Page 175 - Trump Never Give Up: How I Turned My Biggest Challenges into Success

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T R UM P: N E V E R G I V E U P

Trump National Golf Club

the situation through my eyes, you would see that it warranted
every penny I spent. The course fronts the Pacific Ocean for
two miles and easily rivals the fabled Pebble Beach in both
beauty and finesse. I could see that before it became a reality,
and so I didn’t care about the expense involved. Golf courses are
works of art and deserve that kind of attention.
As with many of my projects, I’d been paying attention to
this course for years. I knew it had the potential to be one of
the top tier golf courses of the world. However, when it opened
as Ocean Trails in 1999, there was a catastrophe when the 18th
hole slid toward the ocean, also damaging three adjacent holes.
The water lines, which were beneath the fairway, had given
away. This was a very serious mess. A landslide is a nightmare
for a cliffhanging property. Especially when it involves 17
acres of earth. Suddenly, an 18-hole course was reduced to a
15-hole course.
It was a disaster for the owners, and they entered bank-
ruptcy court in 2002. That’s when I made my move and offered
them $27 million for the land, the clubhouse, and the course.

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