XXXX Carton House( Montgomerie)
Carton House( O’ Meara)
The Carton House Resort is all about five star luxury. A grand hotel is the centrepiece and two golf courses sweep away from the astoundingly alluring 18th century building. The O’ Meara course has those perfect parkland assets familiar to everyone as it rolls through heavy woodland. And yet the trees stay well back to give the course an unexpected spaciousness. Off the tee the big manicured fairways are hugely inviting targets, making this long course a driver’ s delight. There are five par fives, too. Bunkers threaten along fairways and this threat increases exponentially on approaches to the immaculately presented greens. The O’ Meara is often lauded for its superb stretch of three holes down by the River Rye. The two par threes and the par five 15th squeezed in between are exceptional holes, lost amongst the trees. Water is ever-present and it’ s little wonder they are so memorable.( The cottage beside the 16th tee was once lived in by Marianne Faithful.)
Carton House( Montgomerie)
The two courses at Carton House are in sharp contrast to each other. It adds considerably to the experience of playing here( and staying here). The Montgomerie, opened in 2002, was designed as an inland links and it certainly boasts many of the features of a links: tumbling and deceptive fairways, deep bunkers and glorious greens. There are few trees on this landscape and when the rough is up, the course glows many shades of gold. This is one of Ireland’ s toughest courses – Monty designed it that way – so choosing the right tee and not trying to be heroic is the best place to start. From the white middle tees it measures 6,821 yards, but from the greens it is 6,365 yards. Gentle doglegs abound and with that dramatic bunkering you need to stay above ground to score well, so assess those doglegs carefully. The 2005 and 2006 Irish Opens were held on the Monty, so you know Carton House has every ounce of quality you could ask for.
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Killeen Castle
No other course can boast such a glorious landscape as Killeen Castle. Six hundred lazy acres, drenched in trees, wrapped around a 12th century castle … how could it not be the idyllic setting for a Jack Nicklaus‘ Signature’ course. This is the longest course in Ireland( 7,677 yards), and home to the Solheim Cup in 2011, but golfers of all abilities will enjoy this expansive course. There are five tees( choose wisely) and fairways always appear wide and inviting, which makes this a delicious driving course. Every hole is strong, but the par five 12th, with its stream cascading across the front of the green, may be Killeen Castle’ s signature hole.
Mount Juliet
The sylvan setting of the Mount Juliet estate is home to one of Ireland’ s most popular parklands. The course was designed by Jack Nicklaus, and opened in 1991. Mount Juliet also boasts a magnificent hotel and the Michelin-starred Lady Helen Restaurant. This is top-tier stuff and the course is just as elegant, sweeping over the landscape, through the trees and throwing in the occasional but dramatic splash of water – the 3rd, 4th 13th and 18th most notably. It is a generous course where golfers of all abilities will find plenty to excite them, be it the short par three 3rd over water, the tree glide enshrined setting around the 13th green or the par five 17th, curving between sentinel-like oaks. But perhaps most exciting of all is the entire package, because the Mount Juliet experience is something truly special.