Andy Dean putts a trio of top Irish golf courses to the test and finds them all well above par PITCH PERFECT
BRIDGE TO PAR Adare Manor will host Ryder Cup
BGOLFING GEM Lahinch on Wild Atlantic Way eing told “you’re going to see all four seasons out there today, that’s for sure” is not what I wanted hear just before playing on the golf course that hosted the 2019 Irish Open – one of the country’s toughest.
In fairness, the Lahinch Gol f Club member who had offered me that pearl of wisdom outside the clubhouse was right.
But I don’t think he meant we’d see spring, summer, autumn and winter before we had even reached the third hole of the Old Course.
There was only € 10 riding on the match between my three playing partners and I on a pre-Covid trip but it was still fiercely competitive.
Lahinch is widely considered one of the top 10 courses in the country and is a golfing gem on the Wild Atlantic Way – a 1,500-mile stretch that is the world’s longest defined coastal touring route, running from
Malin Head in the North to Kinsale in the South. On a front nine that offers stunning views over the Atlantic, the 6th, 7th and 8th stand out from the rest and even the wind, rain and hailstones could not stop us from enjoying a true test of Links golf.
The highlights of the inward holes are the 12th, a par five that hugs the estuary, and the 16th, where a birdie two – scored in one of the rare bursts of sunshine we saw – helped swing the match in my favour.
While the Irish Open venue for 2019 had shown us a perfect
There’s not a blade of grass out of place from the first tee to the 18th green
example of what golf on the coast should be like, what we had experienced 24 hours earlier at the course which will host the 2027 Ryder Cup was totally different – demonstrating the variety on offer for golfing visitors in the area.
Horse racing magnate JP McManus bought Adare Manor in 2015 and has spent millions on it since. From the moment you turn off the N21 and drive through the guarded entrance you know you are somewhere special.
More than 50 greenkeepers are employed to keep the course in pristine condition. And there was one member of staff who made my visit to Adare Manor truly memorable, my caddy ‘Rusty’.
I can think of a million things more enjoyable than having to carry my clubs for four hours, but he had a smile on his face throughout.
The course itself has not a blade of grass out of place from the first tee to the 18th green; it feels like you’re playing a computer game.
The long seventh hole is the best on the front nine, a par five with huge bunkers and a lake presenting serious danger for wayward shots.
I’d asked Rusty which hole he thought was the best on the course and he said the 13th. On arrival at the tee, I knew what he meant. It looks like it’s been lifted from Augusta
STYLISH Savoy Hotel, Limerick
National, home of The Masters. Trees line either side of an undulating fairway up to a huge green with a bunker protecting it at the front.
Despite Rusty’s opinion, my favourites were 16 - a stunning par three over water - and 18, which should be the scene of some serious centenary year Ryder Cup drama.
It is a risk-and-reward par five which is split by the river with the imposing Manor in the background, the perfect final hole.
On this particular day it witnessed me carving a ball into the water which cuts across the front of the green – but even with a closing seven on my card I had enjoyed a memorable golfing day topped off by a fabulous
House.
The opening stop on the threeround trip had been Shannon Golf Club, which is little more than a few good hits with a driver from the airport.
Sadly, the airline decided my clubs and luggage would not arrive in Ireland at the same time I did, but this was no problem for Shannon professional Artie Pyke.
Just 20 minutes after learning of my problem, Artie had rustled up a T- shirt with the club emblem on, a set of clubs and some golf shoes for me to borrow.
Not as eye-wateringly expensive as Adare Manor or challenging as Lahinch, Shannon was nevertheless the perfect setting for our first 18 holes.
The best hole on the course is the 17th, without a shadow of a doubt lunch in
Carriage
– a long par three dissected by water and boasting stunning views out to sea.
Our base for three nights in the west of Ireland was The Savoy, a stylish and comfortable hotel bang in the middle of Limerick, just on the banks of the River Shannon.
Hamptons is the attached hotel restaurant and has an enviable menu.
After a good 10 minutes spent going over the options on night one, I had gone from having the Katmandu chicken curry to the hickory burger before settling on the black Angus sirloin steak.
Then I saw the specials board and everything changed again: Surf & turf: tomahawk steak and scallops.
That was my decision made and it proved to be an inspired one as it was one of the very best meals I have ever had.
Thankfully I had enough room to sample a dessert and can pass on a similarly positive review of the Baileys and Malteser cheesecake.