Pegasus Golf Resort hits the market

A resort-scale golf and leisure destination in one of Canterbury’s fastest-growing coastal corridors is being brought to market, offering investors, tourism operators and developers a rare opportunity to acquire a championship course supported by significant freehold land and future development capacity, Bayleys brokers say.

Bayleys Hotels, Tourism and Leisure director, Wayne Keene, together with colleague Jesse Paenga, is marketing the Pegasus Resort and Sports Club, located at 138, 148 and 158 Pegasus Boulevard and 1 and 8 Mapleham Drive in Pegasus, North Canterbury, for sale by Mortgagee Tender, closing at 4:00 pm on Thursday, 2nd April 2026 (unless sold prior).

Keene says the offering represents a rare opportunity to acquire the resort-scale landholding alongside the existing golf course operation, creating a platform for new ownership to reposition and evolve the destination.

While the golf course business is currently subject to a liquidation process, stakeholders have aligned around presenting the landholding and operating business together, recognising that a combined transaction provides the clearest pathway for long-term investment and future development.

The asset comprises a 77.66ha (more or less) freehold landholding anchored by an 18-hole, par-72 championship golf course, alongside established leisure facilities and designated resort development land.

Located approximately 25 minutes north of Christchurch International Airport via State Highway 1 (SH1), Pegasus sits within the Waimakariri District – one of New Zealand’s fastest-growing regions – where residential expansion across Pegasus Township and the neighbouring Ravenswood development is reshaping the coastal corridor.

Opened in 2009 and designed by Kristina Kerr of Kura Golf Design, the parkland-style course has hosted a range of high-profile tournaments, including the New Zealand Professional Golfers’ Association (NZPGA) Championship and the Pegasus New Zealand Women’s Golf Open, weaving through wetlands and lakes characteristic of the Pegasus Bay landscape.

Facilities include the Bunker Bar and Café, a pro shop, tennis courts, gymnasium, driving range, and practice greens.

Keene says Pegasus represents the type of large-format landholding that is increasingly difficult to replicate near major cities, particularly with existing resort zoning and a championship course in place.

“New Zealand has already demonstrated what thoughtfully executed golf-led destinations can become, with places like Tara Iti, Te Arai, Cape Kidnappers, and Millbrook setting international benchmarks.

“Pegasus has many of the same ingredients – scale, natural landscape, and proximity to a major city – creating a platform for a future owner to pursue a similarly compelling resort destination attracting high-end international tourism.”

The offering includes 5.86ha (more or less) across three standalone titles designated for accommodation and tourism-related development, following the subdivision of land previously forming part of the first and second holes.

Concept planning has outlined a five-star resort vision including a luxury hotel, spa and natural hot pool complex, honeymoon cottages, wellness facilities and a helipad, aligned with the Pegasus Resort, Special Purpose Zone provisions.

Bayleys South Island Capital Markets director, Jesse Paenga, says this zoning framework was specifically established to support a visitor-focused resort anchored by the golf course, enabling a range of complementary activities, including visitor accommodation, spa facilities, country club amenities and supporting commercial uses.

Paenga says tenders are invited to reflect the combined value of the freehold landholding and operating golf course business.

The property benefits from visibility to 18,000 vehicles per day along Pegasus Boulevard, the township’s primary arterial route.

“Infrastructure upgrades will further enhance accessibility. The planned Woodend Bypass project, endorsed by the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA), will widen the southern section of SH1 to four lanes and introduce a motorway bypass north of Woodend,” he says.

“The scale of the holding and its position within a growing coastal corridor set the opportunity apart. Chances to acquire trophy-scale recreational land with established resort zoning and development capacity are extremely rare.

“For investors, developers and operators looking to establish a destination hospitality or wellness offering, Pegasus provides the scale, zoning framework and location fundamentals to support that ambition.”