Is this the best golf course picture I have ever taken?

The Island Golf Club just outside of Dublin features this absolutely stunning par 5 hole.  I think it might be my best golf course photo to date. 

If you want us to help you play here, send me an email.  If not, check your pulse.

Bart

Lahinch- A special place to me

When I was 10 years old, I got to go to Lahich for the first time. It was the first great golf course I had ever played. It was a glorious sun filled Irish afternoon and spending that day with my dad was one of the most special days of my life.

Me on the back bank of the par 3 5th, the Dell hole. I got up and down for a par from there :)

I was lucky enough to return this summer. It was the same special palce to me.

Lahinch is an undervalued and underrated golf course and is a must see on any first time Irish golfing vacation.

I urge you to explore the links of Lahinch and let Bradley Golf Travel plan the trip for you!

Matt

"Liam's Ace" at Waterville...

How about this for a ball striking round at Waterville Golf Links...

The view to the right from the tee....

The view from the clubhouse:

We'd love to help you see Waterville.  Just shoot us an email and we'll get started planning your special trip.

Bart

The beauty of a rain suit

No matter what the venue might be, especially if you are playing on one of your memorable vacations, don't forget the wet gear!

 

The 18th at Royal Dornoch as another storm approaches.

And you might enjoy playing in the elements! I know I certainly do.



Connemara Golf Club, Connemara Ireland

The weather can even be inspirational! I have been the witness to a certain round in my dad's lifetime in which he cooly fired a 77 at Ballybunion during a monsoon ;-)

Let Bradley Golf Travel plan youre next trip and never under estimate the value of a good rain suit!

 

Matt

The Mass Hole --the 12th -- at Waterville

and the story behind it:

A true legend..

Well, believe it or not, I met Arnold Palmer this weekend at Bay Hill.  We were warming up on the range before our round when our magnificent host waved his hand asking us to come closer.  Our host was standing and chatting with the King!  We were introduced with a hankshake and Mr. Palmer was as kind and cordial as a man could be.  He was incredibly nice to us.. After meeting him, it got me thinking about Arnold Palmer designed golf courses.....

My favorite of all Palmer designs is Tralee, a fantastic links in southwestern Ireland.

The back nine, in particular, weaves in and out of huge dunes.

Tralee is the sort of place that makes you want to come back to enjoy the spectacular setting and fun golf. On your next trip to Ireland, don't miss Tralee.

One Special Day..

Lahinch, Ireland... 2 words that carry so much meaning for me. I spent a lovely day on the western coast of Ireland with my father.  It was here that I played my first great golf course.

Opened in 1893, and later changed in 1927 by Alister Mackenzie, the architect of Augusta National, this specatuclar course winds in and out of wind-swept sand dunes. This course has a mystical feeling and the magic of never knowing what lies just around the corner.

The most famous hole at Lahinch is the Dell, par 3 5th. The green is situated in a natural depression in the dunes. My shot ended up long and on the dune, as you can see here.  I did make a specatucalar 3 from this spot.

Neither my dad nor I will forget this afternoon, for Lahinch is truly special.  No golfing life is complete without a visit to Lahinch.  Don't miss it.

Cashel House Hotel: Our Favorite Country House

   (Cashel House Hotel 2009)

  On our last family trip to Ireland, I did not initially plan for us to stay at Cashel House, but the family protested en masse.  How could we go to Ireland and not go to Cashel? It was, the children protested, their favorite hotel in the world.  I had to admit that I agreed with them--back to Cashel we went.

     Cashel House is a mid-19th century manor home on the edge of Cashel bay, surrounded by some of the prettiest gardens anywhere, with a famed Connemara pony stud out back.  It opened as a hotel in 1968.  The Connemara region of Ireland is wild and glorious, underpopulated, and unspoiled.  Cashel sits like a small gem in the middle of very little else; a trip to Clifden, Connemara's main town, takes an hour along winding roads where every turn brings fantastic scenery and a good chance you might run over a sheep.

     Our family time slows down in Connemara.  We start our days with the best Irish breakfast ever, served not a moment before eight (if you wake earlier and would like some coffee, too bad--you're on holiday, learn to sleep in).  You'll hear the morning staff murmuring in Gaelic before they open the dining room doors--this is one of the last parts of Ireland where Gaelic is commonly spoken.  Anyway, breakfast includes the usual fruit, cereal, yogurt, toast, eggs, sausage, tomato--but Cashel branches out to Irish cheeses and the option of fresh local trout.  The dining room itself is stunning--full of antiques as is the rest of Cashel house, but, like the rest of Cashel, homey, comfortable, and bright. 

(Cashel House Dining Room)

     Well-fortified, we are off for a day of adventure--perhaps a round of golf for the boys at Connemara Golf Club, while the girls take a two-hour ride on the beach.  Or we might hike in Connemara National Park, getting an occaisonal glimpse of wild Connemara ponies.  We love to explore the galleries and pubs of Clifden.  Whatever we do, we try to leave a bit of afternoon time to spend back at Cashel House.  We'll explore the garden paths, pet the horses in Cashel's stable or walk down to the beach (visitors are welcome to swim, but you'd have to be Irish--and used to frigid water--to try it).  Then we repair for a drink in the first-floor bar-cum-tea room before heading upstairs to shower and dress for dinner.

(Hiking in Connemara)

(Connemara Golf Club - an unusual mix of links and exposed rock that is typical of the Connemara countryside)

(Elevated 14th tee with the ocean waves in the backdrop)

     Dinner at Cashel is a two-hour affair.  The Contintental-style menu changes daily, highlighting whatever is fresh and in-season. There isn't a set children's menu--no nuggets here--but the staff offers smaller, simpler versions of most items.  While the grownups enjoy a starter of melon wrapped with proscuitto, four-year-old Katie ate a plate of melon; seven-year-old Matthew's small pork loin came with no sauce at all.  The service is impeccable, unhurried but never too slow. Owner Kay McEvily might stop by to ask how our day went, and offer suggestions for the morrow.  After dessert, we're invited to take coffee in the adjoining parlor, but we're more likely to head past the peat fires back to our rooms, to sleep hard and wake ready for more adventures.

Guest blogger:  Kim Bradley
For more info and photos about Connemara Golf Club check out this thread on GCA.com:  http://golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,41093.msg869381.html#msg869381