Golf club off to the circus in million dollar Cirque Du Soleil deal

Royal Queensland Golf Club at Hamilton has hit the big time under the big top after sealing a multimillion dollar deal with Cirque Du Soleil to host the troupe.

: Cirque du Soleil Luzia performers Nelson Smyles and Melvin Diggs

Royal Queensland Golf Club at Hamilton has hit the big time under the big top.

City Beat spies tell us the exclusive club has sealed a multimillion dollar deal with Cirque Du Soleil that will see the Canadian circus troupe hold its Brisbane shows on club land for the next eight years.

Club general manager Sean Dobson told members this week that the partnership is the culmination of a lot of hard work over the past 12 months “resulting in a contract that will deliver several million dollars for our club across the next eight years.”

The funds will go towards the club’s new short course and other capital investments, with Cirque Du Soleil investing close to a million dollars into the so far undeveloped eastern section of the course to prepare for its Luzia show in 2024 and future shows in 2026, 2028 and 2030.

“This investment will provide the opportunity for us to generate further income from similar events in the future,” Dobson said.

Cirque du Soleil will also contribute funds for critical infrastructure on the eastern section of the course including water, sewage, and power which will also be used for the short course and its supporting facilities. Golf course designer Ashley Mead of Victorian-based OCM says the proposed course sits on the great piece of land that will take advantage of the much-loved fig trees and Brisbane River as a backdrop.

This year 56 Luzia shows will take place between September 25 and November 10 this year.

Adam Scott at the Australian PGA Championship at Royal Queensland Golf Club last year.

Swiss roll

A little known Swiss fund is trying to make trouble for Bowen Coking Coal executive chairman Nick Jorss. Iolite Capital, which owns about 5 per cent of Bowen Coking Coal, announced earlier this week it was seeking a shareholder meeting to remove Jorss and non-executive director Neville Sneddon from the board. The notice, which did not provide reasons for the move, also seeks the installation of Iolite founder and managing director Robert Leitz on the Bowen board. Jorss, who famously invested $1 in the mothballed Isacc Plain coking coal mine in 2015 and turned it into a billion dollar asset, says the move is an “unnecessary and unfortunate distraction.” Watch this space.

Nick Jorss fending off Swiss challenge.

Up and Up

Shares of Brisbane-based erectile dysfunction spray developer LTR Pharma are on the rise (pardon the pun), gaining almost 30 per cent on Tuesday after it signed a manufacturing agreement with a global drugs company. LTR shares climbed 29.5 per cent to $1.25 after it announced a co-development agreement with US-based drug designer and manufacturer Aptar Pharma for its SPONTAN nasal spray. LTR says Aptar has substantial expertise interacting with the US Food & Drug Administration and has numerous product approvals. LTR shares have skyrocketed more than 250 per cent this year as it edged close to regulatory approval for SPONTAN. LTR chairman Lee Rodne says SPONTAN has an effect in as little as 10 minutes with the nasal delivery bypassing the digestive system and going straight into the bloodstream. Rodne says Viagra revolutionised the treatment of erectile dysfunction a quarter of a century ago and provided millions of men the possibility of enjoying a functional sex life.