Ireland: Hidden Gems Of The Emerald Isle

For years, the northern coast of Ireland was the holy grail of golf destinations. It was filled with treasures, yet still mostly undiscovered.

Only the most diehard golf traveler dared to make the adventurous trip to a coastline that holds one-sixth of the world’s links courses. The miles of roads to these remote golf outposts were terrible, fraught with hairpin turns and tight spots seemingly meant for one-way traffic.

And Northern Ireland’s problems with the Irish Republican Army, known by locals as “the troubles,” scared many tourists away.

Today, this unforgettable golf vacation is more accessible than ever. The troubles have subsided, revealing the true nature of the Irish, among the friendliest people on the planet. Even those dreaded roads are improving, as an economic boom continues to sweep the island.

Golfers don’t have to settle for seeing pictures of Royal Portrush or Ballyliffin in a magazine. A tee time is just a phone call or Web site click away.

The North & West Coast Links (www.northandwestcoastlinks.com) is a marketing alliance of 11 of the finest links courses in Ireland and Northern Ireland. This loose-knit golf trail sprawling across the northern tip of the Emerald Isle offers various packages that can include transportation, accommodations and tee times. 

To make the best of your trip, pay the extra cash for a driver. That way you won’t get lost and stress out about those roads.

Don’t fret about the weather, either. Bring your raingear and expect to get wet. It’s all part of the experience of links golf.

Direct flights by various U.S. airlines (or Ireland’s national airline, Aer Lingus) can land in Dublin, or better yet, Belfast, the capital of Northern Ireland. Once you’re off the plane, just relax. It will make the Guinness taste much better and the golf sweeter.

The rebirth of Belfast

Northern Ireland’s tenuous past and promising future clash in downtown Belfast. The four-star Europa Hotel, a Hastings Hotel (hastingshotels.com) that was a regular target of bomb threats and actual attacks, has been rebuilt with modern amenities such as flat screen TVs.

Eat hearty at the breakfast buffet to prepare for the 45-minute drive to Ardglass Golf Club, a stunner on the Irish Sea. No fewer than eight holes dance along the cliffs. If it were longer than 6,268 yards, Ardglass (ardglassgolfclub.com) would be mentioned in the same breath as Pebble Beach. 

Try everything within reason to finagle a round at Royal County Down (royalcountydown.org), a private club with limited public play that is generally considered one of the world’s top five courses. The championship links in Newcastle, nestled in the shadows of the Mountains of Mourne, hosted the 2007 Walker Cup, won dramatically by the underdog Americans. U.S. star Jonathan Moore hit a 4-iron from 252 yards to set up his cup-clinching four-footer for eagle on the 18th hole.

The pleasures of Portrush

Golf trips and sightseeing don’t usually go hand-in-hand, but the Giant’s Causeway is well worth the effort. The scenery provides a breathtaking marriage of land and water roughly two hours north of Belfast, where myth and legend add mystique to the 40,000 basalt columns that jut from the sea.

By following the dramatic causeway along the coast, there’s another gift of Mother Nature past the ruins of the Dunluce Castle — the 36-hole Royal Portrush Golf Club in County Antrim.

Portrush’s Dunluce Links hosted the only British Open ever held on Irish soil, in 1951. The 6,845-yard championship links also hosted the Senior British Open from 1995-99 and in 2004, and the British Amateur in 1993.

After a rousing start through dunes and around cavernous bunkers, the fifth green on Dunluce kisses the Atlantic Ocean. On the back nine, the par-3 14th hole climbs skyward 210 yards, with a cavernous drop-off on the right. It’s aptly named “Calamity.”

If it weren’t for Royal Portrush, you’d hear a lot more about the nearby Portstewart Golf Club (portstewartgc.co.uk), a 54-hole club in County Londonderry. Founded in 1894, Portstewart became a must-visit in the 1980s after the Strand course’s new holes were designed in the dunes between the Atlantic and the River Bann. The view from the elevated tee box of the first hole, with the ocean and volcanic dunes, might be Ireland’s finest visual treat.

Finding “The Back of Beyond”

The hardest part of the journey lies ahead, and yet, it might be the most rewarding. Some Irish say the next stop, the 36-hole Ballyliffin Golf Club, is located in “the back of beyond.”    

It might as well be the moon. There’s 45 miles of twisting, rolling country roads to cover, and a ferry ride leaving Northern Ireland over the Lough Foyle, to discover Ballyliffin, a quaint coastal town in the Republic of Ireland.

The prize for such determination is a links setting as rugged as anywhere on earth. Nick Faldo was smart enough to take a helicopter to visit Ballyliffin (ballyliffingolfclub.com) in the early 1990s. The former world No. 1 so fell in love with the 6,612-yard Old Links that he proudly came back and refurbished it.

The renovation was necessary to keep up with the Old Links’ bolder, brash younger sister: the Glashedy Links, a Pat Ruddy-Tom Craddock collaboration that opened in 1995. 

The 7,217-yard Glashedy Links resides on higher ground than the Old Links, delivering spectacular views of the mammoth moss-covered Glashedy Rock off the coast. Some of its holes rumble uphill and later tumble back to sea level, providing a contrast few coastline links can boast.

Players walking up a small path from the sixth green are greeted by ocean breezes and an everlasting view of the horizon from No. 7’s elevated tee box. The seventh green, guarded by a pond, rests 100 feet below this perilous perch.

The sequence of the demanding uphill par-5 13th hole, followed by the delicate downhill par-3 14th, might be the best 1-2 sequence in Ireland. Members call Ballyliffin the Ballybunion of the North. High praise, indeed.

After 36 holes in the punishing gale, golfers can relax in the comforts of the Ballyliffin Lodge Hotel & Spa (ballyliffinlodge.com). The rooms and ocean view are high-brow, but the hotel’s heaven is tucked away in the basement. Its fabulous fitness facility houses a separate children’s area, sauna, steam room, 12-seat hot tub, aerobics studio, gymnasium and the Rock Crystal Spa’s nine treatment rooms.

At the spa, try the Balneo therapy bath, with its 150 jets, or the dry floatation tank, where one hour of Epsom salts and vibration technology equates to six hours of sleep.

Sandwiched between Ballyliffin and Rosspenna, two award-winning 36-hole complexes, the Portsalon Golf Club (portsalongolfclub.ie) in County Donegal often gets overlooked. Established in 1891, Portsalon is the true definition of a hidden gem — hard to find, easy to love. 

The white beaches on the shores of Lough Swilly provide the backdrop for the gnarly sand hills of the 6,748-yard layout. There are six more cherished links farther west in the alliance, but Portsalon encompasses what this golf destination is all about — the unspoiled links, the settings that invigorate the senses, the friendly people who will gladly share a pint after the round in the clubhouse.

The journey to Portsalon is akin to finding a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. It’s a final surprise in a trip filled with delightful discoveries. To learn more, visit www.discovernorthernireland.com or www.discoverireland.com.

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