Northern Ireland

Open Championship Heritage

Northern Ireland

The Causeway Coast and Mourne Mountains form the dramatic backdrops to two of the world's top-ten ranked links — Royal County Down and Royal Portrush.

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Northern Ireland — Course Map

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South-West Ireland

South-West Ireland

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 North-West Ireland

North-West Ireland

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 Dublin & East

Dublin & East

Parkland & Coastal Classics

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🇮🇪 Northern Ireland, Ireland

Royal Portrush — Dunluce

Location
Portrush, Northern Ireland
Opened
1888
Designer
H.S. Colt
Events
The Open Championship (1951 & 2019), Irish Open
Rankings
2nd best golf course in Northern Ireland, top100golfcourse.com, 15th best golf course in the world, Golf Magazine (2021)

Royal Portrush’s Dunluce golf course is famously the only golf course outside of mainland Britain to host the Open Championship, and after a 60 year drought, it was announced it would return in 2019, which was won by Irishman Shane Lowry. The combination of authentic, low-lying links land combining with the Irish dunes is prominently showcased here, with the golf course climaxing at the famous par 3, 16th, a do-or-die one-shot hole over a gully.

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🇮🇪 Northern Ireland, Ireland

Royal County Down

Location
Newcastle, Northern Ireland
Opened
1889
Designer
George Baillie
Events
Walker Cup, Curtis Cup, Irish Open
Rankings
#1 golf course in Northern Ireland, top100golfcourse.com, 6th best golf course in the world, Golf Magazine (2021)

A vastly different experience than that of a Scottish links, County Down is a dramatic, tumbling layout in the dunes and gorse of Northern Ireland, situated at the base of the Mountains of Bourne and near the Bay of Dundrum coming in off the Irish Sea. Very few golf courses can hold a discussion among the “best in the world,” but County Down is among the best to put up a fight, primarily thanks to the strength of the variety of holes, and the famous par 4, 9th playing over the dune with a magnificent backdrop.

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🇮🇪 Northern Ireland, Ireland

Portstewart — Strand

Location
Portstewart, Northern Ireland
Opened
1889
Designer
Willie Park Jr.
Rankings
3rd best golf course in Northern Ireland, top100golfcourse.com

Massive, almost mountainous dunes impose on this brilliant Willie Park Jr. layout. Furthermore, panoramic views of the Atlantic Ocean and the Lough Foyle to the Inishowen Peninsula await, making Portstewart among the best-looking golf courses in either Ireland or Northern Ireland. Thankfully, it plays as good as it looks, with a handful of brilliant holes and a set of excellent greens. As far as golf trips to Northern Ireland go, this is a cannot miss golf course, alongside County Down and Portrush.

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🇮🇪 Northern Ireland, Ireland

Castlerock

Location
Coleraine, Northern Ireland
Opened
1908
Designer
Ben Sayers
Rankings
5th best golf course in Northern Ireland, top100golfcourse.com

Less than some of the more dramatic Northern Ireland golf courses, Castlerock plays less in the dunes and more in the exposed links land, resulting in a more windswept layout that continues to challenge golfers on this harder-than-usual golf course. The courses relationship with the railway, the river, and the nearby sea is spectacular, and as a result, Castlerock is able to find its own identity to stick out in a very competitive golfing country.

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🇮🇪 Northern Ireland, Ireland

Royal Portrush — Valley

Location
Portrush, County Antrim, Northern Ireland
Opened
1932
Designer
Harry Colt (1932)
Events
Open Championship qualifying, North of Ireland Amateur
Rankings
Top 100 in the British Isles, top100golfcourse.com

The Valley Course at Royal Portrush is the lesser-known but genuinely world-class sister to the famed Dunluce Links. Set in a natural valley between towering sand dunes and the Atlantic, it winds through the same spectacular linksland as its Open Championship-hosting sibling — with tight, tumbling fairways, small firm greens, and constant sea views. Slightly shorter and more sheltered than the Dunluce, it is regarded by many members as the more enjoyable everyday round and hosts qualifying for Open events at Portrush.

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🇮🇪 Northern Ireland, Ireland

Ardglass

Location
Downpatrick, Northern Ireland
Opened
1896
Designer
Unknown/Mother Nature
Rankings
8th best golf course in Northern Ireland, top100golfcourse.com

As opposed to other Northern Ireland gems, Ardglass holds its own identity in the clifftop holes overlooking the coast. As a result, Ardglass sticks out for not only a different type of golf—much closer to England or Scotland—but also as a stunning journey up and down the coastline, providing picturesque opportunities at every turn. Among the highlights, the opening five holes alongside the cliffs are extremely welcoming to open a golf course, while the thrilling par 3, 12th is also exceptional. Ireland

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