Fairfax Financial and CI Investments have agreed to buy retailer Golf Town from the chain's U.S. parent, which is seeking protection from its creditors. The deal, which is scheduled to close on Oct. 31, will see Canadian Golf Town stores change hands and be owned by Fairfax and CI, which already own 40 per cent of the debt of Golfsmith International — Golf Town's U.S. parent. Golf Town currently has 55 locations in Canada, but that number is expected to shrink as all Golf Town locations not included in Wednesday's deal will be shuttered. It's not immediately clear how many Golf Town locations the two Canadian investment firms are buyingOntario-based pension fund OMERS bought Golf Town in 2007 for $240 million, and then added U.S.-based Golfsmith to the company for an additional $97 million US in 2012. In a release, the U.S. parent Golfsmith says it has filed for creditor protection in the U.S. and Canada — a move that has the support of both Fairfax and CI.

Source: CBC News September 14, 2016 14:11 UTC