[Ally Mcintosh]

http://www.golfdigesttop100.ie/


1   Portmarnock  (up 1)
2   Royal County Down (down 1)
3   Royal Portrush - Dunluce (same)
4   Waterville   (same)
5   Lahinch - Old Course (same)
6   Ballybunion - Old Course (same)
7   Tralee (up 1)
8   Baltray (up 1)
9   European (down 2)
10   Adare Manor (same)
11   Ballyliffin - Glashedy Links (up 1)
12   Rosses Point (down 1)
13   Enniscrone   (same)
14   The Island   (same)
15   Mount Juliet (up 1)
16   Carne (up 4)
17   Portstewart (down 2)
18   Old Head (up 4)
19   Killeen Castle (down 2)
20   Donegal Murvagh (down 1)
21   Ballyliffin - Old Links (same)
22   Rosapenna - Sandy Hills    (up 6)
23   K Club - Palmer (down 4)
24   Doonbeg Links (up 2)
25   Portsalon (same)
26   Portmarnock Links (down 3)
27   Royal Dublin (down 3)
28   Lough Erne    (up 1)
29   Carlow (down 2)
30   Dooks (up 2)
31   Carton House - Monty   (down 1)
32   Fota Island   (up 5)
33   Cork (down 2)
34   Narin & Portnoo (up 4)
35   Headfort - New (up 1)
36   Druids Glen   (up 3)
37   Rosapenna - Old Tom Morris (down 3)
38   Castlerock (down 3)
39   Killarney - Killeen (down 6)
40   Slieve Russell (up 1)
41   Concra Wood (down 1)
42   Connemara   (up 2)
43   Seapoint (same)
44   Malone (up 8 )
45   Palmerstown House (up 5)
46   Carton House - O'Meara (same)
47   The Heritage (up 1)
48   Royal Portrush - Valley   (up 7)
49   K Club - Smurfit (down 7)
50   Belvoir Park   (up 1)
51   Tramore (down 4)
52   Luttrellstown Castle (down 7)
53   Portumna   (up 1)
54   Bunclody   (up 3)
55   Hermitage   (up 3)
56   Dun Laoghaire (down 7)
57   Arklow (up 4)
58   Powerscourt - West (down 5)
59   Castletroy   (same)
60   Dromoland   (up 5)
61   Royal Belfast (up 2)
62   Clandeboye    (up 4)
63   Westport   (up 1)
64   Glasson (down 8 )
65   Tullamore   (up 5)
66   Ballybunion - Cashen (up 13)
67   Farnham (down 7)
68   Powerscourt - East (same)
69   Rosslare (up 7)
70   Mount Wolseley (down 8 )
71   Rathsallagh   (down 2)
72   Esker Hills   (up 10)
73   Castlemartyr (down 1)
74   Shannon (down 1)
75   Druids Heath (down 8 )
76   Strandhill (down 2)
77   Galgorm Castle (up 9)
78   Dingle Links    (up 3)
79   Mullingar (up 6)
80   Dundalk (down 9)
81   Ballinrobe (down 1)
82   Laytown & Bettystown    (down 5)
83   Grange (down 5)
84   Galway Bay   (up 3)
85   Galway (up 3)
86   Castle (down 3)
87   St Annes   (down 2)
88   Knightsbrook (up 4)
89   Ardglass   (down 14)
90   Balbriggan   (down 1)
91   Woodenbridge (up 9)
92   Tulfarris   (down 1)
93   Headfort - Old (NEW)
94   Kirkistown Castle (same)
95   Moyola Park (NEW)
96   Athlone (up 3)
97   Killarney Mahonys Point   (down 2)
98   Blainroe (NEW)
99   Kilkenny (down 2)
100   Courtown (down 10)

[David Davis]

What pops out of this quickly to me:

- #1 my favorite links course is RCD, Portmarnock also great but no way it could ever over take in my mind.
- Fota Island - up 5 - I honestly doubt that but to say it's roughly the same level as Dooks is just painful for a links lover.
- Glad to see Esker Hills getting some love. That's a great little course to play after you fly into Dublin and are heading across the country to the west coast. About half way in the middle right off the road.

I'd still like to see nearly all the links courses first, then having them put in the first best parklands. Adare, Mount Juliet etc.

[Thomas Dai]

Biggest rise, 13 places, the Cashen at Ballybunnion. I'm curious to know why given it normally seems to get slated.
ATB

[Tom_Doak]

Really?  100 courses in Ireland?  Out of how many total?

The biggest shocker for me is to see Ballybunion (not the Cashen) at #6.

Also, even though it's moved up a bit, the Valley course at Portrush is way underrated.  I can't count more than maybe a dozen courses in Ireland I would be more excited to play.

[Jud_T]

Given 1 round is there anyone here who would honestly choose to play Waterville over Lahinch and Ballybunion?  It's a fine course, but this is a real headscratcher.

[Sean_A]

Tom

That was my beef about the list.  100 courses dilutes the process.  Golf Digest is essentially recommending 100 courses to play in Ireland; that is not very discerning.  

There are maybe 10 Irish courses I would pay full whack to play again (a good ratio of return rate!) at the moment, but the two which really stand out for me are Lahinch and Enniscrone.  

The Island, P'rush Valley and Strandhill are well back, but top the next batch.  I am disappointed Strandhill has not made up ground.  

The one course I gotta see again is Baltray.  Many folks say its awesome, I need another look.

Ciao  

[Michael Felton]

Having played Waterville and Ballybunion a few times, I'm very surprised to see that Waterville is ranked above Ballybunion. It's a nice course sure, but I can't say it's better than Ballybunion. I'm also mildly surprised to see Tralee so high, although I've only every played it in the rain, so my opinion may be somewhat coloured by that.

[Jim Sherma]

- Fota Island - up 5 - I honestly doubt that but to say it's roughly the same level as Dooks is just painful for a links lover.

This is always going to be a dilemma with these types of lists. Fota is a very nice course and probably a "better" course on some dimensions when compared to Dooks. Fota is a beautiful piece of land in its own right and makes for a really nice way to spend the day and has a lot of good parkland-style golf to be had.

However, Dooks is such a magical place and the really firm links turf as you get down towards the water is just really special. I consider Dooks one of the two nicest places I have ever played, with Crail being the other.

The comparability of two course so different in conception and style will always be difficult. I would certainly not turn down another round on either course and having them on a similar level is fair in my opinion. The Links versus Parkland preference will always color the comparison though.

[Joshua Pettit]

That Lahinch, Ballybunion, Baltray, Enniscrone, Dooks and Cork are all rated below Waterville on this list, and that 5 of the top 10 courses shifted in ranking over just a year's time should tell one everything they need to know about annual golf course rankings.

[jonathan_becker]

What's so special about Adare Manor?    I've never played it but how can a parkland course be a top 10 course in Ireland?  Sounds crazy

[mike_malone]

I have played more top courses in Ireland than the USA.

[jonathan_becker]

Is Portmarnock ahead of RCD this year just to shake things up and possibly sell a couple more magazines?  

Reminds me of when Kingston Heath was rated #1 in Australia by one of the magazines a few years back.  

[Scott Warren]

Baltray overtakes The European Club. Warms the cockles of my heart!

[Dónal Ó Ceallaigh]

Dingle Links? I presume this is Ceann Sibeal? Why change the name; it isn't that hard to pronounce?

[Ally Mcintosh]

Donal,

Ceann Sibeal themselves have changed the name to Dingle Links…

Joshua,

Really there are only two movements within the top-10 – Portmarnock up and The European down. The other shifts happened because of these two moves. As much as I’m a fan of Dooks and Cork, I don’t think I agree that they should be rated higher than Waterville.

Tom, Sean,

I agree 100 is too many (I’ve said before I wish the second 50 if it must be included should just be a block) but that is how the magazine want it. Consider that it does prove very useful for a local market if not you international, great course high-flyers. Tom – Ballybunion at 6. Yeah well I’d like to see it a couple of places higher but it’s hardly so far out there to be farcical. Many would have had it lower. Valley I’d also like to see higher. Same problem though. There are 400 courses in Ireland.

Jonathan,

Adare was considered the best parkland in Ireland. Much chin-stroking suggested that there should be at least one in the top-10. As for Portmarnock rising to No.1, people get a little cynical when it comes to ranking methods. The editor was having kittens because he knew he would have to answer the questions on this. But the reasoning was very solid (the difference in the links over the last 5 or 6 years in terms of width, vegetation clearance, rough management and presentation has been a revelation). Remember these rankings are generated by those who play these courses on a regular basis and I can say that Portmarnock has much love whilst Royal County Down does not always. For the record, Portmarnock was not my No.1.

Thomas,

Cashen seems to be an impossible one to rank. But it’s not the 90th best course in Ireland (where it resided for a few years) so the question is where it should be.

[Dónal Ó Ceallaigh]

Donal,

Ceann Sibeal themselves have changed the name to Dingle Links…

Ally, that's what I thought. It's a pity they felt the need to change the name.   I know there has been an ongoing battle in Dingle/Daingean for a good few years over whether to use the English or Irish version.

[Sean_A]

Ally

I am pleased to hear Portmarnock has opened the course up a bit.  I know in my last visit to Ireland I switched Lahinch and Ballybunion around.  The rough at Ballyb was unnecessarily punitive to the point where the fun factor was definitely reduced.  I thought Co Down and Portrush were too narrow the last times I played them.  I can definitely see a wider, friendlier Portmarnock moving to #3.  The lack of quirk would definitely keep it behind Lahinch for me and Ballyb's design is far too good to be lower than 2.  Just based on supposedly purely objective criteria  ,

Lahinch
Ballyb
Co Down
The Island
Portrush
Portmarnock
Portstewart


These are the only Irish courses I would at the moment consider great.  Enniscrone is close and I think #8, but really in a gaggle with many others, yet its one of my absolute favourites in Ireland.  

Ciao  

[Rich Goodale]

Is Portmarnock ahead of RCD this year just to shake things up and possibly sell a couple more magazines?  

Reminds me of when Kingston Heath was rated #1 in Australia by one of the magazines a few years back.  

To be honest, Jonathan, when I made first first (and still only, sigh....) trip to Oz, I only played RM West and East and KH.  I also spent a few hours walking the composite RM course just to see what all the hype was about.  I dismissed the composite as semed more like an advanced exercise in Lego than golf course architecture.  Of the 3 real courses I played, Kingston Heath was easily my favo(u)rite, even though all 3 are obviously world-class.

As for Ireland.....

I too am surprised at Portmarnock as #1.  It has always been a great course to me, but when I last saw it (2007) it seemed to be a bit prosaic and shabby around the edges.  Maybe it has improved over the past 6 years.....

Otherwise, the list is OK, but highlights the fact that outside of the top 10-20 Ireland is bereft of the hidden gems that exist in England, Scotland and even Wales.

Finally, kudos to Ally for helping Carne move up 4 places on the list.  We should all make it a point to get across the water to see how the new Carne has evolved.

Rich

[Brad Isaacs]

Give me quirk over penal long par 4's. Sean's list is very understandable and agreeable to me.

Waterville and Portmarnock are therefore overated. Goodness,it's been six years since I played Ballybunion, I don't understand need for rough there? The Cashen has undergone so many changes over the years I think it deserves better, as it certainly was a much improved over its original iterations.

Things like Carton (Monty ) I suppose are ok, but I'll. never go back there or to k club or mt Juliet.  Old head is beautiful but golf is only a beautiful view. Giants Causeway gives me same feelings and no overpriced green fees.

Northwest is on list of things to do......

[Ally Mcintosh]

Rich,

Thank you. Whilst I will say that you could argue a conflict of interest, I took a back seat when discussions of Carne arose... other than to offer the facts.... Same with Eddie Connaughton when his courses are on the table...

Portmarnock has improved beyond recognition in those six years and the new firm and fast conditioning has really brought out the angles in the sweeping doglegs.

I tend to agree that Ireland lacks the real hidden gems of Scotland and England, especially away from the coast. One I might recommend that is off people's radars is Portumna, primarily for the topography which is beautifully rolling.

[jeffwarne]

Only a couple comments

100 is a lot for a country the size of Ireland.
 Interestingly, I've played quite a few in Ireland that didn't make the list.
Dunfanaghy is a glaring omission.

Guilty pleasure.
I really like Waterville
didn't want to like the Fazio reno as I'm a Hackett fan, but I did.

Ballybunion seems placed about right. It's been a zoo every time I've been there the last 20 years and that's part of the (lack of) charm.

I 've enjoyed the inland courses I've played in Ireland (Mt. Juliet, Carlow, Kilkenny, Parknasilla, Killarney-particularly Mahoney's Point) They seem placed about right.

Portsalon seems way underrated, as does the Valley at Portrush as Tom mentioned.

[Jon Nolan]

Course rankings are just plain weird.  What is a "top" course anyway?  I've only played about a third of 1-30 but my evaluation of those doesn't even come close to mirroring the list.  I'd take Enniscrone, Carne and Lahinch over Ballybunnion and Dooks would be close.  Dooks would be ahead of Tralee.  I wouldn't play Rosses Point again if you paid my fees and carried my bag unless you forbade me from hopping in the car and heading off to Enniscrone.  I would say that my dissing of some of the grand dames isn't personal... but it is.  It's entirely personal, it should be entirely personal and nobody should ever have to defend their choices.  Somehow, the lists drive us to do so.

Do I think the courses I rate are "better" (more "top") than the ones I don't like as much?  I have no idea.  I'm not qualified to answer the question.  I don't even understand the question.  My criteria comes down to a single point - where do I have the most fun?  How can, or rather, why should, a universal list be created based on 100, 1,000 or 10,000 opinions when mine is the only one that matters?

And yet, after all that, I'd kill for a shot at RCD.  

[Tony_Muldoon]

It confirms my feeling that there’s approximately 20 really interesting courses in Ireland.  Many more of the courses in the top half are new or have seen rebuilds than in other parts of GB&I, so I would expect more movement.  Interesting to see that Doonbeg, Dooks, BB Cashgen, Arklow, R Sandy Hills(+4), Carne which have all received some attencion on here, have all moved up. Courses that have had more contrasted views have moved the other way. TEC, K Club Palmer.


Ones I’m curious to play Rosslare (+7) and Connemara(+2).  I can’t recall the latter ever being mentioned here?

Guilty pleasure.
I really like Waterville
didn't want to like the Fazio reno as I'm a Hackett fan, but I did.

Jeff would you care to expand on what you liked?  I thought it was more consistent but without the highs of Tralee.  |I would have them next to each other on the rankings.


Personally I’m pleased to see the Cashen course going up. I realise this is a marmite choice, but there’s a lot of fun shots there.

[Ally Mcintosh]

Give me quirk over penal long par 4's. Sean's list is very understandable and agreeable to me.

Waterville and Portmarnock are therefore overated.

Maybe it's my allegiances coming out Brad... But I happen to think Portmarnock is the most strategic course in the country, if there is such a thing...

Jeff - Dunfanaghy made it on the almost rans this year with quite a few panel members promising to make it up there next year. Not enough visits I think.

[David Davis]

Just looking closely again. I've played about 25 of the top 30 and another 15 on top of that including everything in the top 10 there. Often wondered about courses like Old Head, sure the inner holes are kind of dull and not special and it's clearly not a links course but the outer holes I thought were pretty cool/breath taking to say the least. I'm not sure if it would be great if I took the ocean out of the picture, but I can't, it's too big to move.

Still I'm of the strong opinion that none of the parkland courses belong in the top 20-30 courses there. I've heard many stories about the lists in Ireland being heavily politically influenced.

In the end I would play many of the links courses again but wouldn't make any special trips to play any of the parkland courses in Ireland. Which sounds like I have something against parkland courses but I certainly don't it's just that you don't travel to Ireland or Scotland and not focus your trip on links golf.

BTW Dingle links and Dooks were the first links experiences I ever had in hard wind and rain. Loved it obviously.

[Tags:]

Tags:

[Tags:]

Tags:

Call to undefined function theme_linktree()