Seapoint
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 and golfers of all abilities will
enjoy it. And after considerable recent upgrades you can expect
to be impressed.
Dundalk
It is the rhythm and consistency of Dundalk’s 18 holes which 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 while the fairways 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, confirming the course’s popularity. And
the course has received a facelift in recent years.
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Laytown & Bettystown
Despite a lengthy and interesting evolution, Laytown &
Bettystown has ended up as a more traditional out-and-back
links, where the 9th is at the farthest point of the course.
Expect a rugged, testing start, on this under-appreciated links.
These opening holes will vex 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.
Seapoint
Seapoint offers two distinct sets of holes, right next door to
Co. Louth Golf Club. Indeed, Seapoint’s closing holes could
easily be an extension of the great Baltray links as they back on
to each other. The front nine play over sedate terrain, where
trees border the course and fairways glide smoothly between
low, rolling shoulders of dunes. Gorse plays its part emphasising
the importance of accurate driving and the doglegs have to
be respected. The turf is tight and while it doesn’t quite feel
like a links, this is exactly what it is. The back nine ramp up the
temperature, introducing the shapes and subtleties that make
links golf such fun.