The Royal Dublin Golf Club
Located on Bull Island Nature Reserve, in a stunning secluded spot within Dublin Bay, access is over a bridge from the mainland.
The Royal Dublin Golf Club was founded in 1885, the Club has a terrific history and proudly holds the title of the second oldest golf club in Ireland. The course has underwent many alterations and improvements over the years and the result is the wonderful course that you see today. It is a classic links, par 72, measuring 7,269 yards from the back tees.
The course has beautifully matured into the local terrain and moulds into the landscape of the tall rolling dunes seamlessly.
- The local wildlife adds a welcoming and enjoyable element when you play here.
- It has fewer blind spots than are usually associated with a links course,
- the course is relatively flat and narrow with long expanses of out of bounds
- however, the fairways do have humps and hollows
- and the greens have elevations and subtle contours
- and don’t forget the threatening water ditches.
It is laid out in a traditional links manner, two loops of nine that lie side by side, they take you out and then back in again, it is more of a classic links Scottish feature. The outward holes benefit from playing downwind unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the backward nine, eight of them play headlong into the wind. There are many fabulous holes on this course, the course opens with two par 4’s that envelope a par 5, and the finishing holes are particularly strong, the final four all being par 4’s. Accuracy is the key here, wayward shots will be swallowed by the rough or bunkers, course management is also necessary if you want to score well.
The course is beautifully maintained and in excellent condition throughout. The relatively small greens are outstanding, run true and are medium paced, brutal deep greenside bunkers are strategically placed throughout, the tight fairaways are super and the generous rough is not too penal.
It is a deceptively tough course that offers golfers at all levels a real challenge in a unique and beautiful setting, within Dublin Bay. The sense of peace and tranquility belies the fact that you are so close to the bustling city, it is fun and challenging and a pleasure to play, what more needs to be said.
The endorsements from well-known golfers from different generations in relation to The Royal Dublin are ceaseless. The Royal Dublin is simply internationally regarded as one of the best tests of traditional links golf in the world. Royal Dublin is the home course of one of Ireland’s best loved and greatest golfers, Christy O’Connor Senior, with ten Ryder Cup appearances and who in 2009 was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame, what further recommendation do you need.
Christy’s success is proudly presented in the “Christy O’Connor Room” in the clubhouse at Royal Dublin.
Check out Royal Dublin Golf Club here