"How you doing?"’ asks one of the local golfers as we cross paths on our way to the next tee. "Grand", I smile in reply – even though I three-putted yet again just a few moments before.
I’ve only been in Donegal for 24 hours but already I’m getting used to this type of friendly exchange with strangers. I’m on a four-day trip to the northwest of Ireland to experience some of the finest golf links courses in the British Isles.
The sun has risen over the mountains and the waters of the Atlantic are crashing against the shore as I draw my unreliable driver from its bag and take my eyes off the stunning scenery long enough to contemplate the next tee shot.
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On a day like this Ballyliffin Golf Club is a sight to behold. A wild and wondrous test of my modest 22-handicap ability. I slice the ball high, wide and not-so-handsome towards that wandering sea but it stays in play. Truly, I am feeling grand today. In fact, I have nothing to do but smile.
Arriving at Derry airport the previous evening, I had some doubts my game could withstand the tests presented by these historic links.
No bother, to use another phrase popular in these parts. The four courses I played were challenging but exhilarating and I had enormous fun.
Ballyliffin is widely regarded as one of the finest links complexes in Ireland and boasts two championship courses.
The Glashedy Links feels as if it is hewn from the earth. The peaks of five glowering hills overlook the 18 holes while Atlantic waves batter the shore in the near distance.
Over the next four hours I hit good shots, bad shots, embarrassingly bad shots, shots that made me look better than I am and some that were not too shabby at all. Walking off the 18th, my game has been tested but I’ve pulled through. What an experience. I even bought a bobble hat.
Hotels transform into real winter wonderlands with ice bars and heated igloos
I spent the night at the hospitable Ballyliffin Hotel and the next day I headed a few miles south on the same Inishowen peninsula to the town of Buncrana and the North West Golf Club.
Situated on the shore of the Lough Swilly and overlooked by Mouldy Hill, the club was established in 1891 and is one of the nine founding members of the Golfing Union of Ireland.
It is here I meet and greet those wily old local golfers between holes and partake of the craic.
NWGC is a great course, a perfect links test in a beautiful setting over 6,300 yards, with enormous greens and intriguingly-named holes such as Allan’s Kinnegar and Jack’s Worry.
After a promising start my swing is lost somewhere on the fifth at a hole named Sally’s. What she did with it I can’t tell, but I persevere.
Afterwards the local professional Brian McElhinney stops for a chat.
Special mention too for George and Maria who cooked up a bowl of spicy soup in the modern clubhouse.
Portsalon Golf Club (portsalon golfclub.ie) is only eight miles or so as the crow flies from Buncrana but on the opposite banks of the Swilly on the Fanad peninsula.
Another stunning course, it is characterised by verdant fairways, staggering undulations, greens like upturned bowls and valley-like approaches. The place feels like a warm hug. Miraculously I remember that I can play golf and my tee shots fly along like bullets from a sniper’s rifle (they say bad golfers only remember the good shots). Portsalon is a must-visit Donegal course.
Away from the golf there is much to see. The county is the northernmost in the Republic and one of nine comprising the Ulster region (six are over the border in Northern Ireland).
A 30-minute drive away is the Croithli (Crolly) Irish whiskey distillery. Thomas McIntyre takes me on a tour of the premises and shares his deep knowledge of the liquoring and fermenting traditions. I also visited the oldest pub in these parts – the Olde Glen Bar, a venerable establishment said to serve the best pint of Guinness in Donegal.
Also worth a look is Mount Errigal, a 2,464ft summit that is the highest in Donegal and something of a county symbol.
My final stop is the glorious Rosapenna Hotel and Golf Resort in Downings, open since 1893 and boasts the famous Sandy Hills and Old Tom Morris links.
The four-star property is large, modern and luxurious enough for scores of wealthy Americans. It is a perfect base from which to explore an area that offers fabulous food and is centred around golfing activity.
I play the St Patrick’s Links. Opened in 2019, the course is beautifully sculpted around natural sand dunes with blind tee shots, high tee shots, hidden glens and steep natural ravines. There are nooks, crannies and what feels like a surprise around every corner. I loved it.
After lunch there is one final treat and I play nine holes on the famous Old Tom Morris Links. It was Old Mr Morris, a four times Open winner in the 1860s and from the home of golf, St Andrews, who saw the golfing potential of this coast while staying in the area in 1891.
I can’t help but feel the history when walking along the fairways, and it feels like a privilege to play.
The sun goes down behind the Donegal mountains, heralding the end of my trip. In the locker room I see photos of Rory McIlroy. They are rightly proud of the young man who grew up a few miles from here.
Standing with Rory in the pictures is Brian from Buncrana. The caption says ‘British Amateur Champion 2005’.
That’s what I’ll remember about Donegal – the people, their welcome and modest charm. You may be walking among champions without knowing it but they take you as they find you, no bother.
Book the holiday
Get there: Direct flights are available from a number of UK airports to City of Derry; Loganair from £69.99 one-way. Find out more at loganair.co.uk
Book it:
- Rooms at the Ballyliffin Hotel in Co Donegal start at £103 a night B&B. Find out more at ballyliffinhotel.com.
- Rosapenna Hotel and Golf Resort in Co Donegal reopens on March 31. Two nights’ B&B and two rounds of golf costs from £569 per person. Find out more at yourgolftravel.com.
- *Ballyliffin GC Glashedy Links from £43. Find out more at ballyliffingolfclub.com.
- North West Golf Club from £52. Find out more at northwestgolfclub.com.
- Portsalon GC from £52. Find out more at portsalongolfclub.ie.
- Rosapenna GC St Patrick’s Links (reopens April 14) from £172. Find out more at rosapenna.ie (All green fees per person).
You can also get more information at ireland.com/golf.
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