Young Irish Golf Courses Evolving

The growth of Irish golf courses exploded between 1990 and 2008. The total number of courses on the island increased by 50% in that period... and only a handful of those were in Northern Ireland. Some of those courses have closed; some have been reborn. Many have struggled; a few have thrived.

The Castlemartyr clubhouse being built in 2008 and
how the wood has 'weathered' today.

Here are some photos showing how four of our courses looked in their early days and how they look today.

Caste Dargan... and a packet of Condoms!

When you get involved in these Mega-deal site offers, like Groupon, I guess you have to take your chances. This morning I received an email from Groupon offering a great deal at the 4 Star Castle Dargan Hotel & Golf Resort.

One (€99) or Two (€159) Night Break For Two With a Round of Golf or Spa Treatment Each at 4* Castle Dargan Hotel - which is up to 67% off.

For more details, click on the link - the offer is available until midnight tonight (Saturday 26th) and the voucher runs until 31 March 2012.

And right under the Castle Dargan offer is another deal - this one for 70% off packets of condoms (50 and 100 'bumper' packs). I'm not linking to that offer - if you're interested, go find it yourself...

In the meantime here's a picture of the 18th at Castle Dargan - designed by Darren Clarke (and no balls in sight):

Castle Dargan Hotel and Golf Resort - the Darren factor

[Photo: Streedagh Strand and Benbulbin]

Castle Dargan (see Special Offer below) is ten minutes from Sligo town, up in the beautiful north west of Ireland. It’s an impressive, elegant hotel with a golf course and Spa. It promises peace and quiet while still being close enough to the vibe of Sligo town and everything it has to offer. This is also one of the country’s beauty spots: Benbulbin rises in the distance, and there are beaches here with barely a soul on them… Streedagh Strand may prove a particular favourite with its endless stretch of sand. And let’s not forget that this is Yeats country: the Isle of Innisfree is in Lough Gill, a few miles from the hotel, and Ireland’s most famous poet was also a frequent visitor to Castle Dargan, waxing lyrical over the mystical setting and the estate’s crumbling castle poised on a rocky outcrop above Lough Dargan.

[Photo: the 18th with some of the hotel on show]

The golf course, in case you didn’t know, was designed by Darren Clarke. He has so far been involved with five different courses – two in Ireland – but this was his first venture. There will no doubt be many more, now that he’s a Major champion. They’re unlikely to be built in Ireland, the UK or US, but Russia and China are building hundreds.

I liked the golf course. Darren has emulated the magnificent rolling terrain and the old stone walls, to create something that fits easily into its surroundings. It opened in 2006 and it is rugged and peaceful. And yet the lay of the land also has an eerie feel to it… a bit of Wuthering Heights perhaps. The greens were superb when I played. True, it’s possibly on the short side for a par 72 (6,400 yards from the whites or 6,240 from the greens) but that makes it all the more accessible for golfers of all abilities. There’s also enough water to hold big hitters in check, with a lake in the centre of the course affecting several holes. And then there are the ruins of the castle which you encounter on holes 2, 3 and 16.

[Photo: approach to the 16th with the castle ruins behind]

The hotel is an excellent base from which to plan your golfing (or family) holiday. Golf on your doorstep is a rich reward at Castle Dargan, but you can also strike out to the acclaimed County Sligo Golf Club at nearby Rosses Point. It is a links to be reckoned with and one of the best in the country. On the other side of the bay is Strandhill Golf Club. It is another links with some of the most thrilling and quirkiest holes you could ever hope to encounter. (The popularity of surfing at Strandhill must also be mentioned, and you get a great view of the sea and the surfers from the 7th tee.)

Further away, but still worth your money, are Enniscrone to the west (50 km) and Murvagh to the north east (75 km). They are both links of considerable standing. Or, if you want to follow the ‘Major’ trail, drive east for 70 km and visit Lough Erne, where Rory McIlroy represents the resort as its travelling professional.

Back to Castle Dargan: the hotel is a new creation, with only 30 or so bedrooms, ranging from en suite guest hotel rooms to Wall Garden suites. It’s a four star hotel, intimately linked with the estate’s old house which also boasts four magnificent Castle Dargan House suites. In other words, there is lots of choice depending on your budget, But there’s more: the 170 acre estate also has a number of serviced self-catering apartments and private golf lodges.

Away from the course, there is the unique golfing academy, made up of four par 3 holes, each a recreation of a famous par 3: the 13th at Carnoustie; the 8th at Royal Troon; the 13th at Muirfield; and the 15th at Turnburry. It’s an interesting touch.

Castle Dargan was voted the No. 81-ranked golf course in Ireland, by "Golf Digest Ireland" in 2009. Bizarrely, it dropped out of the top 100 in 2010.

Special Offer:

You'll nearly always find some sort of special offers on accommodation and golf at Castle Dargan: simply call Castle Dargan hotel and ask what deals they have going. At the moment it's 2 nights Bed & Breakfast + 1 Evening Meal + 1 Round of golf for €159.00

Rory & Darren... Lough Erne & Moyvalley... and a touch of irony

[Photo: views across the course at Moyvalley - designed by Darren Clarke]

First there was Rory winning the US Open (a year after G-Mac), now we have Darren Clarke winning The Open. That's some year for Northern Irish golf. Darren's victory was spectacular - I said to a few people at the start of the week that if the scoring was low and the weather poor then Darren had a real shot... if only I'd had the courage of my convictions and put a few quid on him (150/1 at the start).I suspect Gareth Maybin will be relishing his next competition. After Hoey's win a few weeks back, it seems that being Northern Irish is a guaranteed passport to winning.

I know that Rory grew up playing at Holywood GC and Darren at Dungannon GC, but their names are also inextricably linked to Lough Erne and Moyvalley, respectively... both of which are in administration.

[Photo: views across Lough Erne and the 7th hole]

The management at Lough Erne in Co. Fermanagh, believes that Rory's win will give them (and Northern Irish tourism) a major boost and they have seen bookings increase nicely since Congressional. Most of this interest is domestic - for now - but, no doubt, Americans who were havering over coming to Ireland on a golfing holiday will have been convinced to come on the back of Rory's win, with Northern Ireland a prime target. (Rory is the travelling pro for Lough Erne)

Whether they'll come for the Royals, Portstewart, Castlerock and Ardglass or whether they'll traipse further west to Lough Erne remains to be seen - hopefully they'll do both. Jonathan Stapleton (Lough Erne's General Manager) believes that Rory's win sets "Fermanagh and the North apart as a golfing destination..." Hmmm, Fermanagh is a beautiful county for sure, but that's a bit of a stretch when you consider that the county has only three 18 hole golf courses - two of which are average parklands (Castle Hume and Enniskillen). Lough Erne on the other hand is a quality course and has all the pomp and ceremony to be a major attraction in years to come (5 star hotel, spa and all the trimmings). Its popularity will grow massively with Rory's affiliation, so I hope it will continue to thrive and benefit both north and south.

[Photo: approach to the 12th at Enniskillen]

(As a quick aside, it is also not that far away from Darren Clarke's first and impressive design attempt at Castle Dargan).

[Photo: the intimidating drive on the 17th at Castle Dargan]

Moyvalley was home to The Champion's Club, and the course was designed by Darren a few years back. It is a rollercoaster of a course and, in my opinion, hugely under-appreciated. It too is in trouble: when it first opened with its air of exclusivity, the joining fee was €75,000. No one took them up on that and, today, there is no joining fee at all - just an €800 annual sub. Since the course is still struggling it will be interesting to see,

a) how the public (local and international) respond to Darren's victory by heading to Moyvalley (and Castle Dargan too), and

b) how the club itself responds to what can only be described as one of the most glorious marketing opportunities open to it.

Time will tell, but it should undoubtedly see a bounce in bookings and interest and I hope it can take full advantage. I wonder if they can lure Darren back for some sort of event, maybe a head-to-head against Padraig Harrington.

Congratulations again to Darren Clarke and Rory and it looks like the Irish Open is going to be one amazing tournament this year.