Hat tip, David Fahrenthold: https://twitter.com/fahrenthold
Bloomberg goes to @realDonaldTrump's Scottish courses, digs deeper into those U.K. Filings to see how much cash he's sunk in them m.
Donald Trump is pouring millions into his money-losing Scottish golf course https://bloom.bg/2xrzskF
Trump Is Pouring Millions Into Money-Losing Scottish Golf Course
By Stephanie Baker
--> U.K. reporting rules permit rare look at private businesses
--> The president’s diviseness may be keeping some people away
From the 300-plus crystal chandeliers to the gold-plated taps in the bathrooms, Donald Trump has transformed a hotel overlooking one of the world’s most legendary golf courses into an eponymous glittering palace. Members gathering for their tee times on a recent cloudy Wednesday say they love many of the changes at the Trump Turnberry resort in Scotland, but they doubt the president will ever make his money back. ... “It’s a personal investment in aggrandizement,” says Mervyn Caplan, a member for the past 17 years, sipping tea in the clubhouse. “He’ll never get a return on the capital he’s invested.”
So far, that looks like a sound prediction. Financial reports made public in the U.K. over the weekend show Trump last year faced mounting losses at Turnberry and his other Scottish golf resort, forcing him to inject more cash to cover shortfalls. Losses at Trump Turnberry, his biggest investment outside of the U.S., more than doubled to 17.6 million pounds ($23 million) in 2016, while revenue fell 21 percent to 9 million pounds. Trump’s other course north of Aberdeen also posted widening losses of 1.4 million pounds, an increase of 28 percent, while revenue fell 12 percent.
Beyond last year’s losses, however, the latest disclosures show Trump has now poured a combined 152 million pounds, or nearly $200 million, into the ventures without either one turning a profit under his ownership. The results, among the few made public anywhere in the world for Trump’s private businesses, may add to questions about whether his brand of divisive politics is starting to take some of the luster off of his businesses.
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Earlier this year, golf writer James Dodson, co-author of Arnold Palmer’s autobiography, said Eric Trump told him in 2014 that the family had “all the funding we need out of Russia” for golf. “We don’t rely on American banks,” Dodson quoted him as saying, in response to a question prompted by the fact that many banks were steering clear of golf. “We’ve got some guys that really, really love golf, and they’re really invested in our programs.” ... Eric Trump later tweeted a denial, calling the author’s comments “completely fabricated.”
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