Many thanks to all those whose input helped make our recent trip to Irelands Northwest a memorable one. Here is a brief account of the trip - Tommy N has agreed to help with some photos which will be attached to the thread later.
The first photos will be Carne followed by a few each from Narin & Portnoo, Cruit Island, Rossapenna and Ballyliffin.
_________________________________________
“Ahhh soor, I understand you’ll be desperately disappointed but the course is closed today on account the neighbors donkey died last night”…..”donkey” my feeble jetlag mind thought….”did he say donkey”..3 flights, 20 hours, Singapore to Bangkok to London to Dublin followed by 4 hours of driving and they are going to close the course on account of a feckin donkey.
Dumbfounded and suffering a total loss of speech I mumbled, “oh, OK then”. Eamonn, the old crusty pro manning the small container must have taken pity on the blank and confused look on my face (i.e. The startled rabbit look) and laughed….”oh soor, your face looks just like those 4 Americans I told the same story to the other day – I’m only kidding!”.
Thank Christ for that, and welcome to Carne in Western Island, where men are men and the links are on steroids. This was our 3rd trip to Ireland and we were specifically searching out the wildest links imaginable – and I think I can safely say they live at Belmullet (Carne).
On previous trips we had visited all of the “well known” championship links courses around the country, from Waterville in the southwest to Portrush in the northeast. On this trip we would visit lesser-known courses in the west to north west of Ireland with Carne, Narin & Portnoo, Cruit Island, Rossapenna and Ballyliffin making it to the final unplanned itinerary. This was also my first Irish “out of season” trip, November not being a common visiting time for golfers to Ireland. To those who would be thinking of such a trip, I would highly recommend November even though the weather can be a bit iffy. The reasons – the bars are full of locals, not tourists, the golf courses are empty (no round over 3 hours) and the wind is howling!!
We ended up being blessed by the weather, yes we had wind and some rain and it was cold, however we generally played in the mornings when the weather was at its best. It was a joy to play in strong winds again and we had nothing less than a 4-club wind the whole time we were there.
Carne.
As recommended by one of the GCA gang, we dropped into McDonnell’s pub in Belmullet for our first Guinness of the trip. Pat the Barman comped us the round on what was to be the first signs of the sort of low-key hospitality you always get in this part of the world. Of course one of the locals recommended we stay at his place…as soon as he’d left Pat suggested another (and the other guy was pointed out as being a bit of a drinker)…and when we finally kipped out for the night at a local hotel, the food suggestions of the others at the pub were pooh poohed as low class. A bit of a hospitality conspiracy going on in that tiny little town we think.
The golf?
Prior to this trip, I had thought some of the holes at Enniscrone or Ballybunion New were the wildest links around but Carne blows them away. There are heaving 200 feet high dunes abutting greens, 100 feet drops from tees and twisting contorted crazy fairways – thrilling stuff, both to view and play. It’s a bit of a hard walk considering all the twists and turns (especially when you decide that a blind dogleg left should actually be played as a dogleg right (memo to self – look at strokesaver every few holes). Even though it is on wilder terrain than BBNew, it is very playable for all, and not just in still conditions.
Some of the memorable holes are the 5th with its speedway banked entry to the green, the 10th with its cathedral green setting, the 11th and 12th with their major elevation changes. Also, I don’t know whether it was the wind or the scale of the sand dunes in relation to the course, but I have never seen so many 460 yard looking 340-yard golf holes in my life!
Unfortunately for those looking forward to the new links at Carne (or elsewhere in Ireland), I wouldn’t bank on it happening although it is a possibility. Due to new EU rules, construction of all links courses has been halted. Which is a shame for everywhere you turn in NW Ireland there is the most wild and fantastic looking linksland you can imagine.
Narin & Portnoo
Electric fences around the first few greens (to keep the cows off) tell you this is not your average golf experience. On a cold, windy and clear morning we arrived at the deserted golf course only to be passed on the first tee by one of the hardy (older) locals. And thank goodness he did or we wouldn’t have had any clue where the first hole was heading! We kept up with him for the first few holes but soon lost him as he accelerated away on the long par 4, 4th. Narin and Portnoo is a bit of a jekyll and hyde golf experience, with the first 6 holes or so routed over relatively uninspiring land before the course takes off around the turn into some wild links land before coming back to earth over the last few holes. Some of the notable holes include the short par 3 8th with its formidable looking green – probably harder downwind than up and the par 4 10th with its blind tee shot followed with a wildly contoured fairway leading to the green.
Cruit Island
Johnny Brown (from GCA) said this course has the best view from the first tee of any course in Ireland and it would be hard to dispute this. It is worth visiting this course if only for the entry drive…3 miles of narrow winding potential traffic accident to a clubhouse set high on a rocky promontory. Not really a true links, the course is nevertheless a thrilling 9 hole golf experience with quite a few memorable holes. The Irish sense of humor surfaces at the par 4 6th hole where the directional stone in the middle of the fairway neglects to inform you that the fairway doglegs 90 degrees right some 30 metres past the stone and the stone is about 150 metres from the tee (and playing straight downwind – gale assisted). My shot played about 1 metre left of the stone was never found while Neil’s “slightly pushed” shot played 50 metres to the right of the stone was found – long and left of the green!!! The advantages of an Irish passport I guess. Notable holes include the par 3-7th (which is set on some amazing coastland).
Rossapenna
Probably the most Scottish style of the links we played this trip, Rossapenna sits on or next to what must be the biggest piece of “Irish linksland” in Ireland. There are 36 holes at Rossapenna and another 36 holes next door at St Patricks and there must be land enough for another 36 in there as well. The first 18 – or the first 10 of the first 18 sits on relatively flat land next to the wilder dune land, however the new 18 by Pat Ruddy weaves over and through the wilder terrain and promises to be a more typical Irish links experience
Rossapenna’s first was the only links hole completely surrounded by housing that I have ever seen. Only about 300 yards long, housing chokes in on all sides of the hole. Houses sprout out in the left rough only about 30 metres from the centerline. I’m not sure what the developer was thinking, especially as the wind predominantly howls into your face and from right to left!! Perhaps they thought that you only hit it straight and if you did hit it offline and a little right to left the howling wind would whip the ball so far over the top of the houses they would be perfectly safe!! That’s a first for me, siting the houses so far inside the safety setback that they are actually safe!!
The other thing about links courses is that they all have either a caravan park next door and/or a cemetery. Rossapenna was the first course without either, but was also the first one to be actively developing a caravan park next to the course – they must have thought that was a prerequisite of links golf! Unfortunately it is on the highest piece of land on the site and will be a terrible eyesore and detriment to the course.
The back 9 is said to be the stronger of the two nines – and it probably is in purely golfing terms, however its sited on a large hill away from the linksland so it does not really have a links feel. Another feature of the back nine is that you cross over a main road twice (with your drive on the 10th and your approach on the 18th and cross over a secondary road with your drive on the 11th.
Some of the standout holes at Rossapenna were the par 3 6th hole at the end of the links and the par 4 17th which has perhaps the strongest crossfall on any fairway I have seen. Two choices for your tee shot here – either in the rough on the left or the fairway on the right – there is no middle ground.
Ballyliffin
The scorecard reads 3800yard plus for the back nine, certifiable proof that Pat Ruddy is either a mad genius or a crazed sadist. 3800 yards playing into and across what were some of the strongest winds of the trip, gusting to about 6 clubs in places. Pat Ruddy might be mad but there was no way we were going to play it off that sort of yardage in that wind. Even from the white tees, the shorter holes were playing 2 good woods and a solid 8 iron into the wind.
We played the Ruddy/New nine because we wanted to play the more severe linkland, although the old course looks more natural with more interesting ground contours leading into the greens. The new course has a more manufactured look (a bit like the European Club), but is certainly worth playing if only to see how your ball reacts on the par 3 7th hole with its 100 feet elevation drop from tee to green. Not many truly memorable hole on this course although the overall experience was memorable if only for the strength of the wind.