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Beaufort Golf Resort: The Hidden Gem of Southwest Ireland Golf

The Beaufort Golf Resort, is an 18 hole Kerry Golf Course situated 7 miles from Killarney and often referred to as the hidden gem of Southwest Ireland Golf. Beaufort Golf Course is nestled at the base of Ireland’s highest mountain, Carrauntoohil, part of the world famous MacGillycuddy’s Reeks. Set amongst 200 year old trees, 15th century castle ruins, two lakes and rolling meadows, Beaufort Golf Course has been newly redeveloped to the highest standards by Golf Architect Tom McKenzie of McKenzie and Ebert.

With its exceptional mild climate and the natural drainage of this par 71 course, playing in the Beaufort Golf Club will most certainly be very enjoyable. The first nine holes can be found at the west side of the avenue while its back nine provides more eye candy as they are nearer to the highest mountains in Ireland on the south side.

Measuring 6,587 yards, the Beaufort Golf Club is a great alternative for the many beautiful link courses that abound in Ireland. You could also lounge around in their cozy clubhouse that permeates an aura of mixture of tradition, history and modern developments. The clubhouse is easily located being nearby to the main house of the club. Beyond it is a formal rose garden and inside the clubhouse, you will be able to see the practice putting green. Here you will be able to find many facilities that you could go to for all your golf needs, fine dining or maybe just a couple of pints of Guinness.

Just 7 miles from Killarney, Ireland’s most vibrant town, the site for the Beaufort Golf Club is in a valley that was said to be created 10,000 years ago during the Ice Age. Getting there is easy but living the warm welcome and the great environment can be pretty hard.

You and your family will be able to enjoy a golf vacation together. It doesn’t matter if not all of you play golf. The rich culture and history of Ireland and the town of Killarney coupled with its many fine dining restaurants and countless points of interest can cater to all the needs of the group.

The nearby Killarney golf course can also offer you an alternative choice as you can alternate from each course to the other for variation. Both are just a stone’s throw away from the town of Killarney and can be easily travelled to each day.

After your round of golf, you can just return to the town, dress up and explore the many wonders and forms of entertainment that Killarney town has to offer.

Going to Ireland for a golf vacation trip can be quite costly. But with all the wondrous sites, great accommodations and the warm welcome you will get will make every penny spent truly well worth it.

Ireland has about 410 golf courses that caters to golfers from all over the world. They offer both parkland and links golf courses and is considered a premier golf vacation spot where game styles and accommodations vary.

You can check out the internet for contact information for the Beaufort Golf Club or you can just simply visit their website. http://www.beaufortgolfclub.com/

The Facts About Links Golf Courses

The Nullarbor Links Golf Course was officially opened on the 22nd of October 2009. It is an 18 hole par 72 golf course that stretches over 1365 kilometers from Kalgoorlie in West Australia to Ceduna in South Australia, making it the Worlds longest golf course.

The difference between a parkland course and a links course is considerably greater than is commonly known. They are both ‘somewhere to play golf’ but that’s about where any similarity ends. Most people (well, golfers anyway) know that a golf links is a golf course on the coast – a seaside course. However, the definition is even narrower than that. The word ‘link’ or ‘links’ comes from the Old English word ‘hlinc’ meaning a ridge or a stretch of flat, undulating land along a seashore. Nothing to do with a succession of holes linked together like a chain.

Before looking at the characteristics of a links let us just define a parkland course. Well, it’s almost a case of ‘everything is parkland except a links’. But there is an exception in that there are a number of courses (usually northern) which are ‘moorland’. And mountainous courses are rare for obvious reasons. Gravity mainly.

Parkland courses are very often set in an area not infrequently wooded to some degree and often with heather, gorse, sand bunkers and sometimes water in the form of ponds or lakes. However, the main and striking difference between links and parkland is that the latter is much more obviously manufactured. This is not said by way of criticism since inland courses by definition have to be manufactured. The quality of the course though is more to do with the skill of the designer and how much this “manufactured-ness” shows. The optimum use of the space available and the incorporation of existing natural features – woods, trees, water, ups and downs – are where the architect can bring his creative powers to bear.

A great advantage of playing on a links course is that it can usually be kept open all year round. The sandy soil encourages fast drainage and offers a firm playing surface even through wet weather. Links players have another aspect of weather to contend with and that is the wind. It can vary throughout the day in speed and direction and assessing how many clubs’ difference to allow for a shot into the wind is gained only through experience. Skill in playing ‘below the wind’ shots is very useful. Other techniques you will need to learn are how to play out of the type of grass found on seashores. The nature of the grass is such that it can wrap itself around your club and cause all sorts of problems – hence the need to accustom yourself to a rather different style of golf and adapt to conditions that you won’t find on the parkland courses.

Parkland courses in general are fashioned out of the existing ‘geography’ of the area and maximum use is made of the natural features of the landscape. If there is a convenient lake or stream it can be incorporated, as can any thickets or woodland. The important thing to look for in the design of a parkland course is variety from one hole to the next and, if possible, to give each hole its own character. Whereas the parkland course draws its character from the available features and makes it necessary for a player to have a strategy, the links has a constantly changing character that challenges the player at every outing.

It is the links courses that have traditionally been chosen for the great tournaments as the ultimate test. Places like Troon, Carnoustie, St.Andrews, Sandwich and Lytham are all courses which will test the very best in the world – with a very strong accent on consistency. Every day is different and every round demands your full concentration.

This is not to dismiss the parkland courses. They present the sternest tests for the championship players – Sunningdale, Wentworth, Woodhall Spa, Walton Heath, The Belfry to name a few. These will always provide tough tournament venues and at the same time they offer the most beautiful settings – particularly Gleneagles. For those who prefer a gentle venue but still want a real challenge, there are dozens of top class parkland courses to explore.

Good golfing!

Ballyliffin Golf Club Ireland: The World’s Most Natural Golf Course

Ireland is a bastion of golf course, whether be it parkland or links courses, and they have more than enough for its 4 million population to accommodate many other golfers from all over the world. Blessed with beautiful land and scenic views, vacation golf spots in Ireland are a definite must-play and should provide a wondrous time whether you are just a beginner or a seasoned golfer.

To those who have already gone and played at the Ballyliffin Golf Club, they have been blessed of having a chance to play at two great golf courses adjacent to each other. Both straddles the shores of the Atlantic Ocean and provides a challenging game as the wind constantly blows erratically swaying the flight of the golf ball.

Either the old links or the Glashedy links provide a relentless pursuit to providing a fun yet unpredictable day of golfing with the best of the old and new provided to its members and visitors.

Before the Ballyliffin Golf Club enjoyed its vast popularity today, it has experienced a number of success and failures that have shaped it to be one of the more exciting golf links Ireland has to offer.

The concept of starting a golf club in Ballyliffin started out in the later part of the 1940′s after the Second World War. By then, a group of people interested in the idea banded together and leased lands and converted it into a 9-hole golf course. The club itself prepared the greens before playing, doing the menial tasks of mowing the grass and checking the area.

But the development of the club and the course itself was a slow and painful process. With such a small club that doesn’t have really any resources at all, frustrations and doubts on whether the club should be continued at all flourished. Then the impending end of the lease also was hanging over their heads and the future of their club was slowly darkening.

But the sun shone the little golf club from Ballyliffin when the landowners agreed to extend their lease. The club’s association with the Irish Christian brotherhood has also helped it recruit more players and improve their revenues. By the time the 1960′s were ushering in, the confidence of its members soared and the prospect of owning the land was getting brighter.

Then by the late 60′s problems with the land arose again as the owners weren’t keen on renewing the lease once again. This prompted the club to look for a larger area to lease and convert into a links course.

By 1970, the Ballyliffin Golf Club transferred to a much bigger area and construction soon started. Barely three years after 18 holes were ready to be played.

But problems soon arose again. Financial concerns plagued the club and the seawall was being eaten up by the sea as more gravel were being removed for the construction. A masterfully planned charity, bazaars and concerts saved the club from financial disaster and the stopping of construction by the sea saved the property.

Soon, more members joined the club and green fees were rising with its new found fame adding more finances to the club’s coffers. A new clubhouse was now opened and more facilities and amenities were being put up.

Five decades after the original group members decided to start the Ballyliffin Golf Club, a new course was now added. By 1993, the construction started on the new course beside it and was finished two years after. Many professional and golf enthusiasts that the new championship links course was stunningly beautiful and was well designed.

With the success Ballyliffin Golf Club has experienced, and the failures that has made it what it is today, you can be sure that a golfing trip to this eventful course would be well worth the long trip from across the globe.

Video segment from the Hidden Links Golf Guide to Ireland featuring the remote links courses at Ballyliffin Golf Club in County Donegal. Narrated by Renton Laidlaw. Copyright Hidden Links, Inc