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I’m just back from an 11 day solo trip to Ireland’s North West and Northern Ireland. This was my first experience visiting Ireland, my first time playing links courses, and my first time doing a solo trip. What follows is a random gathering of notes on courses, golf, traveling in Ireland, and other random ideas which may or may not be of any use or consequence to you.
Firstly, I should start by thanking and blaming Tom Coyne for inspiration for the trip. If you haven’t already done so, read “A Course Called Ireland.” It’s a great story focused not on golf, but on the journey he took to which anyone can relate. Kevin Markham also had a hand in pushing me out the door thanks to his amazing collection of pictures of golf in Ireland. He wrote the complete guide to all courses in Ireland which would be a useful tool, if there was an ebook copy. Kevin's Blog [Links to Kevin's flickr pages of each course below as I still haven't uploaded all of mine, and he has a far better camera and is actually a pro.]
Getting to Ireland
I flew in to Dublin Airport on United via Newark from Toronto – it was an aeroplan “free” flight, and going on United saved me $300 over Air Canada. Other good options are Belfast or the smaller Shannon Airport. All three have many flights direct from the US, Shannon being small means you can save a lot of time arriving and departing. For direct flights from Toronto, you’re pretty much stuck with Dublin.
Getting around Ireland
Unless you bring your own car there on a boat, you’re going to rent one in Ireland. I had initially booked an economy car – VW Polo or Ford Fiesta – but the Polo’s back seats didn’t really fold flat; the only way my clubs were going to get in there was in the back seat. I paid the extra €30 to upgrade to a compact – VW golf (or Ford Focus, Volvo V40, Opel something or other). I could’ve gotten away with the economy car, but my tolerance for anything annoying was weakened on the flight over. An economy would be a tight fit for 2, but workable; a compact could possibly fit 3 and comfortably fit 2, with golf stuff of course. If you’ve got a solid travel case, that makes things very tough and means you’d need a compact for 2 and even larger for 3 people.
Irish roads, especially away from big cities, are tight. A full size car will have very little space to maneuver on the tighter roads - the R and L category roads (regional and local) are not advisable for large cars driven by those with heart issues. Most of those roads can fit 2 smaller vehicles; 1 cm out of place and you’ll have a meeting of mirrors or of mirror and hedge. Personally, I had no problem with driving on the left and shifting gears with the left hand. Automatic car charges are through the roof.
To navigate around, I used my phone with Navmii – a GPS app with preloaded maps. It did a good job of getting me where I wanted to go and of calling out the roundabout exits to take. You could bring your own GPS, but that’s another thing to bring in the carry-on.
A warning about Irish Car Hire prices. In the Republic, the business is largely unregulated. I was initially quoted a rental price of €45 for an economy for the trip. Being an OCD analyst, I did a little digging to find out what I was missing, as that price just made no sense. What was not included – premium location charge €26 (even though booking to pick up at the Airport, you still pay an extra fee), CDW waiver fee €30 (fee to waive the provider’s insurance – only available to Canadian Visa card holders; yes, it’s a fee, to waive another fee; the CDW insurance costs are more than the entire rental cost and the coverage is bad compared to your credit card, so waive the CDW, but expect to pay a fee), credit card fee €5. So with taxes, my €45 rental actually came to €145. Luckily, I knew this in advance, so wasn’t about to lose it on the nice lady at Hertz.
Understanding the Irish
Accents aside, and they can be tough to comprehend at times, certain words and sayings need to be understood in order to fully enjoy your travels.
“Craic” – pronounced “crack” – means atmosphere and good time. If you tell an Irishman/woman that you’re looking for good craic, they’ll point you to a pub or other such venue for a good time. Asking the same question in Canada or the US is likely to get you arrested, or at least kicked out the clubhouse.
“Not expecting any weather” – it may or may not rain. Likely, it will rain, but not a lot, more of a light drizzle or mist.
“A little rain” – it will rain. Pack your full waterproofs (mine were always in my bag). This side of the ocean, “a little rain” would have golfers cancelling tee times and asking for rain checks. Irish courses don’t know what a rain check is.
“Some rain” or “A bit of weather” – put all your electronics in two plastic bags, put on the full rain kit, make sure you have dry clothes in your car. Your water proofs will keep you from drowning, that is all. On this side of the ocean, “a bit weather” would have stores cleared of batteries, water bottles, and generators. The Irish enjoy the extra challenge.
“Downpour” – go to high ground. It will rain such as you’ve never seen it. The best showerheads cannot match a proper Irish downpour. No one plays in a downpour, not even the Irish. Should you know of one coming, build a large boat 300 cubits in length and gather two of each animal.
“No wind” – a light breeze – 1-2 club effect into the wind.
“Little windy” – really windy – 3-5 club difference, aim 30 degrees away from your target, hit it low.
“Windy” – do not wear baggy clothes and do not use a club with more loft than a 6 iron. “Windy” conditions would cause forced evacuations of Florida and the Carolinas.
“Rough” – what we may call fescue over here. Unmaintained areas of the course featuring a mix long grasses, moss, weeds, sharp little grasses that will stab you, and other random plants. If you put a ball in the rough, you’ll need a search party. Irish and Swiss golfers seem to be the best at finding balls in the rough. Getting out of the rough is a different story.
“We’ll fix that round in the pub” – you will drink until you can’t remember playing golf and the incomprehensible guy at the bar starts making sense.
“A long drive away” – anything more than 30 minutes is considered far. The fact that I drove from Dublin airport to Strandhill (3 hours) and played golf in one day was incomprehensible to most.
"Full Irish Breakfast" - if offered this and you say yes, you must eat all of it, even the black pudding (don't ask what's in it). A pig has given its life, and a chicken has sacrificed two of its young so that you may have your 1000+ calorie meal. Leaving any food on the plate will insult the cook and the entire island.
Playing in Ireland
No Ranges – most courses have no practice ranges as we do here. The area is available; however, you have to provide your own balls. I made sure I knew where some real ranges were enroute and near the courses I’d play in case I needed a tune up.
Rough – so you’re in the rough, ok, put that 6 iron down NOW! Are your arms as big as Jason Day’s? Have you practiced hitting shots out of thick weeds 30cm above / below your feet while balancing delicately on the two toes that have grip? Use a wedge, put the ball on the fairway, no one wants to see you cry after swinging at the ball five times.
Putting out and marking – all the players I joined were very careful about order of play on the green. They rarely tapped in unless it was inside a foot. That’s a matter of etiquette that is best followed so as not to irritate the locals.
Weather
It rains in Ireland, it’s windy sometimes. Dress and play appropriately and you’ll be fine. Two pairs of golf shoes are ideal – lets them dry out from sweat and any water between rounds.
For my visit, most days were around 15. It rained just about every day, but it was usually short lived and very light rain.
Timing
The high season runs mid-May to labour day. In the region I visited and at the time I went, it was very quiet. Even though the courses I played are top rated, I actually played 1.5 rounds solo and had to wait to find a playing partner at other times. With a larger group, that could mean that scheduling is much easier.
Region
I chose the Northwest as it’s cheaper and less crowded. As a single, I didn’t want to be stuck behind a tour bus. The choice meant that I couldn’t play from a single hub – in the Southwest, you could hit pretty much everything staying in Tralee. That doesn’t mean I was driving 3 hours a day – most days I kept it to 2 hours max. I stayed in Enniscrone for 5 nights, then at a different spot each night until my last two nights in Portrush. I probably could have consolidated a couple of those stops into one, but I was pretty much playing by ear at that point. I only had one round booked the entire trip – my time at Royal Portrush; so, that meant I could be flexible. Getting a time at Lahinch, Tralee, and Ballybunion would have been very tough. I had no trouble getting a time where I played – quite the opposite as I had a challenge finding playing partners.
The second factor affecting my choice had to do with the North and West Coast Links North and West Coast Links. A member at any one of those clubs enjoys half priced green fees at any other club. I was able to join Enniscrone as an overseas member on an annual membership for €300 – that ended up saving me nearly €650 – net savings of €350.
Firstly, I should start by thanking and blaming Tom Coyne for inspiration for the trip. If you haven’t already done so, read “A Course Called Ireland.” It’s a great story focused not on golf, but on the journey he took to which anyone can relate. Kevin Markham also had a hand in pushing me out the door thanks to his amazing collection of pictures of golf in Ireland. He wrote the complete guide to all courses in Ireland which would be a useful tool, if there was an ebook copy. Kevin's Blog [Links to Kevin's flickr pages of each course below as I still haven't uploaded all of mine, and he has a far better camera and is actually a pro.]
Getting to Ireland
I flew in to Dublin Airport on United via Newark from Toronto – it was an aeroplan “free” flight, and going on United saved me $300 over Air Canada. Other good options are Belfast or the smaller Shannon Airport. All three have many flights direct from the US, Shannon being small means you can save a lot of time arriving and departing. For direct flights from Toronto, you’re pretty much stuck with Dublin.
Getting around Ireland
Unless you bring your own car there on a boat, you’re going to rent one in Ireland. I had initially booked an economy car – VW Polo or Ford Fiesta – but the Polo’s back seats didn’t really fold flat; the only way my clubs were going to get in there was in the back seat. I paid the extra €30 to upgrade to a compact – VW golf (or Ford Focus, Volvo V40, Opel something or other). I could’ve gotten away with the economy car, but my tolerance for anything annoying was weakened on the flight over. An economy would be a tight fit for 2, but workable; a compact could possibly fit 3 and comfortably fit 2, with golf stuff of course. If you’ve got a solid travel case, that makes things very tough and means you’d need a compact for 2 and even larger for 3 people.
Irish roads, especially away from big cities, are tight. A full size car will have very little space to maneuver on the tighter roads - the R and L category roads (regional and local) are not advisable for large cars driven by those with heart issues. Most of those roads can fit 2 smaller vehicles; 1 cm out of place and you’ll have a meeting of mirrors or of mirror and hedge. Personally, I had no problem with driving on the left and shifting gears with the left hand. Automatic car charges are through the roof.
To navigate around, I used my phone with Navmii – a GPS app with preloaded maps. It did a good job of getting me where I wanted to go and of calling out the roundabout exits to take. You could bring your own GPS, but that’s another thing to bring in the carry-on.
A warning about Irish Car Hire prices. In the Republic, the business is largely unregulated. I was initially quoted a rental price of €45 for an economy for the trip. Being an OCD analyst, I did a little digging to find out what I was missing, as that price just made no sense. What was not included – premium location charge €26 (even though booking to pick up at the Airport, you still pay an extra fee), CDW waiver fee €30 (fee to waive the provider’s insurance – only available to Canadian Visa card holders; yes, it’s a fee, to waive another fee; the CDW insurance costs are more than the entire rental cost and the coverage is bad compared to your credit card, so waive the CDW, but expect to pay a fee), credit card fee €5. So with taxes, my €45 rental actually came to €145. Luckily, I knew this in advance, so wasn’t about to lose it on the nice lady at Hertz.
Understanding the Irish
Accents aside, and they can be tough to comprehend at times, certain words and sayings need to be understood in order to fully enjoy your travels.
“Craic” – pronounced “crack” – means atmosphere and good time. If you tell an Irishman/woman that you’re looking for good craic, they’ll point you to a pub or other such venue for a good time. Asking the same question in Canada or the US is likely to get you arrested, or at least kicked out the clubhouse.
“Not expecting any weather” – it may or may not rain. Likely, it will rain, but not a lot, more of a light drizzle or mist.
“A little rain” – it will rain. Pack your full waterproofs (mine were always in my bag). This side of the ocean, “a little rain” would have golfers cancelling tee times and asking for rain checks. Irish courses don’t know what a rain check is.
“Some rain” or “A bit of weather” – put all your electronics in two plastic bags, put on the full rain kit, make sure you have dry clothes in your car. Your water proofs will keep you from drowning, that is all. On this side of the ocean, “a bit weather” would have stores cleared of batteries, water bottles, and generators. The Irish enjoy the extra challenge.
“Downpour” – go to high ground. It will rain such as you’ve never seen it. The best showerheads cannot match a proper Irish downpour. No one plays in a downpour, not even the Irish. Should you know of one coming, build a large boat 300 cubits in length and gather two of each animal.
“No wind” – a light breeze – 1-2 club effect into the wind.
“Little windy” – really windy – 3-5 club difference, aim 30 degrees away from your target, hit it low.
“Windy” – do not wear baggy clothes and do not use a club with more loft than a 6 iron. “Windy” conditions would cause forced evacuations of Florida and the Carolinas.
“Rough” – what we may call fescue over here. Unmaintained areas of the course featuring a mix long grasses, moss, weeds, sharp little grasses that will stab you, and other random plants. If you put a ball in the rough, you’ll need a search party. Irish and Swiss golfers seem to be the best at finding balls in the rough. Getting out of the rough is a different story.
“We’ll fix that round in the pub” – you will drink until you can’t remember playing golf and the incomprehensible guy at the bar starts making sense.
“A long drive away” – anything more than 30 minutes is considered far. The fact that I drove from Dublin airport to Strandhill (3 hours) and played golf in one day was incomprehensible to most.
"Full Irish Breakfast" - if offered this and you say yes, you must eat all of it, even the black pudding (don't ask what's in it). A pig has given its life, and a chicken has sacrificed two of its young so that you may have your 1000+ calorie meal. Leaving any food on the plate will insult the cook and the entire island.
Playing in Ireland
No Ranges – most courses have no practice ranges as we do here. The area is available; however, you have to provide your own balls. I made sure I knew where some real ranges were enroute and near the courses I’d play in case I needed a tune up.
Rough – so you’re in the rough, ok, put that 6 iron down NOW! Are your arms as big as Jason Day’s? Have you practiced hitting shots out of thick weeds 30cm above / below your feet while balancing delicately on the two toes that have grip? Use a wedge, put the ball on the fairway, no one wants to see you cry after swinging at the ball five times.
Putting out and marking – all the players I joined were very careful about order of play on the green. They rarely tapped in unless it was inside a foot. That’s a matter of etiquette that is best followed so as not to irritate the locals.
Weather
It rains in Ireland, it’s windy sometimes. Dress and play appropriately and you’ll be fine. Two pairs of golf shoes are ideal – lets them dry out from sweat and any water between rounds.
For my visit, most days were around 15. It rained just about every day, but it was usually short lived and very light rain.
Timing
The high season runs mid-May to labour day. In the region I visited and at the time I went, it was very quiet. Even though the courses I played are top rated, I actually played 1.5 rounds solo and had to wait to find a playing partner at other times. With a larger group, that could mean that scheduling is much easier.
Region
I chose the Northwest as it’s cheaper and less crowded. As a single, I didn’t want to be stuck behind a tour bus. The choice meant that I couldn’t play from a single hub – in the Southwest, you could hit pretty much everything staying in Tralee. That doesn’t mean I was driving 3 hours a day – most days I kept it to 2 hours max. I stayed in Enniscrone for 5 nights, then at a different spot each night until my last two nights in Portrush. I probably could have consolidated a couple of those stops into one, but I was pretty much playing by ear at that point. I only had one round booked the entire trip – my time at Royal Portrush; so, that meant I could be flexible. Getting a time at Lahinch, Tralee, and Ballybunion would have been very tough. I had no trouble getting a time where I played – quite the opposite as I had a challenge finding playing partners.
The second factor affecting my choice had to do with the North and West Coast Links North and West Coast Links. A member at any one of those clubs enjoys half priced green fees at any other club. I was able to join Enniscrone as an overseas member on an annual membership for €300 – that ended up saving me nearly €650 – net savings of €350.
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