As this drops into your inbox, the world’s best are battling it out at Royal Portrush in golf’s Open Championship.
I’ve been glued to the action all week—and not just because of the golf. Portrush holds deep personal meaning for me.
Watching the tournament unfold there has stirred powerful memories…and reminded me how integral golf is to the way I design my life, how things can change for the better, and, of course, how we can profit both financially and in terms of creating a boundless life.
On Tuesday I had lunch at Waterville Golf Links. Like Portrush, Waterville is another of the great Irish links courses.
My first visit to Portrush was in April 1994. I was a college kid representing my university (University College Cork) in Ireland’s Intervarsity Championship. Back then Ireland’s infrastructure was rudimentary at best and it was still an economic backwater. The north was reeling from decades of conflict.
There was no highway from Cork to Dublin. The drive from Cork to Portrush was over eight hours…My friend John picked me up at my parents’ house and off we went with two other friends in tow.
Cork City were playing Derry City that day. So we choose to drive along the western seaboard and take in the game. Derry is in Northern Ireland but plays in the league of the Republic of Ireland because it’s a predominantly Catholic club and the Northern Ireland soccer league was staunchly loyalist.
Derry City’s ground, The Brandywell, sits in a bowl. There was no visible police presence…but when we made a 360-degree panorama, all we could see was sniper rifles pointed in our direction from the elevated points.
On the road, checkpoints resembled the militarized security checks we see in the movies from Iraq and Afghanistan.
When we arrived at our holiday home. the owner politely told us that a certain pub a town over would be most suitable for us later (and which to avoid).
We hit that pub straight after our practice round…in our golf gear.
When we arrived, rebel songs were in full swing. We looked like Protestants in our golf clothes so we spoke loudly to make sure our southern accents were heard.
The clubhouse at Royal Portrush was bomb-reinforced and bulletproof. There was a big security entrance like a Brazilian bank…you entered one bombproof area and then get buzzed into the main clubhouse. I recall a big picture of Queen Elizabeth in foyer.
But the welcome from the club captain was warm. Right throughout the troubles, my experiences around golf in Northern Ireland were universally positive.
In Northern Ireland back then, almost every facet of your life indicated what side of the sectarian divide you fell on…your name, where you lived, the sports you played, the TV stations you watched.
Most sports were almost totally Catholic (like Gaelic football, for example) or Protestant (like rugby of field hockey).
Golf was primarily Protestant, albeit more mixed than most other sports.
Portrush gets ready for the world-famous Open Championship which is being held here for the third time in the event’s 153-year history.
When I was growing up, pretty much the only reason Protestants from the north would travel south in numbers was to support the Irish rugby team or watch the Irish Open golf.
The weather for the championship was brutal. Play had to be suspended to allow snow on the greens melt after a pounding. One player broke a leg after being blown off a dune on the iconic par 3, 16th hole, which is known as “Calamity”.
What experiences I had…the camaraderie…it was resilience-building.
Today, an incredible 31 years on, much has changed…other things, not so much.
Irish infrastructure is now world-class. I can drive from Cork to Dublin in 2.5 hours (on highway all the way). I can bypass Dublin and be in Belfast in another hour and 15 minutes.
There are no more Westland military helicopters hovering over the border, no more militarized checkpoints. Ireland has gone from 18% unemployment and 18% interest rates to full employment and low interest rates. It’s now one of the richest countries on earth.
Things have got steadily better in Northern Ireland too, and with the right policies (in a way, a given this will happen) it can quicky catch up with the rich south.
The real estate opportunity both north and south of the border has been profound. Real Estate Trend Alert (RETA) members who have followed our opportunities here have done particularly well.
And golf is still a big part of my life.
These days I don’t play in the rain, let alone hail and snow. I socialize on the golf course…still with many of those same lifelong friends I made in boys’, school and college golf.
The golf course is also where I write and think.
When I’m in Ireland every day I try and hop over the fence behind my home and play a five-hole loop. In Praia D’El Rey I also have a five-hole loop to play at sunset…sometimes twice. These oceanfront homes are jaw-dropping.
The par 3, 14th hole at the oceanfront Praia D’El Rey golf course. When I’m on the Silver Coast, you’ll often find me at this stunning course just a stroll from my beachfront home.
In Cabo I like to finish my day with some time on the short game area on the beachfront…and then I stroll down to the beach to watch the sunset. I rarely go on vacations…and there are only two types of vacations I take…city breaks with my wife, and golf trips with lifelong friends.
When it comes to organizing my life, golf and golfing with old friends is a core pillar. When it comes to choosing where I base myself, this is right up there on top of the list.
Profiling yourself is something RETA Senior Researcher Margaret Summerfield and I explore in more detail in a brand-new RETA Academy online masterclass: Your RETA Blueprint to a Boundless Life and Real Estate Riches.
The six-week, live RETA Academy online masterclass is all about showing you how to achieve your goals.
In the masterclass, we take you through an exercise that helps you zero in on exactly what your priorities are. Then we’ll show you how to choose the perfect kind of real estate to match your profile.
This masterclass is for RETA members only. (not a RETA member? Sign up here to enjoy this and many other benefits…like access to our upcoming deal in Panama…)
If you love golf as much as I do, I suggest you make it a core pillar of your life. It’s lifechanging when you do. (If you hate golf, that’s alright. Identify what your thing is. And ruthlessly bake it into you plans…)
Now let’s look at some homes for sale near great golf courses…
Kerry Shell Property, Ireland
Listing price: €125,000 ($145,300)
This shell of a traditional two-story home is on the market in the Ballinskelligs area, near Cahersiveen, for €125,000 ($145,300).
The appeal of this opportunity is that it’s a complete blank canvas…something to put your mark on. It could be shaped into a home with an entirely modern interior and entirely traditional exterior, which would have big rental appeal.
The property also comes with almost two acres of land and the location is very strong. It’s set along a quiet residential road off the Ring of Kerry. Cahersiveen is a 15-minute drive…Waterville village is 10 minutes away…and in the area there’s exceptional golf at Waterville Golf Links, as well as fishing and Blue Flag beaches.
This shell would require a near-complete rebuild. But you’d struggle to find a more idyllic location for a rural Irish hideaway close to a top golf course. Listing here.
Praia d’El Rey, Portugal
Listing price: €270,000 ($313,800)
Escape to Praia d’El Rey, where Portugal’s dramatic Atlantic shores provide an exclusive retreat just an hour from Lisbon. This seaside enclave is perched above pristine beaches and rolling dunes, where championship golf courses stretch between pine forests and endless ocean views. Traditional Portuguese villages, with their whitewashed houses and terracotta roofs, dot the surrounding countryside.
This charming condo sits in one of Portugal’s most prestigious resort destinations. Step outside to play on the acclaimed 18-hole golf course designed by Cabell Robinson, surf or windsurf on some of Europe’s finest Atlantic waves and explore nearby medieval towns.
This two-bed, one-bath apartment is nestled within the prestigious Praia d’El Rey Golf & Beach Resort. Listing here.
Azul Garden, Cap Cana
RETA-only price from $380,400
Cap Cana in the Dominican Republic isn’t just a resort. Or a town. It’s a master-planned, fully functioning luxury enclave.
Built on a staggering 30,000 acres of beachfront, forest, and lagoons, Cap Cana is home to mega-yacht marinas, St. Regis and Eden Roc resorts, fine dining, designer shopping, paddle courts, riding trails, and international schools.
Last month, RETA members had the opportunity to own in the very heart of this luxury enclave—walking distance to the beach. This is in a community called Azul Garden.
It’s a stroll to the beach from Azul Garden, where there will be a rooftop pool and terrace, ground-level swimming pool, gym, pool bar, lagoon sports deck, and paddle and pickle ball center. (Developer’s renders shouldn’t be considered final but give us a great idea of what to expect.)
The RETA-only price was from just $380,400. That bought a luxurious two-bed, two-and-a-half bath condo of 1,074 square feet including a spacious 193-square-foot terrace and lagoon views.
I expect five years after delivery our condos will be worth $700,000. That’s a gain of $319,600. And conservative at that.
I figure gross yields of nearly 12% renting short-term once Azul Garden is established and that’s a silly conservative prediction.
And of course, there’s golf…
Cap Cana has a world-class Jack Nicklaus golf course, with a second Nicklaus course on the way. This course helped put Cap Cana on the map, drawing some of the world’s wealthiest folks. Now, every year, more and more people come.
To get in on exclusive, off-market deals like this, you need to be a RETA member. (Not a member, join here.)
The Jack Nicklaus golf course in Cap Cana is the top-ranked in the Caribbean and a major draw for some of the world’s wealthiest and most powerful folks. In the past, it’s attracted the likes of Michael Jordan and Bill Clinton.
Whether you’re drawn to the wild links of Ireland’s coast, Portugal’s golden beaches, or the tropical greens of the Caribbean, these are not just homes. They’re gateways to a richer life.
And for those of us who know the joy of golf—who’ve made friendships that last a lifetime over rounds played in wind, sun, and snow—these places feel like home the moment we step onto the first tee.
Wishing you good real estate investing,
P.S. If you’re interested in any of these properties you should hire an attorney and do your own due diligence. We haven’t done any due diligence on the listings in Ireland and Portugal.
P.P.S. What’s your version of the five-hole loop? What would you build your life around, if not golf? Drop me a line hereand let me know!
