County Louth is in Baltray (once a tiny fisherman’s village) at the mouth of the River Boyne. The club is also just North of the beautiful medieval town of Drogheda which is well worth a visit if you’re looking to combine golf with a bit ofculture. The club was established in 1892 and sits on an expansive 190-acre plot.
The course is noted for its variety of play, no two holes seem to play in the same direction and many say there isn’t a weak hole on it. The greens are among the best in the country, so if you avoid three-putting over the whole 18 holes, you can claim ‘great putter’ status. This course is a bit special - it will put demands on your skills while giving you a fair shot. So, if you relish a challenge this is the course for you.
Portmarnock Old Course is situated on the coastline just ten miles to the North of Dublin. It is perched on a slim tongue of duneland jutting out to sea and is a naturally laid out course with low sand dunes and long valleys, so the direction of play is not continuous. Laid out in two nine-hole loops, it’s surrounded by water on three sides and the greens are some of the fastest you will ever play on. Portmarnock golf course has hosted many well-known golfing championships, including 12 editions of the Irish Open. This is also the venue where Arnold Palmer and Sam Snead claimed victory in the 1960 Canada Cup, and where Phil Mickelson and David Duval secured an unforgettable Walker Cup triumph in 1991. Play here and you walk in the footsteps of golfing legends.
Further down the coast, you’ll find The European course. This Wicklow golf course has been ranked amongst the world's top 100 golf courses several times. Famed for satisfying the cerebral aspects of the game we all know and love, you'll find your brain going into overdrive if and when you get the opportunity to play it. This links designed course is kept in top condition by the talented designer and writer Pat Ruddy, the owner, designer and host at the club for more than three decades.
The European was opened in 1993 after Pat discovered the land while surveying the Irish coastline, on a quest to unearth the perfect location for a golf course. All in all, playing here makes for a remarkable experience. It’s easy to wax lyrical about golf courses in Ireland but this place really is a jewel - set among huge dunes, and especially challenging off the tees. This is somewhere you do not want to hit offline, (although at least the beach is in play on the back nine should shots go awry). The course has 20 holes (two additional par threes) and the back nine will live long in the memory. Just an hour’s scenic drive from Dublin, look no further than this beautiful venue If you're intent on enjoying a quintessentially Irish golfing experience.
The Island boasts a course that is over 100 years old, set on what used to be an island but is now attached to the mainland by a narrow sliver of land which straddles estuaries on either side. It’s a challenging course, called Malahide’ by some, after the village nearby. It presents the golfer with a brilliant 'what you see is what you get' round of golf, which sometimes can be just what you want (and need, if you wish to build your morale!). Most of the greens on this course are set in naturally-formed amphitheatres surrounded by gigantic dunes. Perhaps the flagship hole is the 13th - a lengthy 220-yard par-3. The historical experience is most striking on the 14th tee box, which was the foundation for the original clubhouse on the edge of the Malahide Estuary. For over 80 years golfers had to row across the sea to reach the course. Featuring some of the most striking dunes on Ireland's East coast, The Island is one of the country's oldest courses and has an excellent international reputation. In fact, the club regularly hosts Regional Qualifying games for The British Open.
Our programmes are extremely flexible; if you'd like us to create something unique for you, we'll do exactly that according to the courses you'd most like to play, the number of rounds, the accommodation and the number of nights you'll be with us.
For more details about our unique golfing experiences, please go to our Ireland experience page.