Rural lifestyle beckons in Capricorn Estate with bonus golf course

With its picturesque rural backdrop, rich equine history and the quirk of an 8-hole golf course on your doorstep, this beautiful property on the former Capricorn Park Stud presents a multitude of options for a discerning buyer.

Just nine minutes’ drive from the ACT border and situated at Springrange, between Canberra and Murrumbateman, Capricorn is a loved landmark on the Barton Highway with its white fences and stunning red roses.

Established in the late 1960s, the property was originally set up for western-style quarter horse training and breeding, and subsequently transformed into a first-class thoroughbred training facility by late racing legend and developer Len Hoyle and his wife, Doris.

The original expansive landholding, which takes in Jeir Creek, mature trees and arable land, has since been subdivided into smaller free-hold parcels.

Long-time manager of the property, Dennis Brady, has called Capricorn home for three decades and says the peacefulness of the property is unrivalled.

“I started working at Capricorn a couple of weeks after Len bought the place in 1997,” Dennis said. “Len basically built this whole property to train his horses but over time moved the operation to the Gold Coast so the property quietened down.

“It’s funny because I used to work back here in the 1970s when it was a horse stud. In a way, it was like coming home. I just love it – the peace and quiet, the views.

“There’s a beautiful view from the lounge room and dining room area. You’re looking down the creek line across the top of the water. It’s just a really nice little spot.”

Set on a 19ha landholding and constructed just two years ago, 82 Capricorn Place comprises a 253sqm floorplan with four bedrooms and two bathrooms, three separate living areas, a functional open plan kitchen, serene views – and its very own golf course.

The golf course has been a labour of love for Dennis, spending his weekends in the early days painstakingly digging rocks out of the ground to create the pursuit where he and his mate, Len, enjoyed plenty of time.

“Way back before the place was subdivided there was a back paddock and it was full of rock. You couldn’t really do anything there so I asked Len if I could build a golf course,” Dennis recounted.

“So, I just got a bobcat and started shaping ground, mowing and had a couple of guys help me get some turf grass and it just developed.”

Windrose Property Principal and Licensed Agent Sam McGregor said Capricorn would appeal to a multitude of buyers, particularly those within the equine fraternity, keen golfers or for a commercially-minded tourism business.

“It’s a gorgeous home which is a quirky offering. Having a private golf course is certainly not something that comes up every day, so it’s going to appeal to golf fanatics and anyone who can see the value in it as a commercial pursuit,” Sam said.

“Above all, it will strike a chord with anyone looking for a premium lifestyle property. Premium is almost understating it because how many people can have a golf course in their backyard?

“There’s also an amazing opportunity to lean into what’s happening in the Murrumbateman wine district from a tourism perspective. Having another 30 acres of extremely fertile farm land means you could certainly establish a vineyard, so a combined a vineyard-cellar door-golf operation would be amazing.”

82 Capricorn Place is for sale by negotiation, with a price guide of $4 million.