The Cliffs Kangaroo Island golf course set for 2026 opening despite losing main backer
High-profile property magnate Ross Pelligra has pulled out of a $20m “destination” golf course project on Kangaroo Island. Here’s what the developer has to say about its future.
Property magnate Ross Pelligra has pulled out of a $20m golf course development on Kangaroo Island, but its developer says the ambitious project remains on track and will be ready for first play early next year.
Construction of The Cliffs Kangaroo Island golf course near American River commenced at the end of 2022, after Pelligra promised a $50m investment in the Pennington Cliffs Property Trust – a fund set up to invest in tourism and hospitality ventures on the island, including the golf course.
The Cliffs Kangaroo Island chief executive Sam Atkins, who’s spearheading the golf course development, confirmed Pelligra had withdrawn its investment in the fund, but said other investors had injected the money needed to complete the golf course development.
“Pelligra have been fantastic partners – we certainly needed them at the start and they added great value, but as the project developed ... they just had a different investment strategy,” he said.
“We’ve got a solid investor group and debt stack lined up at the moment to get us through the next four years of construction and early operations.”
Mr Atkins said grassing and irrigation work had commenced at The Cliffs, a link-style course being built on a spectacular 240ha clifftop site overlooking the Southern Ocean at Pelican Lagoon, on the eastern side of the island.
He said “preview play” would be launched in January next year, offering guests limited access to play and experience the course for the first time, before an official opening in Easter 2026 when a new clubhouse will also be unveiled.
The clubhouse will feature a pro shop, restaurant, bar and corporate and event spaces, and there are longer term plans to develop tourist accommodation at the western end of the site at the end of 2026.
Mr Atkins – the founder and owner of Adelaide Hills vineyard Fox Gordon – recruited renowned golf course architect Darius Oliver to create a golf course that could compete with the world’s very best golf courses.
Mr Oliver previously designed the Cape Wickham Golf Links project – recently ranked as the top golf course in Australia – on Tasmania’s King Island, which has emerged as a mecca for golfers around the world.
Mr Atkins said The Cliffs would create a similar buzz on Kangaroo Island, helping to attract a new wave of visitation as the project looked to capitalise on the growing popularity of “destination golf” experiences.
“High end destination golf is a worldwide product and phenomenon at the moment,” he said.
“The destination golf model has been well tried and proven over the last 15 to 20 years, and it’s very successful. It’s all about site selection, which we know we’ve got right.
“Destination golf is just like high end snow skiing – it’s bucket list, and people will travel for it and they will stay to experience what the rest of the island and South Australia has to offer.
“I’m confident we’ll bring a new demographic of visitor to the island that will love the golf, as well as enjoy all that Kangaroo Island and South Australia has to offer.”
In 2022, the Pennington Cliffs Property Trust doubled down on its investment into Kangaroo Island as the region recovered after devastating bushfires in January 2020, acquiring a portfolio of tourism and hospitality venues including the Penneshaw and Seafront hotels at Penneshaw, the Seafront Holiday and Caravan Park and The Terraces self-contained accommodation site in American River.
Pelligra, which has amassed a sprawling property empire stretching across the country, has sold out of its stake in all of the Kangaroo Island assets.
The Melbourne property developer has been splashing the cash on sporting assets in recent years, including the takeover of A-League football club Perth Glory last February, and the earlier purchase of the Adelaide Lightning Women’s National Basketball League club, which it is now looking to sell after racking up substantial losses.
In a statement, Pelligra Group said it remained a “strong supporter” of the golf course development, but moved away as an investor after observing “new opportunities that better aligned with our group’s core business”.
“As a group, we are committed to delivering on our strong pipeline of assets as well as improving and adding value to our portfolio of passive assets nationally,” the company said.
“Pelligra Group’s decision has also allowed for an opportunity for new partners to get involved in the destination project.”
Mr Atkins said the golf course would benefit from increased capacity and frequency of Qantas’ Adelaide to Kingscote service later this year, as well as the arrival of two new ferries in May, which will increase the speed and frequency of SeaLink’s service between Cape Jervis and Penneshaw.
He said significant environmental work had been completed at the golf course site – including the removal of more than 1000 noxious plants and the creation of an on-site native plant nursery – as part of an ambition to create “one of the world’s most sustainable golf properties”.
“We’ve planted more than 2500 native trees and plants and are on track to plant 10,000 more over the next five years,” he said.
Originally published as The Cliffs Kangaroo Island golf course set for 2026 opening despite losing main backer
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