DESTINATION GOLF 2022 2026
Ardglass
Royal County Down( Annesley)
The Annesley rarely receives the credit it deserves. Perhaps that is due to its modest par of 66 … but this sensational 66 will make a fool of you if you think it is easy. It uses much of the same terrain as its championship sibling( they intertwine), just with shorter holes. Indeed, some green settings are even tighter and, while the bunkering is less prevalent, the gorse gets far more friendly. The longest par four is 349 yards so this is about laser-like accuracy … and the good grace to accept that such tight fairways punish even the best shots. Here you will learn much about what makes these hallowed fairways and greens so special … and with three new holes, Annesley fully deserves its Gold status.
Belvoir Park
Harry Colt created this timeless parkland in the late 1920s. Over the decades since the club embraced his work and ethos and changed little. Tucked away in 21st century Belfast suburbia it means you can step back in time and experience a classic. Your starting point should be the clubhouse balcony. It sits high above the back nine and shows off the colourful setting below, stretching on to the distant Belfast hills. This is a sedate, flowing course and one that enjoys tremendous rhythm thanks to Colt’ s layout... but the pace is enhanced by the magnificent and dense trees which enshroud the course. The back nine find multiple uses for a long, low gully that adds to the test.
Ardglass
With two sides embraced by ocean and with canons behind the 1st tee, Ardglass sets temperatures soaring from the word go. The thrilling opening holes cling to the cliff tops: shots into the turret-like 1st green and chasm-crossing par three 2nd set the tone. It feels utterly wild to be up here. Ardglass combines clifftop, links and seaside holes to create a heady golfing mix and a round heavily influenced by wind. The three links holes next to Coney Island( of Vam Morrison fame) arrive with a crashing of cymbals, such is their impact. One of these is the 10th, a par three now turned into a thrilling risk vs reward par four. The 18th leads you back to the clubhouse, built on the ruins of a 13th century castle. The large investments of recent years have elevated Ardglass ever higher.
North West
Links subtlety and ingenuity might be the only words you need to sum up this gem on the Inishowen peninsula. Nearby Ballyliffin may receive most of the attention, but North West has something different and special in its make-up … and that dates back to a bygone age of golf course design, as 2016 saw the club celebrating 125 years. The terrain here is low and bumpy … idiosyncratic and unpredictable … and perfect for what links golf is all about. Use your brain and you can play well here, but given the occasional invisible hollow and semi-blind approach, not to mention the speed and natural undulations to greens, you need to play sharp golf from start to finish. Lastly, North West may look flat from the road but you’ ll quickly discover that every hole is brimming with character.
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