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Doonbeg Golf Club

Georgina Campbell

Doonbeg Golf Club plays along 2km (1.5 miles) of beach and dunes. The ocean is visible from the green, fairway, or tee on 16 of the 18 holes and the golfing adventure embarked upon by the villagers of Doonbeg on Clare's Atlantic coast, is set to gain a new dimension with the opening in May 2006 of an imposing new hotel, The Lodge.

Further afield, its name will pop automatically into people's minds when they talk about the design skills of Greg Norman who said "I have designed the course around the 15th hole, a magnificent par four of 440 yards to a funnel-shaped green surrounded by the highest dunes on the course. Landing a ball on the front edge of the 150-foot-long green, and wondering if it will stop before running off the far end [into perdition], is far more of a challenge to me than the target golf of hitting behind the flagstick from 187 yards and spinning it back six inches."

Yet the Shark was forced to settle for an out-and-back layout rather than a desired two loops of nine, because of the presence of a minute snail called Vertigo Angustior. So, the most extreme point of the 6,885 yard layout, which sits alongside Doughmore Bay, is the 10th tee. Meanwhile the homeward journey includes the delightful, 111-yard 14th, overlooking the Atlantic and where the tee-shot can vary from sandwedge to long iron, depending on the wind. Not unlike the famous, short seventh at Pebble Beach.

"This is a course I want to be identified with, one I will be able to say with pride - 'I did that one.' I am the luckiest designer in the world . . . because of the uniqueness of the site" - Greg Norman.

Distance and driving times (traffic dependent):



Galway Bay Golf Club                   102km (63m), 1hr 42 mins

Lahinch Golf Club                         32km (20m), 38 mins

Dromoland Castle Golf Club            59km (37m), 1hr 18 mins

Adare Manor Hotel & Golf Resort 101km (63m), 1hr 47 mins

Ballybunion Golf Club                   167km (104m), 3hrs 3 mins*

Killarney Golf & Fishing Club 193km (129m), 3hrs 5 mins*

Tralee Golf Club                          186km (115m), 3hrs 6 mins*

Waterville Golf Club                     256km (160m), 4hrs 34 mins*

*The Killimer-Tarbert car ferry crosses the Shannon Estuary between counties Clare and Limerick. It takes 20 minutes and saves 137 km (85 miles), or about 1 hours drive time from ferry terminal to ferry terminal.

Other distances, times and route planning

Doonbeg Golf Club plays along 2km (1.5 miles) of beach and dunes. The ocean is visible from the green, fairway, or tee on 16 of the 18 holes and the golfing adventure embarked upon by the villagers of Doonbeg on Clare's Atlantic coast, is set to gain a new dimension with the opening in May 2006 of an imposing new hotel, The Lodge.

Further afield, its name will pop automatically into people's minds when they talk about the design skills of Greg Norman who said "I have designed the course around the 15th hole, a magnificent par four of 440 yards to a funnel-shaped green surrounded by the highest dunes on the course. Landing a ball on the front edge of the 150-foot-long green, and wondering if it will stop before running off the far end [into perdition], is far more of a challenge to me than the target golf of hitting behind the flagstick from 187 yards and spinning it back six inches."

Yet the Shark was forced to settle for an out-and-back layout rather than a desired two loops of nine, because of the presence of a minute snail called Vertigo Angustior. So, the most extreme point of the 6,885 yard layout, which sits alongside Doughmore Bay, is the 10th tee. Meanwhile the homeward journey includes the delightful, 111-yard 14th, overlooking the Atlantic and where the tee-shot can vary from sandwedge to long iron, depending on the wind. Not unlike the famous, short seventh at Pebble Beach.

"This is a course I want to be identified with, one I will be able to say with pride - 'I did that one.' I am the luckiest designer in the world . . . because of the uniqueness of the site" - Greg Norman.

Distance and driving times (traffic dependent):

Galway Bay Golf Club                   102km (63m), 1hr 42 mins
Lahinch Golf Club                         32km (20m), 38 mins
Dromoland Castle Golf Club            59km (37m), 1hr 18 mins
Adare Manor Hotel & Golf Resort 101km (63m), 1hr 47 mins
Ballybunion Golf Club                   167km (104m), 3hrs 3 mins*
Killarney Golf & Fishing Club 193km (129m), 3hrs 5 mins*
Tralee Golf Club                          186km (115m), 3hrs 6 mins*
Waterville Golf Club                     256km (160m), 4hrs 34 mins*

*The Killimer-Tarbert car ferry crosses the Shannon Estuary between counties Clare and Limerick. It takes 20 minutes and saves 137 km (85 miles), or about 1 hours drive time from ferry terminal to ferry terminal.

Other distances, times and route planning

Professional:	Brian Shaw
Number of Holes:	18
Type:	Links
Designer:	Greg Norman
Championship Length:	6,885 yards
Greenfees:	Midweek €185, Weekend €185
Par:	72