Eric O'Keefe

Eric O'Keefe (born March 11, 1961) is an American author, editor, and journalist based in Texas. His most recent book is the Palm Beach polo murder mystery The Perfect 10. He authored the book The Cup and co-wrote the screenplay for the Village Roadshow feature film The Cup. O'Keefe has served as the editor-in-chief of The Land Report since its founding in 2007. In January 2021, The Land Report published O’Keefe’s investigative report on the extensive farmland holdings of Microsoft cofounder Bill Gates. His cover story revealed Gates to be the largest private farmland owner in the United States with 242,000 acres in 16 states in 2020. Author The Perfect 10 (2020) is O'Keefe's most recent book and his first work of fiction. The Palm Beach murder mystery follows West Point graduate Rick Hunt, a White House Fellow assigned to the Chief of Staff, as he investigates the killing of the world’s greatest polo player, Juancito Harrington. Hunt’s investigation culminates during play in the final of the U.S. Open Polo Championship in Wellington, Florida. O'Keefe's The Cup (2009) is the story of Damien Oliver's dramatic victory on Media Puzzle in the world's richest and most prestigious two-mile handicap, the Melbourne Cup. The week before the race, Damien's only brother, Jason, died following a track accident in Perth while riding an unraced horse at Ascot Racecourse. The tragedy bore a haunting similarity to the death of their father, Ray Oliver, who died in 1975 after a racing fall in the Boulder Cup in Kalgoorlie. Damien's decision to honor his brother by returning and competing in Australia's greatest race culminated in Media Puzzle's emotion-charged victory, which has been rated one of the memorable moments in Australian sports history. O'Keefe traveled to Australia, Dubai, and Ireland to research The Cup, which was published in Australia by Slattery Media and launched in the Committee Room at Flemington Racecourse on August 4, 2009.