Exhibit 99.1

March 12, 2021

Drive Shack Inc. Announces Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2020 Results and Preferred Stock Dividends
for First Quarter 2021

Reports 2020 Fourth Quarter Net Income of $9.9 Million and Positive Adjusted EBITDA of $5.3 Million

NEW YORK, March 12, 2021 -- Drive Shack Inc. (the “Company”) (NYSE: DS), a leading owner and operator of golf-related leisure and entertainment businesses, today reported its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2020.

“We are very pleased with our fourth quarter results as we continue to see strong momentum in both our Drive Shack and American Golf businesses,” said President and Chief Executive Officer Hana Khouri. “In December, we successfully reopened our Orlando entertainment golf venue and launched an online platform for single-bay reservations across all of our entertainment golf venues, both of which continue to generate solid and encouraging sales results. Our revenue driving initiatives and continued expense control discipline contributed to the positive Adjusted EBITDA results of $5.3 million this quarter, a $7.4 million improvement compared to the same quarter last year. With the challenging year faced by many in 2020, the quick reaction by our team across the entire organization to adapt to the new environment and re-stabilize the business positioned us to advance our growth priorities through the year.  I am incredibly proud of their hard work and relentless commitment to the continued success of our business.”

Khouri continued, “As we look ahead into 2021, our focus remains on strategic priorities to drive growth and profitability, including the launch and expansion of Puttery, capturing market share using data and analytics, growing brand awareness and advancing technology and innovation to remain at the forefront in our space. With our currently liquidity position and relatively unlevered balance sheet, we can maintain flexibility and optimize our capital stricture to be better positioned to react to future business needs. We believe 2021 will be a momentous year for us that is carried by a team that sets us apart and will drive us forward.”

Business Update

The Company’s four entertainment Drive Shack golf venues, including Orlando which reopened on December 18, 2020, generated total revenue of $7.2 million in the fourth quarter 2020, a decrease of $5.7 million compared to the fourth quarter 2019.  The decrease was primarily due to lower event revenue, which declined $4.0 million compared to the same period last year and continues to be impacted by locally mandated capacity restrictions on large group gatherings.

The strong momentum and demand for traditional golf continued for American Golf throughout the fourth quarter of 2020.  New full golf membership sales increased 20% and member rounds increased 37% on American Golf’s five private courses compared to the fourth quarter 2019. During the same period, green and cart fee revenue increased 44% on American Golf’s 30 public courses compared to the fourth quarter 2019, despite available tee times decreasing due to locally mandated restrictions. Overall, American Golf’s traditional golf business generated total revenue of $53.1 million in the fourth quarter 2020, which includes $13.3 million of managed course expense reimbursements. American Golf’s total revenue declined $5.8 million compared to the fourth quarter 2019, largely due to event revenue, which decreased by approximately $9.5 million during the same period.

Financial Liquidity Update

As of February 28, 2021, the Company had approximately $86 million of unrestricted cash on hand compared to approximately $44 million as of October 31, 2020. This increase is primarily due to approximately $54 million in net cash proceeds from the follow-on common stock offering completed in February 2021. The Company continues to maintain strong capital allocation discipline and expense control across the organization.

1

Financial Results

Three Months and Full Year Ended December 31, 2020
compared to the Three Months and Full Year Ended December 31, 2019
($ in thousands, except for per share data) (Unaudited):

   
Three Months Ended
   
Year Ended
 
   
December 31, 2020
   
December 31, 2019
   
December 31, 2020
   
December 31, 2019
 
Total revenues
 
$
60,287
   
$
71,815
   
$
219,987
   
$
272,064
 
Operating Loss
 
$
(3,648
)
 
$
(20,121
)
 
$
(36,635
)
 
$
(67,284
)
Net Income/(Loss)
 
$
9,946
   
$
(15,276
)
 
$
(56,354
)
 
$
(54,854
)
Net Income/(Loss) applicable to common stockholders
 
$
8,551
   
$
(16,671
)
 
$
(61,934
)
 
$
(60,434
)
Net Income/(Loss) applicable to common stock, per share
                               
Basic
 
$
0.13
   
$
(0.25
)
 
$
(0.92
)
 
$
(0.90
)
Diluted
 
$
0.13
   
$
(0.25
)
 
$
(0.92
)
 
$
(0.90
)
Adjusted EBITDA1
 
$
5,301
   
$
(2,064
)
 
$
(3,106
)
 
$
(11,951
)
 
For the three months ended December 31, 2020, the Company reported an operating loss of ($3.6) million and net income of $9.9 million compared to an operating loss of ($20.1) million and a net loss of ($15.3) million in the corresponding period of the prior year.  Adjusted EBITDA was $5.3 million for fourth quarter 2020, an increase of $7.4 million compared to Adjusted EBITDA of ($2.1) million for fourth quarter 2019. 1
 
For the twelve months ended December 31, 2020, the Company reported an operating loss of ($36.6) million and a net loss of ($56.4) million compared to an operating loss of ($67.3) million and a net loss of ($54.9) million in the corresponding period of the prior year.  Adjusted EBITDA was ($3.1) million for full year 2020, an increase of $8.8 million compared to Adjusted EBITDA of ($12.0) million for full year 2019. 1
 
Preferred Stock Dividends
The Board of Directors of the Company declared dividends on the Company’s preferred stock for the period beginning February 1, 2021 and ending April 30, 2021. The dividends are payable on April 30, 2021, to holders of record of preferred stock on April 1, 2021, in an amount equal to $0.609375, $0.503125 and $0.523438 per share on the 9.750% Series B, 8.050% Series C and 8.375% Series D preferred stock, respectively.

2020 Fourth Quarter and Full Year Earnings Conference Call Details
Management will host a live conference call and webcast to discuss the Company’s 2020 fourth quarter and full year results today starting at 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time.  The webcast will be made available to the public on a listen-only basis, along with the associated slide presentation, on the Company’s investor relations website at http://ir.driveshack.com. The conference call may be accessed by dialing 1-866-913-6930 (from within the U.S.) or 1-409-983-9881 (from outside of the U.S.) ten minutes prior to the scheduled start of the call and referencing conference ID 5779120.

A telephonic replay of the conference call will also be available approximately two hours following the conclusion of the call through 11:59 P.M. Eastern Time on Friday, March 26, 2021 and may be accessed by dialing 1-800-585-8367 (from within the U.S.) or 1-404-537-3406 (from outside of the U.S.) and referencing conference ID 5779120.

Additional Information
For additional information that management believes to be useful for investors, please refer to the presentation posted on the Investor Relations section of the Company’s website, http://ir.driveshack.com. For consolidated information, please refer to the Company’s most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q or Annual Report on Form 10-K, which are available on the Company’s website, http://ir.driveshack.com.



1 Adjusted EBITDA is a non-GAAP financial measure. For definitions and reconciliations of non-GAAP results please refer to the exhibit to this press release.

2

About Drive Shack
Drive Shack Inc. is a leading owner and operator of golf-related leisure and entertainment businesses.

Forward-Looking Statements: Certain statements regarding Drive Shack Inc. (together with its subsidiaries, “Drive Shack”, “we” or “us”) in this release may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. You can identify these forward-looking statements by the use of forward-looking words such as “outlook,” “believes,” “expects,” “by”, “approaches”, “nearly”, “potential”, “continues”, “may”, “will”, “should”, “could”, “seeks”, “approximately”, “predicts”, “intends”, “plans”, “estimates”, “anticipates”, “target”, “goal”, “projects”, “contemplates” or the negative version of those words or other comparable words. Any forward-looking statements contained in this release, including statements regarding the expected development schedule and timing of specific milestones for our facilities, including The Puttery and Drive Shack venues, our expected and the remaining cost for our development projects (both individually and in the aggregate), the expected capabilities of our development projects once completed, our intentions to make use of capital or free cash flow and our future financial position and liquidity are based upon our limited historical performance and on our current plans, estimates and expectations in light of information (including industry data) currently available to us. The inclusion of this forward-looking information should not be regarded as a representation by the Company or any other person that the future plans, estimates or expectations contemplated by us will be achieved. These statements are subject to a number of factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements, many of which are beyond our control. We can give no assurance that its expectations regarding any forward-looking statements will be attained. Accordingly, you should not place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements made in this release. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, the risk that our construction schedules will take longer than we expect, that our expectations about the consumer demand for our product will not prove accurate, that our operating or other costs will increase or our expected remaining costs for development projects underway increases and the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on our business and financial results. For a discussion of some of the risks and important factors that could affect such forward-looking statements, see the sections entitled “Risk Factors” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in the Company’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. In addition, new risks and uncertainties emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for the Company to predict or assess the impact of every factor that may cause its actual results to differ from those contained in any forward-looking statements.  Such forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this release. We expressly disclaim any obligation to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect any change in the Company’s expectations with regard thereto or change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any statement is based.

Non-GAAP Financial Measure
Adjusted EBITDA is not a measurement of financial performance under generally accepted accounting principles in the United States (“GAAP”) and should not be considered in isolation or as an alternative to GAAP financial measures.  We believe this non-GAAP financial measure, as we have defined it, provides a supplemental measure of financial performance of our current operations at our entertainment and traditional golf venues.  This measure excludes items that we believe are unrelated to the day-to-day performance of our current golf entertainment or traditional golf venues, including one-time pre-opening costs associated with new venue openings, corporate severance payments, (gain) loss on lease terminations and impairment, stock-based compensation, depreciation and amortization and other income (which does not include revenue from golf entertainment or traditional golf venues).  This non-GAAP financial measure is presented so that investors have the same type of financial data that management uses in evaluating the financial performance of the Company.

The principal limitation of this non-GAAP measure is that it excludes significant expenses and income that are required by GAAP to be recorded in our financial statements. A reconciliation is provided for the non-GAAP financial measure to our GAAP net income/(loss). Investors are encouraged to review the related GAAP financial measures and the reconciliation of the non-GAAP financial measure to our GAAP net income/(loss), and not to rely on any single financial measure to evaluate our business.

Adjusted EBITDA. We define Adjusted EBITDA as GAAP net income (loss), adjusted for income tax expenses, other income (loss), interest expenses, interest and investment income, depreciation and amortization, gain (loss) on lease terminations, impairment and other losses, pre-opening costs and certain other non-recurring items (including corporate severance payments, transactional G&A and stock-based compensation).

3

Consolidated Balance Sheets (Unaudited)

(dollars in thousands, except share data)
     
   
December 31, 2020
   
December 31, 2019
 
Assets
           
Current assets
           
Cash and cash equivalents
 
$
47,786
   
$
28,423
 
Restricted cash
   
2,252
     
3,103
 
Accounts receivable, net
   
4,446
     
5,249
 
Real estate assets, held-for-sale, net
   
---
     
16,948
 
Real estate securities, available-for-sale
   
3,223
     
3,052
 
Other current assets
   
14,410
     
17,521
 
Total current assets
   
72,117
     
74,296
 
Restricted cash, noncurrent
   
795
     
438
 
Property and equipment, net of accumulated depreciation
   
169,425
     
179,641
 
Operating lease right-of-use assets
   
192,828
     
215,308
 
Intangibles, net of accumulated amortization
   
15,124
     
17,565
 
Other investments
   
---
     
24,020
 
Other assets
   
6,765
     
4,723
 
Total assets
 
$
457,054
   
$
515,991
 
                 
Liabilities and Equity
               
Current liabilities
               
Obligations under finance leases
 
$
6,470
   
$
6,154
 
Membership deposit liabilities
   
14,692
     
10,791
 
Accounts payable and accrued expenses
   
29,596
     
25,877
 
Deferred revenue
   
23,010
     
26,268
 
Other current liabilities
   
28,217
     
23,968
 
Total current liabilities
   
101,985
     
93,058
 
Credit facilities and obligations under finance leases - noncurrent
   
12,751
     
13,125
 
Operating lease liabilities - noncurrent
   
167,837
     
187,675
 
Junior subordinated notes payable
   
51,182
     
51,192
 
Membership deposit liabilities, noncurrent
   
99,862
     
95,805
 
Deferred revenue, noncurrent
   
9,953
     
6,283
 
Other liabilities
   
3,447
     
3,278
 
Total liabilities
 
$
447,017
   
$
450,416
 
                 
Commitments and contingencies
               
                 
Equity
               
Preferred stock, $0.01 par value, 100,000,000 shares authorized, 1,347,321 shares of 9.75% Series B Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Stock, 496,000 shares of 8.05% Series C Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Stock, and 620,000 shares of 8.375% Series D Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Stock, liquidation preference $25.00 per share, issued and outstanding as of December 31, 2020 and 2019
   
61,583
     
61,583
 
Common stock, $0.01 par value, 1,000,000,000 shares authorized, 67,323,592 and 67,068,751 shares issued and outstanding at December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively
   
673
     
671
 
Additional paid-in capital
   
3,178,704
     
3,177,183
 
Accumulated deficit
   
(3,232,391
)
   
(3,175,572
)
Accumulated other comprehensive income
   
1,468
     
1,710
 
Total equity
 
$
10,037
   
$
65,575
 
                 
Total liabilities and equity
 
$
457,054
   
$
515,991
 

4

Consolidated Statements of Operations (Unaudited)

(dollars in thousands, except share data)
   
Three Months Ended
December 31,
   
Twelve Months Ended
December 31,
 
   
2020
   
2019
   
2020
   
2019
 
Revenues
                       
Golf operations
 
$
52,906
   
$
53,608
   
$
189,972
   
$
216,497
 
Sales of food and beverages
   
7,381
     
18,207
     
30,015
     
55,567
 
Total revenues
   
60,287
     
71,815
     
219,987
     
272,064
 
Operating costs
                               
Operating expenses
   
46,161
     
59,409
     
188,745
     
229,306
 
Cost of sales - food and beverages
   
2,180
     
4,759
     
8,834
     
15,217
 
General and administrative expense
   
7,182
     
9,994
     
31,284
     
47,976
 
Depreciation and amortization
   
6,823
     
6,627
     
27,152
     
22,396
 
Pre-opening costs
   
279
     
1,811
     
1,328
     
9,040
 
(Gain) loss on lease terminations and  impairment
   
1,310
     
9,336
     
(721
)
   
15,413
 
Total operating costs
   
63,935
     
91,936
     
256,622
     
339,348
 
Operating loss
   
(3,648
)
   
(20,121
)
   
(36,635
)
   
(67,284
)
                                 
Other income (expenses)
                               
Interest and investment income
   
165
     
156
     
565
     
955
 
Interest expense, net
   
(2,736
)
   
(2,753
)
   
(10,968
)
   
(8,760
)
Other income (loss), net
   
16,601
     
7,921
     
(7,611
)
   
20,876
 
Total other income (expenses)
   
14,030
     
5,324
     
(18,014
)
   
13,071
 
Net Income/(Loss) before income tax
   
10,382
     
(14,797
)
   
(54,649
)
   
(54,213
)
Income tax expense
   
436
     
479
     
1,705
     
641
 
Net Income/(Loss)
   
9,946
     
(15,276
)
   
(56,354
)
   
(54,854
)
Preferred dividends
   
(1,395
)
   
(1,395
)
   
(5,580
)
   
(5,580
)
Net Income/(Loss) Applicable to Common Stockholders
 
$
8,551
   
$
(16,671
)
 
$
(61,934
)
 
$
(60,434
)
                                 
Net Income/(Loss) Applicable to Common Stock, per share
                               
Basic
 
$
0.13
   
$
(0.25
)
 
$
(0.92
)
 
$
(0.90
)
Diluted
 
$
0.13
   
$
(0.25
)
 
$
(0.92
)
 
$
(0.90
)
Weighted Average Number of Shares of Common Stock Outstanding
                               
Basic
   
67,238,624
     
67,060,440
     
67,158,745
     
67,039,556
 
Diluted
   
67,833,329
     
67,060,440
     
67,158,745
     
67,039,556
 

5

Adjusted EBITDA Non-GAAP Reconciliation

(dollars in thousands)

   
Three Months Ended
December 31,
   
Twelve Months Ended
December 31,
 
   
2020
   
2019
   
2020
   
2019
 
                         
Net Income (Loss)
 
$
9,946
   
(15,276
)
 
(56,354
)
 
(54,854
)
                                 
Income tax expense
   
436
     
479
     
1,705
     
641
 
Other (income) expense, net
   
(16,601
)
   
(7,921
)
   
7,611
     
(20,876
)
Net interest expense
   
2,571
     
2,597
     
10,403
     
7,805
 
                                 
Operating Loss
 
(3,648
)
 
(20,121
)
 
(36,635
)
 
(67,284
)
                                 
Depreciation and amortization
   
6,823
     
6,627
     
27,152
     
22,396
 
(Gain) loss on lease terminations  and  impairment
   
1,310
     
9,336
     
(721
)
   
15,413
 
Pre-opening costs
   
279
     
1,811
     
1,328
     
9,040
 
Other items(1)
   
537
     
283
     
5,770
     
8,484
 
                                 
Adjusted EBITDA
 
$
5,301
   
(2,064
)
 
(3,106
)
 
(11,951
)

(1)
For the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2020, other items include (i) corporate severance of ($4) and $1,128, respectively; (ii) transactional G&A of $161 and $3,276, respectively; and (iii) stock-based compensation of $380 and $1,366, respectively. For the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2019, other items include (i) corporate severance of $682 and $2,271, respectively; (ii) transactional G&A of $1,132 and $5,076, respectively; and (iii) stock-based compensation of ($1,531) and $1,137, respectively.


6