The European Club has been debated a bit on GCA in recent weeks and this posting is an effort to ensure that the followers of various threads who happen on this thread will benefit from up-to-date information.
How many inhabitants of GCA have visited us? When were they last here?
Anyone thinking of coming should note that access is not a problem either in terms of getting here or in terms of being made welcome. If one is at home a cup of tea and a scone is on the cards.
Access-
How many know that there is now a motorway almost the full length of Ireland’s east coast, by-passing Dublin, from Belfast to Rosslare and that we are now just 1.5 hours from Portmarnock and 3-hours from Royal County Down at all but rush hour time. So, it has never been easier to play RCD, Baltray, The Island, Portmarnock (old), Royal Dublin, Portmarnock Links (new), Druids Glen, The K-Club and The European Club.
Rankings -
We do not believe that any ranking is sacrosanct or fully correct. But we take heart when ALL rankings give us favourable mention and we see this as an indication that we are getting some things right.
Most recent rankings bestowed on us are: 91st in the World (Golf magazine 2005, up form 98th in 2003); 2nd in Ireland (Golf Digest Ireland 2006); 15th in Britain & Ireland (Golf Monthly UK 2006).
Despite this, some people will enjoy our links and others will dislike it. That’s just the way it is with design. But we are sure that nobody will be indifferent!
Evolution of a links -
Here is some of how we have been working through the years to make our links excellent in design and presentation:-
I like to think of a golf links somewhat as a grand piano (links tend to be bigger and more robust and versatile than parkland) capable of yielding a lot of magical tunes limited only by the imagination and the skill of those who care for them and of those who care to play them in a humble but adventurous spirit.
In this respect we have sought to keep abreast of the evolution of the game and my own evolution as a practitioner of course design. Both have been rapid and demanding.
Here are just some of the things we have been doing over the years ---
(i) The game of golf has changed a lot since we opened with a links measuring 6,792-yards at Christmas 1992. Our championship tees, we hosted the Irish Men's Amateur (and the ladies' also) this year, have now slipped back to 7,355-yards with some consequential revisions of the medal and forward tees. Our ability to strike a hugely wider variety of links set-ups has exploded accordingly.
(ii) My own knowledge and taste continue to evolve and will do so onwards .... so, there have been and will be what I view as improvements always onwards and in this respect it is rewarding to stay with the task over so many years and have the required freedoms. I feel that this constant worrying and working is an absolute MUST with any golf course aspiring to be excellent ....
(b) Hazard strategy has been reviewed. Take bunkering where we started-out with just 60 carefully placed pits. As the game changed this had to change. It would not do just to move these 60 about, leaving the spaces they had occupied empty, so we have added 41 more. Consideration has been given to have these function in all respects for as many golfers as possible, playing off varied tees in varied weathers. Not too easy...as all golfers are so different but one must have a treat and a tease for all!
Of course, we have then gone with our railway tie look to be able to show the locations of the hazards (which have to be sunken on a links in order to stop them from blowing away), to add bold definition and gain some intimidation factor.
(c) The much criticised pond on fairway 18 is gone. The purists would not accept water on a links even though the first such in golf was on the first fairway at St. Andrews.
It took years to figure how an Irishman could hold his water against this criticism and I thank Jean van de Velde and Carnoustie for the solution .... our pond has been transformed into a meandering burn retaining the hazard factor (indeed, enhancing it) while making previous critics happy ... it isn't the water that bothered them as much as the shape of it!
(d) Conditioning. Ireland suffered a major drought in 1995 and all links were set-back severely. We installed fairway irrigation after that and have chosen to stay green. We have a policy of keeping short and fast to the extent that visitors even from finer clubs worldwide have praised what they find in terms "your fairways are as good as/better than our greens at home." Of course, if we wish, we can go as brown as one might wish in three days at anytime March-November. Meantime, it is nice to avoid the worst traumas of deep divot holes, which will not grow back in drought conditions, and weeds which thrive when grasses are stressed.
(e) There have been nuanced changes to greens, shaping changes to fairways and so on.