6 ways to go beyond the golf course

1 Royal Portrush Golf Club, County Antrim

There’s more to Royal Portrush than two exquisite courses and its notoriously challenging conditions. It’s the course that helped Ryder Cup star Darren Clarke fall madly in love with the game. And in 2019, it hosted one of golf’s biggest events, The Open. 

2 Portstewart Golf Club, County Londonderry

In 2017, Portstewart hosted The Irish Open, and since then, it has definitely emerged from the shadow of its neighbour, the mighty Royal Portrush, just down the road.

3 Portmarnock, County Dublin

Founded in 1894 on a sandy peninsula that was once accessible only by boat, this incredible links is now a lot easier to access, A purely natural course, Portmarnock has hosted 19 Irish Opens as well as the Walker Cup and the Canada Cup — now the World Cup of Golf — and its finishing holes are regarded as some of the best to be found, well, anywhere.

4 Waterville Golf Links, County Kerry

Set on the world-famous Ring of Kerry, Waterville Golf Links has it all: a heady combination of dunes, gorse and native grasses, sod-faced bunkers and subtle putting surfaces. Then of course, there's the ever-changing weather that rolls in from the wild Atlantic. Little wonder that it is regularly featured as one of the Top 100 Courses in the World…

5 Royal County Down Golf Club

Jack Nicklaus couldn't conquer it and neither could Tom Watson. Royal County Down is a thinking man's links and even the shrewdest players can be flummoxed by the guile of what is possibly the island's finest course. Oh, and did we mention this was voted number one course in the world by Golf Digest?

6 Lahinch Golf Course, County Clare

Part and parcel of the fabric of Irish golf for 120 years, Lahinch's Old Course has undergone many changes since Old Tom Morris came over from Scotland to create it in 1894. Keep an eye out for the goats. It’s said if they’re seen near the clubhouse, the weather prospects aren’t so good. If they're out on the dunes, the weather is sure to be fine…