A US-based online golf community has completed the purchase of Spey Bay Golf Course.
LinksDAO entered into an 'exculsivity agreement' to purchase the historic golf course for around £735,000 in March.
However, joint agents Shepherd Chartered Surveyors and Strutt & Parker have now completed the sale of the golf course, clubhouse and adjacent caravan park.
Neil Calder, partner in the Inverness office of Shepherd Chartered Surveyors, 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, 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."
The links course was designed by the legendary Ben Sayers and laid out in 1907. It can count Ramsay MacDonald, Labour's first Prime Minister, as a former member.
Jim Daily, LinksDAO CEO, said that the chance to own such a historic golf course was too good to pass up.
And the group, made up of more than 5400 golf enthusiasts from around the world, have big plans for the course going forward.
"We're connected with many of the world's top architects and with people who really deeply understand the golf course space," Mr Daily told The Northern Scot earlier this year.
"Spey Bay is a really special place. The course is stunning in terms of its natural beauty and it's a really cool and quirky course.
"What we want to do is keep the entirety of its character but we want to really up the level in terms of quality.
"We want to make it a must play for anybody visiting the area and we hope to bring thousands of people from across the globe to the area to expose them to a very special part of the world."
LinksDAO insist that the group's purchase of the course is also good news for the club's current membership, adding that they are keen to retain the club's current members going forward.
"We're not some hotel conglomerate coming in and ripping the whole place up for profit," Mr Daily added.
"Our project is about connecting people from all over the planet.
"What we are hoping to do is just be additive to the community as much as we can and hopefully put a really notable golf course on the map."
A welcome event for LinksDAO members will be held from July 15 to July 17 to celebrate the purchase of the course.
There, the group have promised to introduce members to the 'world renowned' architect who will be transforming the course into what they claim will be 'one of the top courses in Scotland'.
Official event details are set to be released soon.
