THE FRONT NINE CAN COMPARE WITH ANYWHERE
PORTSTEWART is a worthy venue for the Irish Open’s 90th birthday this week but it wasn’t the European Tour’s first choice. That honour was originally awarded to Lough Erne in Enniskillen, the outstanding parkland in Fermanagh until it was cut adrift by the European Tour amid claims its hierarchy was embarking on a links strategy for the Irish Open.
A previous champion of the Lough Erne course, McIlroy has more recently built up the charms of Portstewart and believes the front nine is ‘the best collection of nine holes in the world’, an observation with which it is difficult to disagree.
The opening tee shot, played from high ground above the seashore, sets the tone for a spectacular journey. Every shot is a challenge, though, from the approach to the elevated second green – no more than a postage stamp set into a huge dune – to the sharp dog-legs of the seventh and eighth.
The par four fifth looks straightforward until you realise the upturned green is the size of a cricket field, complete with a wicked ridge.
The back nine is less undulating and not as spectacular and includes a couple of blind tee shots, at 16 and 17, which the pros will dislike. On the flip side, there are back-to-back par fives, 13th and 14th, which they should gobble up.
If there is an undistinguished hole, it is the 18th, a straight par four played on flat terrain towards a receptive green. A keen knowledge of the links is vital – club captain Paul Hewitt was a convincing winner at the media day in May – and that could play into the hands of local heroes.
Graeme McDowell grew up a stone’s throw away in Portrush; Darren Clarke, originally from Dungannon, now lives there, while McIlroy once shot 61 at Portrush as an amateur. McDowell, whose 61 at Baltray in 2009 remains the Irish Open course record, is not yet sure of his place at the Open at Royal Birkdale.
At the Open de France – which finishes today – the Irish Open and the Scottish Open, the R&A are offering the top three leading players who finish in the top 10, and ties, and who are not already exempt, a place at Birkdale on July 20-23. McDowell is not alone in seeking a late pass to Birkdale as Paul Dunne, who led the Open after 54 holes as an amateur in 2015, is in the same position.
Dunne, who qualified for the US Open last month, holds his national Open in huge regard. ‘As a kid, the four majors and the Irish Open were the five biggest events in golf. I see this week as a major on the European Tour and the world class field is proof of that,’ he said.