I played golf with Jim about 8 years ago. He knew my father-in-law was heading to Ireland soon and called me about a month after our meeting to rave about Carne. He told me anyone going to Ireland had to go check it out because it was so raw, so special. Quite simply, Engh fell in love with the place at first sight.
He joined, as mentioned above, and the club made plans to work on an additional nine. While one can say they should not hire an American architect when there are so many talented ones practicing in the British Isles, isn't it easier to argue that they should not hire a non-member when a member has the qualifications and wants the job?
Selling services is hard, I understand that. It is interesting to see the comments about the process to get hired from those in the field. Many industries are cutthroat and we all compete in a global marketplace. Why should golf course design be any different?