The Griffin Report: Belfry boss discusses resort's £80m redevelopment
The Belfry, the iconic venue of four Ryder Cups, is investing £80m into a huge redevelopment, including The Masters Suite, a new conference, exhibition, wedding and banquet space. JON GRIFFIN spoke to manager director CHRIS EIGELAAR about the development and the chances of the Ryder Cup returning to one of its spiritual homes on the edge of Sutton Coldfield.
Chris Eigelaar sits in the boardroom at the Belfry and declares: “This is the biggest development in our history, for sure.
“That’s the way I speak to the team about it. We are creating history. It’s an iconic resort, so many legendary things have happened on this site,” says the resort’s managing director.
Those legendary events over the past 40 years include four Ryder Cups featuring a galaxy of golfing stars from Sam Torrance to Sir Nick Faldo, Ian Woosnam to Seve Ballesteros and Colin Montgomerie. Now the Belfry is on the verge of writing a new chapter in its illustrious history – with over £80m of 21st century development.
August will mark the opening of The Masters Suite, an adaptable conference and exhibition space designed to host weddings, banquets and other celebrations, which has already triggered £65m worth of inquiries.
The Masters Suite is the centrepiece of a wider £80m redevelopment, the biggest since the Ryder Cup was last staged at the resort in 2002 – and the biggest in the entire history of the historic landmark which has grown from its early days as a private house converted into a hotel into one of the UK’s best known international business and leisure venues.
Alongside the launch of the Masters Suite the famous resort on the edge of Sutton Coldfield will unveil a new state-of-the-art fitness and leisure club, transforming gym facilities for users of The Club.
The dual development programme will not only bring a wealth of new events to the site, it will also create around 200 new jobs, bringing the total workforce up to over 1,000.
And the man at the helm of that 1,000 strong workforce, Chris Eigelaar – a key executive figure at the Belfry Hotel and Resort since 2018 – pinpoints the willingness of owners Goldman Sachs and Cedar Capital Partners to agree the “massive” investment programme.
At the heart of that agreement was a recognition by the owners, who had bought the resort from KSL Capital Partners in 2021, that the Belfry had virtually become a victim of its own success, struggling to cope with increasing demand for its conference facilities.
South African born Chris, a UK resident since 2002 with a lifetime of working experience in the hotel industry from Cape Town to London, Manchester and now in the director role at the Belfry he describes as the highlight of his career, explains the background.
“In November 2021 Goldman Sachs and Cedar Capital took nine months to review and understand our business plan and what they wanted to invest.
“Every year we will turn away millions of pounds worth of business. There’s massive demand and we can’t cater for the demand. We built a return on investment plan which showed that if we invest X amount of money will get the returns over X amount of years.
“The plan was developed by the resort’s senior leadership team and was fully endorsed by the new ownership. Without hesitation, they agreed that this was the right direction for The Belfry. By the time the project is complete, we will have invested over £80m into transforming the resort.
“The first spade in the ground was Q1 2023. Everything takes time. We are building a 600+ seater conference space overlooking the iconic 10th on the Brabazon and that sits next to the additional 149 bedrooms. We are looking forward to hosting some incredible events, banqueting events, dinner parties, weddings etc.
“We are also investing into a state-of-the-art leisure club, where we are going to have a family experience, a 48-metre slide, a two-lane swimming pool, sauna and steam experiences and a bubble pool outside, which has views of the golf course.
“There have not been any significant structures built on the resort since 2002 – until what we are now creating.”
So, with £80m worth of new investment under its belt, can the Belfry repeat its historic glories, bringing the Ryder Cup back to one of its spiritual homes after a gap of 33 years?
Chris says: “Yes, it is realistic to think that the Ryder Cup might come back here one day. We are currently having conversations about 2035.
“As a resort, would we like to host it? For sure. We have great relationships with the DP World Tour and with the PGA. We will continue to be very open-minded about it and will continue to have conversations to see if we can make the dream reality. It would be fantastic, incredible for the region.”
But whether the Ryder Cup dream becomes reality or not, the Belfry team remain committed to ensuring that the hotel and resort stays true to its long tradition of ensuring its guests enjoy a warm welcome to its wide range of facilities.
“We have recently invested £250,000 into a new family play area, Woodland Adventures, which opened in April, and is very well used by locals and residents. It is very important to us to make sure that we are an accessible resort.
“The Belfry is not just about a guest staying overnight, it is about staying overnight, enjoying a great culinary experience in our restaurant, having a workout the next morning or a relaxing experience in the spa– or just enjoy a walk around the beautiful grounds.
“If you are a family with children of any age, we have go-karts, fun in the pool, or you can go and hit a few golf balls on the driving range or in the mini-golf or run wild in the Woodland Adventures playground.”
In an age of endless alternatives for youthful attention, The Belfry is also keen to catch potential future customers at a young age. “We work with local schools in inviting students to come and see what hospitality is, what golf is, what greenkeeping is. We do a lot of open days where we invite people into the resort to show that we are accessible – we want people to use the resort as much as they possibly can.”
While the Belfry will always be a prime golfing destination for the game’s many addicts, Chris stresses the resort is very much a “multi-layered business” as it prepares to take the wraps off the Masters Suite and The Club.
“That’s the key to our success. We have a lot of different segments that we continually provide exceptional experiences to and that’s what makes the Belfry what it is today.”
This article first appeared in the June 2025 edition of Chamberlink magazine.
