ALGARVE, PORTUGAL VILAMOURA

And herein lies the pot of golf at the end of a particularly beautiful Irish rainbow.

There are more Irish immigrants living across the world than are currently living in Ireland right now. That astonishing fact seems unbelievable until you set foot in Vilamoura, where the Irish-portuguese owned, Oceanico Group reign supreme.

It was here I found myself round a table with Darren Clarke, Christy O’connor Jnr and TV garden designer, Diarmuid Gavin as they cut the ribbon on this massive Portuguese development. It felt like a sunny day in Dublin, but was in fact a grand project of five courses and hotel rooms aplenty that earn Vilamoura its title as the largest luxury resort in Europe.

And you’ll find here exactly what the golfing tourist is looking for. ‘Championship’ Golf courses that have been deliberately handcrafted for the front of brochures with multiple tees meaning they can accommodate everyone from the European Tour to the hungover pensioner.

The likes of Arnold Palmer, Christy and Robert Trent Jones Jr have shaped the lush grass and indigenous umbrella pines against the warm sea breezes that I found a really enjoyable test. A lot of big target areas, a couple of shaky shots over water, and the fact you play in shorts more often than not makes everything taste sweeter.

All the holiday boxes are ticked: Kidneyshaped pools; sun-soaked balconies; al fresco bars. And that’s the entire point of coming to Vilamoura. It’s been sculpted by people fed up with lost rainy UK days, who were dreaming of the perfect getaway.

So they built it. And if that’s what you’re looking for — and big groups of golfers often are — this will be the perfect Portugal break for you.