Canadian golf developer Ben Cowan-Dewar has sold the crown jewel of his Cabot Collection, Nova Scotia’s Cabot Cape Breton, to Canadian businessman John Bragg. Cabot Cape Breton is home to acclaimed golf courses Cabot Links and Cabot Cliffs.
Also included in the sale is Cabot Bordeaux, a 36-hole luxury resort in southwest France that Cowan-Dewar purchased in July 2024.
A source close to the situation described the transaction as a “necessary cash infusion.” Sources also confirmed that, as part of the deal, Bandon Dunes developer and early Cabot Links investor Mike Keiser sold his interest in the business.
Cowan-Dewar did not respond to GGPBiz requests for comment.
Bragg, described as one of Canada’s wealthiest men, is the CEO and founder of the Bragg Group. His Nova Scotia-based Oxford Frozen Foods operates one of the largest fruit farms in the world, with more than 12,000 acres dedicated to growing blueberries. He is also developing the River Philip Golf Resort in Nova Scotia, a four-season operation with an 18-hole golf course, hiking trails, and river fishing.
Cabot Links, designed by Rod Whitman, opened to rave reviews in 2012. It was joined in 2015 by the Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw-designed Cabot Cliffs. In subsequent years, Cowan-Dewar developed or acquired multiple courses under the Cabot Collection umbrella.
The collection includes the Coore and Crenshaw-designed Point Hardy Golf Club at Cabot Saint Lucia, a 375-acre luxury resort and real-estate development in the Caribbean that opened in December 2023.
It is unclear what prompted the Cabot Cape Breton sale, but multiple sources believe that Cabot Saint Lucia has caused financial difficulties for Cowan-Dewar’s enterprise. Real-estate sales have been sluggish in recent years, and home buildout has been problematic on this small island, according to the sources.
Thus far, only the Nova Scotia-based news website The Macdonald Notebook has reported on the sale. The website obtained from Bragg’s office a letter that Cowan-Dewar addressed to Cabot Cape Breton condominium owners. In it, Cowan-Dewar writes that Bragg “will be increasing his ownership stake in Cabot Cape Breton.”
“I want to emphasize that nothing about Cape Breton is changing,” the letter continues. “ … After 21 years with Cabot, my commitment to this place and all of you hasn’t changed. I plan to continue leading alongside our team for at least another 21 years!”
The sale of the Canadian and French properties appears to have no bearing on other Cabot Collection properties. Cabot acquired Castle Stuart in the Scottish Highlands in 2022 and will open a second 18-hole course there this summer. Cabot Citrus Farms opened to acclaim in central Florida in early 2025. The company also plans to open Cabot Revelstoke in British Columbia in 2027.
The Cabot Collection also has an investment in Lofoten Links in Norway, and it has a golf course management business that oversees the operations of four courses.