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Presented By Travel There & Back

Circumnavigation of The Emerald Isle

Cascade Golfer publishers drive 2,000 Miles Around Ireland on a trip of a lifetime

BY DICK STEPHENS • CG PUBLISHER

As I impatiently waited for weeks to board an Aer Lingus non-stop flight from Seattle to Dublin, my anxious coping mechanism was to hum a jingle from the 1970s over and over.

If you experienced that decade, then the catchy Heinz Ketchup song by Carly Simon is one that you will relate to. “An-tic-i-pa-tion. An-tic-ipay-yay-tion…” I couldn’t get it out of my head, which isn’t a surprise as my travel and golf companion Kirk Tourtillotte and I had been stitching together our circumnavigation of The Emerald Isle for months.

It certainly wasn’t a hardship, but our obsession became reality. The basic plan was simple — 10 days, seven courses, each along the coast — starting in Dublin and ending in Dublin. We drove clockwise along the most amazing stretches of motorways, county roads and some harrowing eyes of the needle where two cars barely fit on the road — literally with just a few inches to spare.

Kirk and I have been business partners for more than 30 years, played golf all over the U.S., and this was our second sojourn to Ireland and Northern Ireland — the last time was 15 years ago. There were a couple spots we longed to revisit but we added stops in Kinsale, Cork, Kerry, Galway, Ballybunion and Belfast this time.

In the last issue of Cascade Golfer, we shared our Portmarnock experience as part one of this two-part story. I wish to thank our Englishman Editor Tony Dear for his help and insight on a couple of our stops here.

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The Grafton Hotel • Dublin

Named after Charles FitzRoy, Second Duke of Grafton and illegitimate grandson of England’s King Charles II, The Grafton is one of Dublin’s hippest and most sought-after hotels with a five-star rating from 659 reviews on TripAdvisor.com.

Located on Stephen St. Lower in the city center’s affluent District 2 (or D2), the modern, red-brick building has 128 guest rooms, and has been included among Ireland’s top 50 places to stay by the Irish Independent.

Interested in a short stroll? The wonderfully peaceful St. Stephen’s Green is just a four-minute walk southeast of the hotel. For a longer trek, about 20 minutes, head west to the Guinness Storehouse.

For something a little more urbane, you can simply hop down to Bartley’s Cocktail Bar on the hotel’s ground floor. There you can sip on the divine Grafton Cosmo, a mix of Belvedere blackberry and lemongrass vodka, triple sec, cranberry juice and lime. The adjacent Bartley’s Restaurant is a cool, stylish space whose menu highlights include an eight-ounce striploin steak, and a seared salmon fillet with brown shrimp hollandaise, among other delightful entrees.

The beauty of Dublin (besides the people, the amazing nightlife, the Guinness, the tranquil green spaces, the ‘craic’ — described as a mixture of repartee, humor, intelligence, and acerbic and deflating insight — and its myriad other charms) is that, at 46 square miles in area, it’s not terribly large. For the avid golfer, that means a lot of fantastic courses are conveniently reachable from The Grafton.

It’s just a 20-minute drive east to Royal Dublin GC, and only 10 minutes further north to the historic Portmarnock GC and excellent Jameson Links. An alternative 30-minute trek gets you to the magical dunescape at The Island GC. Pat Ruddy’s The European Club is 50 minutes south, and a similar distance north takes you to Baltray for the highly rated County Louth GC. — Tony Dear

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Old Head Golf Links • Kinsale, County Cork

I’ve played 20 of the finest courses in the world by anyone’s standards, and the 24 hours Kirk and I spent at Old Head Golf Links in Kinsale is not only one of the fondest golf experiences I’ve ever had — it’s one of the best moments of my life.

This place will blow you away. Old Head, the course, famous lighthouse, Lusitania Museum, world-class hotel and spa are narrowly tethered to Ireland by a thread of land not much wider than County Cork’s rural road 604 itself.

From the air, Old Head looks like an island and it’s one of County Cork’s most-beloved tourist vistas. Just how old is Old Head? Try this — Greek historian Ptolemy mapped this hallowed ground in 100 A.D., and the Vikings occupied this spot from 820-918 A.D. The castle here was built in 12th century.

The course design is diamond-shaped, with sightlines of the sea at nearly every turn and was penned by a unique amalgamation of legendary Brit and Aussie mappers: Ron Kirby, Dr. Joe Carr, Paddy Merrigan, Liam Higgins and Haulie O’Shea. It’s the most masterful 18 holes I’ve ever walked.

At 7,135 from the tips, I’d put Old Head in a windy Kapalua category of difficulty. Frankly speaking, your heart will be in your throat all day long as the whole course is a good 150 feet above rugged coastal terrain — hilly and hearty.

Upon teeing off, this warning from the course guidebook really stuck with me. “Players, caddies and spectators are warned to not attempt to retrieve balls from the hazards at holes 2, 3, 4, 7, 12, 13, 15, 16, 17 and 18. It is positively dangerous to do so.”

I will back up that claim all the way. Basically, you step too far and you’re a goner. I took a pic of Kirk hitting his second shot on hole 3 and it literally looks like he’s hanging on to that last blade of grass in Ireland. See his heroic shot on the previous page.

The hotel is uber modern, and the patio will make you want to miss your tee time — it’s glorious. The food and drink pay homage to its special European roots there. One of my favorite parts of the trip, not including our five hours on the links, was the beer and whisky Kirk and I shared in the Lusitania Bar after our round. There with us were other globetrotting golfers from around the world, all sharing stories about where they’d been and where they were heading — each of us chirping war stories and little insights to help each other on our next stops. A modern day, Irish golf Mos Eisley Spaceport Cantina for linkster pilots.

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Ballybunion Golf Club • Old Course, County Kerry

I implore you, please take a moment to read my Publisher’s Pitch this issue if you have time. It’s about our memorable moment there in Ballybunion in meeting one of their heroes Jackie Hourigan, manager of Harty Costello Town House and past club captain there. He’s one of my top 10 golf people I’ve ever met.

Established in 1893, Ballybunion’s Old Course (the other, shorter Cashen Course, is also part of the complex), ranks as one of Ireland’s best and most challenging courses. For me, it’s the ultimate links heavyweight champion. Tom Watson, who has a statue in front of the clubhouse commemorating his legacy there, said this of the Old Course: “Ballybunion is a course on which many golf architects should live and play before they build a golf course.” Amen, Mr. Watson.

At 6,739 from the blue tees, one might think you can score there. Frankly, the 6,700 yards feels like 7,700 yards with the wind and steep, blind layout. If you could only play two or three courses in Ireland, Ballybunion must be one of them. By the way, I lost nine balls that day — four of which were in the first cut of rough.

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Galway Bay Golf Resort • Oranmore

Our time at Galway Bay was highlighted by one our favorite hosts during our trek. Ronan Devaney of the resort went out of his way to make our short stop there filled with hospitality, regaling us with the visions and history that have made Galway Bay a local and Hollywood A-lister favorite since opening in 1993. It’s designed by legendary Irish golfer Christy O’Connor Jr., who will long be remembered for breaking Americans’ hearts in 1989 by beating Fred Couples, which led to Europe retaining the Ryder Cup.

His routing of this 7,300-yard masterpiece is more parkland than it is links. It feels and plays like a salty air country course –sheer magic and rolling lush fairways with perfect views of Galway City across the bay. The Connacht Hospitality Group has made marvelous improvements and upgrades. This is a must play and will accentuate a Galwegian stopover.

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Arglass Golf Club • Northern Ireland, County Down

When we decided to return to both Northern Ireland and its sister to the south, Ardglass was at the top of both our lists. Just 45 minutes from where we stayed in Belfast, the drive there is a reminder of the spirit, beauty and grit of this part of the UK. I’ve told countless people this — if I hit the Lotto, I’m moving there and joining Ardglass. For what it costs to play Pebble Beach twice, you can join and be a member here. And, bluntly, the par 70, 6,216yard layout is as beautiful as any links course I’ve ever seen.

The clubhouse is a 15th century castle/warehouse that still has the original cannons right by the first tee. Your first hour on the course is all rugged North Sea shoreline and your opening tee shot must cross a sea gorge with waves crashing right in front of you. This place is bliss to both Kirk and I. He is still the only golfer to ever post an albatross on the 483-yard par-5 11th hole there, which he did 15 years ago. This trip, I had a memorable back nine with three birdies — one of which was a 180-yard par-3 where I hit my driver to thwart a 35-mph gale.

The people there make this place even more memorable. The pro shop and restaurant is top shelf.

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The European Club • Brittas Bay, County Wicklow

Pat Ruddy’s 20-hole Everest of golf was our final stop (and second time there.) The European Club is just a short 50-minute speed limit drive from Dublin. It’s ranked on many top 100 course lists in the world. For me, it ranks as the hardest course I’ve ever played. I haven’t played them all – but I’ve faced beasts like Carnoustie, Royal County Down and Bethpage Black. The European, which opened in 1992, would have a slope rating at 150-plus from the tips. Why is this a must-play? It’s gorgeous, linksy, rolling, seaside, hilly, prickly and the railroad tie-banked traps and pot bunkers will give you fish tales to tell forever. Par-3 holes 7a and 12a give you two more bites at the cherry and made Ruddy’s magnum opus design world famous. He bought the land, moved the dirt, routed the plan, designed every hole and green, manages the place, wrote a book about it and greeted Kirk and I personally when we arrived. We’ve never received that treatment from Coore/Crenshaw. As much as this place takes a hunk of flesh from you, I would never ever not play it on any trip to Ireland. I love the man and the course.

And Pat’s beef stew, as he puts it, “will allow your heart, mind and body to come together again after you’re done playing.” True that.

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Castlemartyr Golf Resort • County Cork

When you play golf on the other side of the Atlantic, you know there’s a good chance the course, the land on which it was built, the club that now owns it, or the ancient village down the lane probably has some cool history attached to it.

Maybe an Open Championship was played there in the 19th century? Perhaps a king or queen awarded the club Royal patronage, or it was designed by one of golf’s golden age famous architects? And might a Beatle or Rolling Stone have had a pint in the nearby pub?

The Castlemartyr Golf Resort, 20 miles east of Cork in southern Ireland, may not have hosted an Open Championship − and its golf course might have opened just 15 years ago − but its story is interesting, nonetheless.

The ruins of a 13th-century castle built by the Knights Templar (a popular and highly skilled military order of the Catholic faith founded in Jerusalem in 1119) stand just a few hundred feet from the 17th-century manor house that now forms the centerpiece of the 108-guestroom resort. And yes, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and Brian Jones stopped for a pint in Barry’s Bar in the village of Castlemartyr in 1965 on their way to the Savoy Theatre in Cork.

Set in 220 acres of glorious parkland and woodlands with lakes, streams, abundant wildlife and an ornamental garden, the resort opened in 2008 following a significant refurbishment program which produced a grand, five-star hotel that is now listed among the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s most historic in the world.

Terre is the resort’s main fine-dining restaurant and was recently awarded a second Michelin star. The Irish Times calls it one of the best in the country and where Chef Vincent Crepel says he uses “classic French techniques to underpin exciting Asian flavors and local Irish fare.”

Enjoying a meal here is a very special and memorable way to spend an evening and not, perhaps, for the casual diner looking for some everyday comfort food. Here, you eat tuna belly with verjus, radish, trout roe, and Irish truffle seaweed. You might also try the Irish trout with carrot sauce, yuzu kosho, and timut oil, or one of the many other fantastic dishes you’ve never seen or heard of before but will never forget once sampled.

You’re also unlikely to forget the resort’s golf course − a very fine Ron Kirby design − which opened in 2009. His work can be seen elsewhere in the Emerald Isle at courses such as Dromoland Castle and Mount Juliet – where he collaborated with Jack Nicklaus – plus the magnificent Old Head, located just an hour southwest of Castlemartyr.

The setting at Castlemartyr is bucolic with an interesting layout of holes separated by wispy, golden, fescue rough making for a very pleasant round. The back nine is considerably longer than the front, which offers up several genuine birdie chances. Together, they create a course of 6,790 yards with a par of 72.

Following the round, sit down in the distinctive clubhouse for a plate of hake and chips, braised feather blade of beef, or bangers and mash made with O’Connell’s sausages from Limerick. — Tony Dear

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