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Goodbye to Ireland (part 7 of 7)

8/26/2023

Rosapenna Sandy Hills Golf Course Review Picture

My trip to Ireland ended about a year ago, and I said goodbye with one last golf round there, at the Sandy Hills Links at Rosapenna. Now, with this final golf course review and blog, my walk down Irish memory lane also comes to a close. It took me awhile, partially as I wanted to enjoy re-living these golf moments from what is close to my favorite place on earth, especially being able to have shared those golf memories with my family.

But, fear not, many more golf course reviews are sitting in my queue and now, with no active golf trips to new places planned for the rest of this year, I can begin to get through the backlog.

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The End of Ireland is in Sight (Ireland Part 6 of 7)

7/29/2023

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Rosapenna St Patrick Golf Course Review Picture

Yet another blog title with double meaning. First, the golf course itself is Tom Doak's new St. Patrick's Links at Rosapenna. That golf course, which is now reviewed, plays along Sheephaven Bay and the Atlantic Ocean, giving the player a few of, at least in one section, the end of Ireland.

The other part for the avid reader who has been following the Ireland series, will now note that there is only one more part coming, which will be the last golf course I played on the trip, hence the end of the Ireland series will finally be wrapped up next month, almost exactly 1 year after it was completed.

The good news, I guess, is that I'm still behind on more recent updates/ golf courses and have quite a few new golf courses to share over the remainder of 2023, even though I don't have any major new golf trips planned to play new golf courses for the next 5 months.

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An Addition at the Top (Ireland part 4 of...)

4/16/2023

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It's been awhile since a golf course cracked the GolfTop18 listing, but with the addition of Narin & Portnoo Links, that has changed. It can be easily argued that this is the least known of the golf courses on this list or possibly the least visited, but it is a true masterpiece and an even better setting. The golf course rating and slope probably don't account for the constant wind either, making this golf course one where a golfer can have a legendary round on a good-weather day or get "killed" on a windy day.

Part of what made way for this update was the forever closure of Ko'Olau Golf Course in 2020, which is now on The Honorable Mentions listing. But, that being said, this debut at #17 on the list, which is pretty impressive given the company it keeps.

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Can You Separate? (Ireland Part 3 of...)

3/19/2023

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Fresh off St. Patrick's Day, here's the next Ireland update. I played Doonbeg Golf Club, which is owned and operated by Trump Golf. I have several observations, both about the golf and how this golf course is viewed / treated by folks:

1 - It feels different. This is hard to articulate, but the Trump brand has a certain, real or perceived, opulence and east-coast (of the US) old-money, private country club vibe to it. The resort on property, the clubhouse, the restaurant, the service and the overall feel is that way, which is fine, but frankly, a little "fish out of water" in the charming, friendly and welcoming arms of the Irish, especially those on the west coast. So, to be frank, I felt a little strangely out of place or strangely enough, in America, when I was at the resort before and after my golf round. To many, this feel will be an attraction, to me it was a bit unexpected/ uncomfortable.

2 - The politics. My son and I watch a certain famous golfing pod-cast group that, among other things, do a golf travel series, which is absolutely fantastic, except for this one thing: one of their first ones was to Ireland and they spent half of the Doonbeg review hinting at politics and "not being able to separate" the golf course from their dislike for the owner. To be clear, I'm not very political and I have no allegiance to the owner at all. However, I'd just like people stop posturing when it comes to these things. If you want to make a statement, don't play the golf course and put your money where your mouth is. If you're going to play the golf course, then treat the golf course separate from it's owner and enjoy it or not on it's merits. Stop mixing and matching your supposed political convictions and actual activity Americans, it comes off as disingenuous, especially when you're just making money off it (hmmm...sound like something somebody else would do?).

3 - The golf. I'm sorry to put this third, but the golf course is actually pretty good. It's not top notch compared to some other Irish gems, but it has many memorable golf holes, some good views and a solid challenge to it, even from shorter tees. On a standalone basis, if one can ignore the above two items (and a pure golfer should) then it's worth the trip, as long as you can afford the over-priced tee time (my only real complaint).

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The Far West of Europe (Ireland part 2 of...)

2/4/2023

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Most Ireland golf trips that I've had or heard of revolve around playing the long list of great links golf courses the island has, many of which are world renowned. However, if one drives around the country, they will see many other, lesser known links and parkland golf courses as well. On this trip to Ireland, I had the great fortune of playing what is dubbed the course furthest west in Europe, Dingle Golf Club, or as it is known in the local, Gaelic dialect, Ceann Sibeal. It is a very classic links style golf course, with a little bit of elevation change, a pesky burn that wanders it's way throughout and plenty of pot bunkers to go along with the great location.

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Ryder Cup Venue + Jetlag = High Scores (Ireland Part 1 of...)

1/21/2023

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It's been 6 months since I travelled to Ireland for a family (and golf) vacation. So, I've been itching to start posting the golf course reviews from that trip since I played all "new" golf courses to this website. The first of those was a trip to the 2006 Ryder Cup venue, the K Club North Course. After experiencing that test of golf, I can say, without hesitation, it is clear why it's a tour level golf course. Not only is it in great shape, but the greens are fast, the rough is real and there are trees and trouble everywhere. In retrospect, jumping off an 11 hour flight, driving 60 minutes (left side of road) and giving myself no warmups to face this test was not the greatest plan from a scorecard perspective. However, my son and I had a memorable day having this golf course beat us up. Fortunately, the Guinness was ready on tap after the round and (shout out to No Laying Up) I conquered the Guinness "first sip" test perfectly on my first try ever. Gosh I love Ireland golfing!!

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A Sudden Realization

9/14/2013

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Those that know the GolfTop18 author are painfully aware that he likes to plan things in advance...WAY in advance. So, it will not come as a surprise that one of our likely destinations for a European vacation in 2016 (yes, I know it's a LONG time away) is Ireland. I've been there twice and, although the GolfTop18 in me wants to play in more countries than I have to date, I also know that there are SO many great golf courses in Ireland still available to be played.

While pondering this, I came to the sudden realization that while I love many of the golf courses in the Ireland Reviews section, it's very unlikely that I will be playing them again any time soon. With the likes of Ballybunion, Waterville and Tralee still unplayed, I will need to expand my horizons when I make it back to Ireland. So, since I had a few unreleased pictures of holes from the courses I played already, I went back, did some soul searching, and added them to my reviews, even if they weren't my favorite holes. They expand the review either way and, who knows, maybe it'll sway some other traveler to Ireland to make a choice on which course to play.

We've also done the same thing on the other European Golf Course sections of the website, and there are a few more pictures there as well.

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Goodbye to Ireland (part 7 of 7)

The End of Ireland is in Sight (Ireland Part 6 of 7)

An Addition at the Top (Ireland part 4 of...)

Can You Separate? (Ireland Part 3 of...)

The Far West of Europe (Ireland part 2 of...)

Ryder Cup Venue + Jetlag = High Scores (Ireland Part 1 of...)

A Sudden Realization

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