K Club (Smurfit)
Naas
Naas is a peach of a driving course, with lots of changes in
elevation offering tempting tee shots between scatterings of
mature trees. It is by no means hilly but the older nine offer
up some delicious high tees. The 13th is one of those par fives
where you’ll kick yourself for missing the glorious fairway below.
It’s the shot of the day. Indeed, the entire back nine are thrilling
with three par threes and three par fives. The course is well
maintained and smartly bunkered, but it is not overly long so
golfers of all abilities will enjoy it. The big, deceptive greens are
another matter entirely.
K Club (Smurfit)
The K Club Smurfit course opened in 2003. Like the Palmer,
it was designed by Arnold Palmer, with the aim of offering
a very different experience to the Ryder Cup course. The
Smurfit is a very shapely beast with huge shoulders of earth
creating channels to play through. And water is a frequent
visitor especially on the strong back nine. The cliff and lake that
dominate the 7th hole are an intriguing (man-made) feature… but
it is the final six holes that will tempt you and test you most. The
par five 18th requires at least two excellent shots over water. The
course has its own entrance and impressive clubhouse.
Laytown & Bettystown
Despite a lengthy and interesting evolution, Laytown &
Bettystown has ended up resembling the more traditional outand-back links shape, where the 9th is at the farthest point of
the course. It is a rugged, testing start, on an under-appreciated
links. These opening holes will test you with devilish fall-offs
around greens, blind shots and unexpected hollows. Your short
game needs to be razor sharp, as will your imagination. The turn
for home introduces the wind and wider, flatter fairways so you
can start swinging… and you’ll need to for this is the longer nine,
culminating with the double-blind par five 18th.
Dundalk
It is the rhythm and consistency of Dundalk’s 18 holes that have
helped to establish the course’s strong reputation. The dark trees
shadowing holes only emphasise this, as they rise and fall gently
with the terrain and the fairways that flow back and forth. But
it is a good length (par 72, 6,000 metres, middle white tees) and
those trees come close enough to terrify golfers with big draws
or fades. The Dundalk Senior Scratch Cup is a significant event in
the amateur golfing calendar, proving the course’s popularity.
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