Golfing Ireland - Summer 2008

[Titleist87]

My dad sent me an email this weekend with the opening line "Hey boys (two brothers and brother in law), I want to put together a golf trip to Ireland next summer." Sounds good. Continues that he'll pay for all major expenses and that I'm responsible for only miscellaneous things. Sounds even better. I guess the golf travel bug caught him after my brother took him to Pebble Beach for Father's Day. I was planning on going too, but that is another story. So anyway. I'm excited and hope everything works out. We will all be together as a family next month so we will discuss it more, then. Anybody had the chance to play in Ireland? Any recommendations?

[oneplanedan]

European club .......Port Rush........K-club..........Old Head

[Titleist87]

Thanks for the info. I've looked at one course so far (Old Head) and it appears to be quite scenic. I don't know any specifics yet since we have not discussed the trip together. I'll check out the others online as well. Question on Old Head - it appears to be a private club and no public access. Correct?

[illinikyle]

Royal County Down is the must play for your trip. It is the finest golf course that I have ever played and I can't wait to get back to give it another go. In addition you should play Royal Portrush which is not far away and not far behind in quality. I would also recommend the following:

 

Ballybunion

Lahinch

Carne

Rosses Point (Co Sligo Golf Club)

European Club

Portmarnock

 

My trip to Ireland is my fondest golfing memory to date. You will love it!

[AirTime23]

Well....the irish summer....just look at what the irish summer did to last weekends Kappa Smurfit Open on the Euro Tour. Rain in the early part of the week was so severe that the finishing Par5 had to be played as a Par3 due to flooding of the fairway...plus the numerous weather delays.

 

Anyways...greensfees for Old Head are not quite that expensive, only 295€, that's less than $400, but a caddy would be recommended, if only to tell you that your ball did indeed go down the cliff.

You have to reserve tee times in advance or you won't even be allowed past the gatehouse.

[e-dog9]

http://www.ballyliffingolfclub.com/home.htm

[robbiefowler]

I would have to recommend Tralee, I think its has to one of the best links around and streets ahead of Ballybunion.

It was Arnold Palmers 1st course design in Europe.

[banistr]

I just returned returned yesterday from a two week trip to Ireland, and I must say Tralee was one of the best courses we played....way ahead of Ballybunion in "condition" and "astetics". The views were second to none.

 

We played the following

 

1) Adare Manor- Site of this years Irish Open...course was nice and very "American" not links

2) Tralee -This is a must play..very good condition and the views were incredible

3) Kilarne- (Kileene course) Nice course and in great condition..alot of long par 4's Not LINKS golf.

5) Ballybunion (Old and NEW)- We played both courses on Saturday..and I must say that I wasnt too impressed with the condition of either. They both had spectacular views, but fromn all the hype..I was expecting alot more. I would definantly rather play Tralee.

6) Waterville-Very nice nice links course and in great condition. We flew by Helicopter to this one, so the ride over probably enhanced the trip, but still a great course.

7)Doonbeg- This is a must!!!!! The course was by far in the best condition than any we play. Bent grass greens and fairways were awsome. This course was Americanized in every way....from the proshop staff to the starter..they were all American. Greg Norman did a good one with this.

8) OLDHEAD- Dont really know where to start with this one....course was 100 times better than Pebble Beach in every way except hospitality. You must PREPAY for the wole round (not a deposit) and if the conditions are unplayable....as they were for us, they do not

refund your money. The winds were 60+ which didnt allow us to fly into Oldhead and the balls would not stay on the greens. You could not putt...chip...or even stand with two feet on the greens without getting blown over. The starter informed us they have ony closed the course ONCE...and that was for only an hour. So this is definantly a crap shoot on catching the wheather in a condition that is enjoyable. This was going to be the highlight of our trip and trned out to be the biggest dissappointment.

9) Ballybunion Old - Yea I know I said this was my least favorite....but one of the guys we went with was a member here and we had a free day before our flight back...so he got us on during "members time" on Thursday....It was still in the same condition!!!

 

 

Hope this helps...

Joe

[FairwayFred]

If possible DO NOT miss Lahinch and Royal County Down. Both are everything you could ever want in a golf course. Lahinch might be the most fun golf course anywhere in the world. The Klondike and The Dell back to back combined with the spectacular Alister Mackenzie greens make it a must play. Royal County Down might be the best course in the world. They are not close to each other but do not miss either.

[AirTime23]

When you're still looking for inspirations, check this series of blog entires by Tom Coyne:
[url="http://www.golf.com/golf/writer_repository/1,28280,,00.html?scontrib=Tom+Coyne&column=contributor,teacher"]http://www.golf.com/golf/writer_repository...ributor,teacher[/url]

He went around Ireland playing all Links courses in the country for 4 months. And when I say went I do mean that quite lietrally...

[JoeW1968]

Agree with all previous posts.

I make a point of travelling to Ireland in April and September every year for a short break each time. I live only 40 miles from St. Andrews in Scotland so am currently spoilt for courses to play. However, I must say that the European Club is the probably the 2nd best links course I have ever played - better than St. Andrews, Carnoustie, Turnberry and Kingsbarns. As a little quirk The European Club has 20 holes - there are 2 little par 3's stuck in after the 7th and 12th (I think). They are properly laid out holes and are in play most days. Also the 12th green is around 125 yards long from front to back! The only links style course which beats The European Club is IMO Royal County Down. For another superb links course, which is away from the main tourist areas try Donegal (Murvagh). It's very much up in the north west of Ireland, but it's a beautiful setting. It's a demanding course with very reasonable green fees.

As for parkland courses, I played both courses at The K Club earlier this year. IMO I thought the Smurfit Course (the non-Ryder Cup course) was the better course. The best parkland course I have played in the last 3 years was the Montgomerie Course at Carton House. It is described as an "inland links" and has superb strategic bunkering. There is another course at Carton House designed by Mark O'Meara but I didn't play that one. Carton House is in Maynooth about 18-20 miles west of Dublin. The K Club is only about 5 miles in a southerly direction from Carton House. I also played at Druids Glen (about 20 miles south of Dublin). There is another course there also called Druids Heath, but I didn't play that one. The day we were at Druids Glen the weather was terrible, so that probably clouded my judgement a little. However, you could still see that the layout was stunning and even though the weather was terrible and the shaft on my R7 snapped on the way round I still had a brilliant time.

Finally for parkland courses, there is a course called Woodenbridge about 50 miles south/south west from the centre of Dublin. Ok, it doesn't have glamour of some of the big named courses and it isn't the longest (just over 6,000 yards from the visitors tees). However, you will not find a course in a more stunning setting in the whole of Ireland and once again it has reasonable green fees.

Above all, no matter what type of course you play and no matter what part of Ireland you travel to you can be sure of one thing - the people are brilliant, so friendly and helpful. I truly believe that if you decide to go to Ireland and play just some of the courses mentioned in these articles by the various respondents then you, your dad and the rest of your group will have a a brilliant, never to be forgotten time.

Best wishes, good luck and happy golfing.

[parpar41]

The problem is there is enough great golf for a 3 month trip. If only the Irish summer was that long. If you have time, you could spend a few days in Kerry, drive up the west coast via Connemara, stop at Ballyliffin cross into Northern Ireland (although you will only notice you have done so when you see the phone boxes and letter boxes are a different colour), play Portrush, down to RCD, and on down the east coast to Dublin.

 

Interesting coincidence.

 

I just saw the above post from last summer. I am heading out in few weeks for essentially that same golf trip/ same itinerary. After four rounds and four nights in Killarney ( county Kerry ) we head north to Lahinch; Carne, ( we will not get ot Ballyliffen this trip) and then to Ryl Portrush and Ryl county Down before flying home from Dublin.

 

I have not looked forward to something with this much excitiment for some time.

[Lenny Intensity]

I am planning on going to Ireland with my wife and in-laws, who don't play golf. We are planning on spending a few days in County Kerry where my mother-in-law's family is from, where there appear to be quite a few courses I'm interested in playing. My question is, do they allow singles to go out on most courses? I'm specifically interested in playing some combination of Waterville, Tralee, and Ballybunion. From looking at Ballybunion's website, it appears that they only take reservations for groups of 4, and Waterville's website mentions preferential tee times to guests of Waterville House. I'm planning on going off season (Feb/March of 2010) and I would think the courses would take all the business they can get, but I wouldn't want to go all the way out there with my clubs only to get denied. If anyone has any information it would be much appreciated....

[peat24]

READ THIS:

Tom Conye "A Course Called Ireland"

 

you will get the honest insight to ALL the seaside links courses, plus some pub drinking tips.

 

it is fantastic!!!!!

[Lenny Intensity]

Thanks for the reply. Thermal underwear and rain gear are obvious... I live in Seattle and know the drill!

[belmullet]

Hi,
you will have a great time and I can't really add much to what has already been said. I did a solo golf trip to Ireland in May of 2006- planned everything myself and rented a car. If you haven't been to Ireland, driving the first couple of days is something very close to terrifying- be very careful and don't get discouraged. It will get easier and even enjoyable. The roads are extremely narrow once off the "interstates." Don't be afraid to slow down or stop to let people go by or around- Irish drivers are usually polite and appreciate the gesture. If you want even more deference, stop by a gas station with a garage and purchase a "L" sticker for your car window. This tells people you are a "learner" or in my case a loser..American. I was there for three glorious weeks, staying at B&Bs, small hotels and a couple of "country houses." I loved almost all of them and the food was very good for the most part.

on to the golf. In May, most courses (except the big names in the South like Ballybunion, Tralee, and Waterville) were not crowded and I often played by myself. Walked 36 holes three days in a row. Not sure I could have done a 4th, but the cool weather, bracing winds and beautiful scenery make you feel like you could go forever sometimes. Especially when you knew there was a hot shower, a good meal, a bottle of wine or a pint or two of Guinness at the end of the road. I stayed in the West of Ireland. I desperately wanted to play the European Club on the East Coast and was willing to drive across Ireland to do it, but the one time I could fit it in there was a tournament. the cool thing about communicating with the European Club was that Pat Ruddy Sr. personally responded to my enquiries. I really want to go back and play there and around Dublin and Northern Ireland.

I loved Carne, Enniscrone (very friendly) and Lahinch (less friendly but a great course). The best surprise of the trip was a course that is often left off itineraries called Portsalon in Northwest Ireland. It lies in a little seaside town (empty in May) at the end of a beautiful but very winding road. The course was redone some years back and is a very "spiritual" place if that makes sense. Not a pure links course but challenging and interesting with a lot of character. The Sandy Hills course at Rosapenna was spectacular. I was less happy with Ballyliffen, but just may have been tired by then and I got really drenched that day. I liked Rosses' Point (County Sligo) and loved the area, but the course didn't bowl me over. Same with Connemara- pleasant and in a region of Ireland with absolutely stunning scenery.

In the South, I played Tralee, Ballybunion and Waterville. Shot my best round of the trip at Ballybunion and my worst at Waterville, but liked both courses. Tralee was my first round and it was extremely enjoyable, but it had a sort of tour bus feel about it. Lots of golfers- but it is a really nice course. I stayed for several days on the Dingle Peninsula- I highly recommend a drive around it as it is some of the most beautiful scenery I have ever encountered. there is a small course there with an Irish name- also called Dingle Golf Club. I was too busy listening to music (there was a festival) to play there but it would be cheap and friendly. The other less well know course in that area (this time on the Ring of Kerry) is called Dooks. I didn't play there either, but talked to a guy at Waterville who was also a member there and he (and others) had good things to say about it. Lots of Americans head to Old Head, but I had little interest in shelling out that much money to join other Americans. It is supposed to be spectacular, however. I also had no interest in the K-Club. Too American, too expensive, too much like just a resort. But that is just my taste. As you can tell, I loved the remoteness of NW Ireland.

I almost forgot. Donegal Golf Club was extremely friendly and fun to play, though not one of the best of the courses I played. I would still recommend it if you are in the area.

Enjoy your trip!
Craig

[Lenny Intensity]

Nice synopsis of your trip, Craig. I'm going to be staying in Killarney for 6 nights, Dingle for 2, and Dublin for 6. My brother is joining us in Dublin and we'll be playing European Club, Royal County Down, The Island, Baltray, and Portmarnock. Extremely excited about those. I'm playing solo in the SW but will try to play Ballybunion (limited tee times in March), Tralee (they throw in a second round for free!), Waterville, Dooks, and Dingle. I'll be playing these courses solo.

Undecided about playing Killarney (Killeen), does anyone know if this course is worth it? I'm staying in Killarney for 6 nights and it would be nice to not drive an hour plus to get to courses, but it's going to be the spring and it's a parkland course which I imagine may be really soggy.

Has anyone driven from Killarney to Lahinch for a day trip? I'd love to play Lahinch but think it's going to be too much of a hike.