Douglas is more shining jewel than hidden gem
The Tiger may be extinct but the boom proved a major boon to Douglas Golf Club, where club spirit is thriving both on and off the fairways
MANY will remember how the picturesque and historic Cork club received a €6m non-refundable deposit from a developer as part of a proposed land swap that would see the club move to a new location.
The deal meant they would enjoy not one but two courses – parkland and heathland – and a clubhouse to match.
But fate and the international money market had other ideas. While the move never came about following the global economic crash, Douglas got to keep its multimillion euro windfall and remain at its beloved home, high above the city.
Every golfer knows that it’s all very well having some good luck. The trick is to make it pay off and it would appear that Douglas has achieved that task in spades, making a host of improvements to its facilities.
Not only has it improved all of its bunkers and built a new short game practice area complete with a five-hole short course, it is planning a €2 million upgrade to its clubhouse next year.
When all the enhancements are completed, the club’s 1,250 members will enjoy not just a brilliantly managed facility but also a burgeoning social scene to go with those panoramic views of Cork city and the harbour below.
Putting the word “club” back into “golf club” is a major task for every club in Ireland right now given the sport’s ageing demographic and the pressures on members to find time to play the game and socialise with their friends, Douglas has made that a priority.
“We wanted to rebuild the social life in the club so in 2012 we brought in a new constitution,” explained the club’s General Manager Conor O’Brien, who will be able to reprise his membership of the club when he retires at the end of this year after a hugely successful stint in charge.
“The President now has responsibility of the full social life of the club whereas the two captains have responsibility for the golfing life. We think it’s worked wonderfully well.”
Founded in 1909, the club had its first woman President this year in former Irish international Kate MacCann, who thoroughly enjoyed her role at a club where women have left a major mark with their golfing exploits, winning the Irish Senior Cup 13 times as well as this year’s AIG Intermediate Cup.
“It’s a fabulous city golf course and it’s always in stunning condition,” explained Kate, a Co Meath native who adopted Cork as home 20 years ago. “It’s always a pleasure to play and a gorgeous golf club and an amazing club.
“It is going from strength to strength socially and it’s rocking now with a social every month – a nine-hole scramble which is open to members and their guests.”
The post-golf fun is key here and with cabaret nights and table quizzes encouraging members with non-golfing partners to use the club as a social hub, the club is a hive of activity, even putting on a taxi
service for members on busy nights.
“It is a great way of making it a club, not just a golf club,” added Kate, who has worked hard with her committee to create more social events, including nights for younger members in the 18-25 age bracket.
“Apart from the golf, which is flying, it’s the activities outside golf that are buzzing. Our current men’s international Peter O’Keeffe is doing strength and conditioning classes that have been hugely popular not just because they are great fun but because the people who are winning competitions are the ones who are going to the classes!
“I find that if there is a social life in the club you are more likely to go there and more likely to walk in on your own.”
Synonymous with a host of top players with the club from O’Keeffe and John McHenry to the likes of the late Monica “Girlie” Hegarty, Ann Heskin, Eavan Higgins, Eileen Rose Power (nee McDaid) or current Irish Women’s Close champion Sara Byrne, it’s no surprise that the course is a fine test of golf but also a fun one to play.
Former Munster interprovincial Karl Bornemann, who was a Senior International last year, is the Course committee chairman and the club was celebrating another All Ireland pennant this year following the success of the ladies AIG Intermediate Cup team in the All Ireland finals.
“What a thrill that was,” Kate added. “I’ve won six Senior Cups, but to be there as a supporter was fantastic and such a buzz for the club.”
It’s been a busy few years for General Manager O’Brien and while the club is actively recruiting his replacement, he can look back with pride on the great progress made in recent years.
Boasting excellent greens all year round and with Sportsbond bunkering now in place, the club built new facilities for its course staff – headed up by superintendent Peter Morris – and extended its maintenance facility.
There is a new chipping and putting green near the first green and a new pitching green, complete with a 25-metre long all-weather tee, close to the clubhouse.
Designed by golf designer Jeff Howes, this new facility allows the members to practice shots of between 70 and 95 yards from the extended tee, but there is more to this additional, €300,000 project.
Beyond the new green, the club has built five short holes measuring between 50-70 yards, each complete with bunkers, an all-weather tee and greens built to USGA specifications.
Set to open for play in April or May next year, it will be a godsend to the club’s two teaching pros, Stephen Hayes and Davey Barry as well as new assistant professional Shane Livesey.
Voted Munster’s Hidden Gem by Golfers Guide to Ireland for two of the last four years and named “Best Golf Course in Cork” at the inaugural Cork Business Awards in 2016 and again last year it’s a club that is looking to the 21st century with confidence.
“It’s about putting the word ‘club’ back in ‘golf club’,” O’Brien said of the club’s ethos in recent years.
As he prepares to move into retirement and finally get time to enjoy his membership of the club he’s served so well, O’Brien had just a few words of advice for whoever is appointed to succeed him.
“All I would saying is you have to talk to people one to one and be accessible.”
Douglas has achieved that in spades with men and women enjoying not just those Mixed events but the great views and even better chat, high above the city in the club’s beloved home.