Jump to content
IGNORED

Ireland newbie


Note: This thread is 4994 days old. We appreciate that you found this thread instead of starting a new one, but if you plan to post here please make sure it's still relevant. If not, please start a new topic. Thank you!

Recommended Posts

I'm going on a family trip (grandparents wedding anniversary) that's not supposed to be a golf trip, but the men and gonna get some rounds in. We're gonna be in Co. Kerry for the first week, then Dublin. I wasn't in charge of booking golf in Kerry so I don't know where we're playing except for Parknasilla in Sneem, which is the place we're staying at. I have heard that we are probably going to play that along with Dooks and Waterville (most likely). I booked Druids Glen, The Island, and Howth for when we go East. I've never been there before, so could anyone give me any info on these courses, local pubs (around Sneem or Dublin), or anything else to do, bring, etc. Thanks

in my bag
driver: r9 with Fujikura Motore 65g stiff shaft
3w-5w: Sz with stock shafts (aldila hm) stiff
irons(3-pw): s59 stiff
wedges: 52deg. rac satin vokey spin milled 56deg. putter: xg9ball: b330rx

Link to comment
Share on other sites


I live next to kerry
Kerry has some of the most beatidul links courses in all of ireland.
Don't bother with the big names (unless you have the money) like lahinch. It's 3rd in ireland but it's expensive to play. It's worth it if you have the cash.
There's also a load of small links courses dotted around the place, they'll give you all the thrills and spills of the expensive courses for less than a third of the price.

A lot of the big courses try to attract tourists, if you want to go there fine. But if you want to experience real links golf go to the small courses or Lahinch.

For parkland there's only 1 place to go. It's around an hour away from you in clare. "Dromolan Golf Course" nicest course I've ever played. Beautiful views and it isn't too expensive.

My Clubs
Driver - LV4 10* R flex
Wood - sam snead persimmon 2 wood (for windy days)
Hybrid burner tour launch 20* stiff flex.
Irons - Tour Mode 3i,4i stiffIrons - FP's 5-PW R-flexWedge - spin milled 54.14Wedge - spin milled 60.07Putter - Victoria Lowest round 2010: 79 (par 70)Latest rounds at...

Link to comment
Share on other sites


I wasn't in charge of booking golf in Kerry so I don't know where we're playing except for Parknasilla in Sneem, which is the place we're staying at. I have heard that we are probably going to play that along with Dooks and Waterville (most likely).

http://www.ballybuniongolfclub.ie/faq.html
http://oldhead.com/golf/course-overview/
http://www.doonbeggolfclub.com/golf.html
http://www.lahinchgolf.com/index.php
http://traleegolfclub.com/index.php/site/
http://www.dooks.com/pgs/welcome.html
http://www.watervillegolflinks.ie/html/frameset.html
http://www.killarney-golf.com/
http://www.fotaisland.ie/Welcome-to-...land-Golf-Club

I booked Druids Glen, The Island, and Howth for when we go East.

http://www.theeuropeanclub.com/guestfeesshop.html
http://www.portmarnock.com/golf.php
http://www.druidsglen.ie/?page=90803
http://www.theroyaldublingolfclub.co...tecaddy/site3/

Some of those you may find a little expensive but I would assume that given the opportunity to play one of the worlds best courses and realistically get a tee time might be worth it.

Just remember that you can't rely on Irish weather even in the summer!
http://www.theislandgolfclub.com/
Link to comment
Share on other sites


Druids Glen is amazing you will love it.
Not much around it though as regards pubs though as it is pretty much in the middle of nowhere!,though there is a nice hotel down from it.
Its not in Dublin btw its in County Wicklow,where are you staying in Dublin?

A successful man is one who can lay a firm foundation with the bricks that others throw at him

Link to comment
Share on other sites


Howth is a really nice place, not just the course. Think very nice seaside town.

I would play Portmarnock as well if you get the chance, it doesn't seem too expensive for the history of the place.

Taylormade RBZ 10.5 driver, Taylormade Burner 2.0 15 deg 3 wood, Mizuno JPX800 19deg hybrid, Taylormade Burner 2.0 4-PW, Titleist Vokey 52,56,60 rusty wedges, Odyssey White Ice #7 360gm tour weight, Bridgestone B330S

Link to comment
Share on other sites


Depends how much cash you want to spend, and what type of course. If you want to experience authentic links, then The Island, Portmarnock and Royal Dublin are great choices. I would pass on Howth and Druids Glen. DG is nice, but it a US style course and you can play plenty of those back stateside.

----------------------------------
909D3 10.5 Matrix Code 6
909F2 15.5 and 18.5 Whiteboard
585H Ozik Altus
MP68 4-P, KBS ZTP 52. 56, 60 KBS DASS Luke DonaldHome club: http://www.bearwoodlakes.co.uk/hm/hm.aspx

Link to comment
Share on other sites


You have rich pickings and it depends on what you want to play - if you're in Parknasilla (one of the best and friendliest hotels in the country) then Waterville is very close, and Skellig Bay is nearby too. Parknasilla is a 12 hole hotel course and won't be in as good a condition as others nearby. Dooks, also fairly close has the best views of a golf course in Ireland (have a look around from the 2nd green.

Kenmare is the nearest town to Parnasilla - it's very pretty and there are plenty of restaurants to choose from - it's a popular tourist destination. Killarney is over the mountains (Moll's Gap) and is a lovely winding drive down to the lakes and Killarney town.

In Dublin, I'd agree that Druid's Glen is well worth a visit, and I don't consider it as 'American' as mjtoal suggests. You'll pay between 80 and 120 euro per golfer. It's a little out in the country, but the very lively seaside village of Greystones is five minutes (it's where I play golf), with great restaurants and pubs. If you're going that way, let me know.

There are 2 Portmarnock courses which confuses a lot of people: "Portmarnock" is the original and very old course, but it will set you back 180 euro ( www.portmarnockgolfclub.ie/ ). The other and newer course (designed by Bernard Langer) known as Portmarnock Links is http://www.portmarnock.com/golf and a round costs far less (40 to 50 euro). It is an excellent hotel, designed around golfers.

If you're after history and bragging rights, then Portmarnock or Royal Dublin are the best bets. Personally, I prefer a thrill and would choose The Island. 115 Euro

I like Howth, but it's hilly and exposed. Course condition is very good, but not up to the levels of the others. 60 euro a head too. Then again, Howth is another nice seaside village with great seafood restaurants and great views (from the golf course).

The European has been mentioned - a brilliant links, an hour south of Dublin.

If you fancy being a mountain goat, you can play probably the steepest course in Ireland and home to Padraig Harrington on the outskirts of Dublin - Stackstown.

You'll find photos of most of these courses on my Flickr page

Hope this helps
Link to comment
Share on other sites


Druids Glen is amazing you will love it.

Hey Paddy................2 of us are headed to N. Ireland September 2nd through 11th and from the research I have been able to aquire, no need to play the top name tourist courses. We would rather mingle with the locals and play the "hiddden jewels". We are doing a 12 day trip on a restricted budget and was hoping you might help us out.

We are heading up to Bushmills for first 2-3 days and then thought we would just cruise around in search of budget lodging and golf. Got any recommendations up that way on lodging (don't like the hotels so much) with friendly locals and any recommended "locals" courses? We need to be over in Ballymina on the 7th and 8th to spread father's ashes. After that we are open to anything around Dublin with flights departing on September 11th. Any help would be most appreciated............maybe we can hook up and share a pint or golf together. My email is jack.smith@pcg.com.............thanks much!!!
Link to comment
Share on other sites


Hey Paddy................2 of us are headed to N. Ireland September 2nd through 11th and from the research I have been able to aquire, no need to play the top name tourist courses. We would rather mingle with the locals and play the "hiddden jewels". We are doing a 12 day trip on a restricted budget and was hoping you might help us out.

Up at Royal Portrush the Valley Links is the understudy course and quite reasonably priced.

Portstewart Strand is nearby and costs a bit more. Rathmore golf club home of the US Open Champion is very close to bushmills too and apparently not too expensive. In Belfast Belvoir Park very good value if book online. Dublin has been listed above. The cheapest courses will be £15 in the North or in the South 20 euros, most of the ones I listed are mid priced £30-£60 / euros 40-90 and the premium courses you want to avoid could be anything up to £180+
Link to comment
Share on other sites


  • 2 weeks later...
Thanks everyone..................all have been very helpful.

Looks like we are planning the following, based on where we have to be on the 8th of Sept:

3-Sep Ardglass
4-Sep Kilmarnock(Barassie) Troon
5-Sep Cairndhu Golf Club, Larne
6-Sep Portrush Valley
7-Sep Royal Portrush
8-Sep Galgorm Castle
9-Sep Galgorm Castle (they have a 2nite/2round/1dinner package...if you think it is worth playing)
10-Sep The Island

Kevin has helped us greatly and we are hoping to share a pint while we are over there.

Any comments greatly appreciated................

Almost forgot..........any thoughts on Seapoint Golf Club??

Thanks again...............
Link to comment
Share on other sites


Pick up a copy of "A Course Called Ireland" by Coyne for the plane trip over - it will help get you in the mood!

I found 2 other books that look interesting: Hooked: An Amateur's Guide to the Golf Couses of Ireland and

Rick Steves' Ireland with Map.............. It looks like Troon area is out for Saturday. Seems most all of the courses there don't have room for visitors on the weekend. Guess I will have to change the trip a bit.
Link to comment
Share on other sites


Note: This thread is 4994 days old. We appreciate that you found this thread instead of starting a new one, but if you plan to post here please make sure it's still relevant. If not, please start a new topic. Thank you!

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now


  • Want to join this community?

    We'd love to have you!

    Sign Up
  • TST Partners

    TourStriker PlaneMate
    Golfer's Journal
    ShotScope
    The Stack System
    FlightScope Mevo
    Direct: Mevo, Mevo+, and Pro Package.

    Coupon Codes (save 10-15%): "IACAS" for Mevo/Stack, "IACASPLUS" for Mevo+/Pro Package, and "THESANDTRAP" for ShotScope.
  • Popular Now

  • Posts

    • Makes sense.  Like I said, I wouldn't have been upset at their original offer either, and based on the fine print it seems like they've held up their end of the deal.  
    • If you've only had to adjust retroactively one time in 8 years and have around 5 people each year without handicaps, that's like 40-50 people total so it sounds like you're doing a pretty good job. I think your questions give enough to go off of. This might be a good way to get new people to actually post a few scores during the 6 weeks leading into the first event. Something like "New members will be eligible for tournament money once they have at least 3 posted rounds in GHIN" or something like that. If they can get 3 rounds in prior to their first event, then they're eligible. If not, they'll soon become eligible after an event or two assuming they play a little bit outside of events.
    • This is a loooooong winded narrative so if you don't like long stories, move on. 😉 Our senior club typically gets about 25 new members each year. We lose about 25 members each year for various reasons (moved to FL/AZ, disabled, dead, too expensive). Of the new members, usually 20 have an active GHIN handicap. About 5 each year do not have a GHIN handicap. When they join our club, we give each member a state association membership that includes GHIN handicapping services. We play a series of handicapped tournaments over the summer. When we sign up a new member who does not have a GHIN handicap, we attempt to give them an estimated index until they have sufficient scores posted to have an actual GHIN index.  Our first event typically is around May 15 so, in theory, a new member has about 6 weeks to post a few scores. Posting season in the Mitten starts April 1. Inevitably, several of the unhandicapped individuals seem  to either not play until the first tournament or can't figure out how to enter scores (hey, they are seniors). That situation then leads to my contacting the new member and asking a series of questions: a. Did you ever have a GHIN handicap? If yes, which State and do you recall what it was? b. Do you have an alternate handicap through a non-GHIN handicap service or a league? c. What do you think your average score was last year (for 9 or 18) d. What was your best score last year? Where did you play and which tee was used? e. What do you consider a very good score for yourself? Based on their responses I attempt to give them an index that makes them competitive in the first couple events BUT does not allow them to win their flight in the first couple events. We don't want the new members to finish last and at the same time, we don't want someone with a "20" playing handicap to win the third flight with a net 57. In the event some new member did shoot a net 57, we also advise everyone that we can and will adjust handicaps retroactively when it is clear to us that a member's handicap does not accurately reflect their potential. We don't like to adjust things retroactively and in the 8 years I have chaired the Handicap Committee, we have only done it once. So here are the questions to the mob: Any ideas how to do this better? Any questions one might ask an unhandicapped individual to better estimate their index/handicap? Would it be reasonable to have a new player play once (or more?) without being eligible to place in the money?
    • Wordle 1,013 4/6 ⬜🟨⬜🟨🟨 ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ 🟩🟩🟩🟩⬜ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
    • Awesome! I got that a while back with my start word! Wordle 1,013 4/6 ⬜⬜🟨⬜🟨 ⬜🟨⬜🟩⬜ ⬜⬜🟩🟩🟨 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

Welcome to TST! Signing up is free, and you'll see fewer ads and can talk with fellow golf enthusiasts! By using TST, you agree to our Terms of Use, our Privacy Policy, and our Guidelines.

The popup will be closed in 10 seconds...