Ballyliffin Golf Club - Glashedy

Having played this course on several occasions from it first opened it really has matured into a must play course. The fairways, even after a recent dry spell, are in the finest order and the greens are running true and at a nice consistent pace throughout. As always we were given a friendly and warm welcome by Gareth and his team.

We will be back, if they let us😉

The course was in incredible condition. Stunning views in every direction. Yes it rained, but as soon as it started, it stopped. The wind was a challenge with some and seemed it would not let up. Everything was top-notch/brilliant.

Overall, this facility is just terrific. It's easy to see why it hosted the Irish Open. The clubhouse, the range, the setting....all are great.

We played the newer Glashedy course, which was the one they played for the Irish Open. It was well maintained and had some dramatic holes. Some of the par 4s got a little monotonous and felt like some of them played and looked similar to each other. (360 yards, bunkers left and right off the tee and bunkers left and right of the green.)

But the staff was tremendous and greeted us with a personalized bottle of Irish whiskey. You just can't beat that.

Would love to be able to get back sometime soon and play the Old course there, which I'm told is just a good - perhaps better - than the other.

We knew we were in for a treat when everyone from the head pro to the course superintendent welcomed us with open arms – and, yes, a bottle of Irish whiskey! If there’s only one regret about playing here, it’s that we didn’t have time for 36 holes; in fact, the other course, the Old, might be even better. We found this layout to be eminently playable and fun, but from our tees there was a lack of variety: several holes in the 360- to 380-yard range, with bunkers at the 230-yard mark and a green protected by a trio of bunkers. I was able to navigate the course with help from a yardage book, but others weren’t so fortunate. I’d love to come back and play all 36. It’s quite a piece of property.

There are two courses at Ballyliffin, and both of them are stunning, including the newer of the two, Glashedy Links. There is so much to like about this course, which is slated to host the 2018 Irish Open: It's in superb condition, it's interesting, it's very playable and the views from the high points of the course are terrific. My favorite might be on the par 3 fifth hole, which plays down to a green guarded by four pot bunkers. Best of all, you can see Pollan Bay in the background, including Glashedy Rock Island. Two holes later, there's another dramatic par 3, but this one is entirely different as it plays down around 150 feet to a green flanked by a pond. Although I didn't get to play the other 18 holes at Ballyliffin, the Old Course, it seems like Ballyliffin has a great one-two punch, well worth the drive to the northern most part of Ireland.

Our group played the Old Links course as our second of the day and last of our trip. Honestly we were expecting a tired and ordinary tract to finish our trip playing it as a scramble. Were we surprised. Unlike the Glashedy course this has moguls running down every fairway which push balls in every direction.

The greens were in excellent shape and large for what we had come to expect from this old links courses. The whole complex is situated in an ocean of grasses and moss. I didn't see a tree or even a bush anywhere near play.

Getting to Ballyliffin is a hike but well worthwhile. Plan to play both courses. You wont be disappointed.

A stunning sister course to the Old Course at Ballyliffin is the (newish) Glashedy Links. Appropriately named as the view of Glashedy Rock Island rarely leaves your sight, the Glashedy course has much more drama than the Old Course, but is an equally-easy walk. The Par-3's (there are only three of them) are standouts, with each a dramatic downhill approaches to well-guarded greens. The course winds its way through sweeping dunes with idyllic green sites. Glashedy and the Old Course are a perfect pairing (and for only 150 Euros to play both, it seems like a no-brainer!)