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Ballybunion (Old), Ireland |
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Ballybunion Golf Club
Sandhill Road
Ballybunion
County Kerry
Ireland |  | Jo McKenna, Lionel Hewson, Tom Simpson & Molly Gourlay |  | Brian O'Callaghan |
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 | +353 (0) 68 27146 |  | 2 miles S of Ballybunion |
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Golf Club Website
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 | Contact in advance - not at weekends |  | Simon Duffield |
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The town of Ballybunion was named after the Bunion family, who owned the local 15th century castle. For many people, the name conjures up a vivid image of a wild links golf course on the edge of the Atlantic with fairways set amongst the gigantic duneland. Herbert Warren Wind, the distinguished American golf author, described Ballybunion as “nothing less than the finest seaside course I have ever seen”.
As you drive from the historic town of Ballybunion, along the winding road to the golf club, your eyes feast upon the most spectacular links land imaginable. It will come as no surprise that this course, located on Sandhill Road, has the largest, most formidable sand dunes in Ireland.
Originally founded in 1893 as a 12-hole course, the 1897 Irish Golfer’s Guide names the designer as Jo McKenna. Ballybunion Golf Club struggled financially at this time and then folded in 1898. The course was re-established in 1906 as a 9-holer, designed by the prominent Irish golf journalist Lionel Hewson; the Old course was extended to 18-holes in 1926. The Old Ballybunion course remained relatively anonymous until it hosted the Irish Championship in 1937; prior to the tournament, Tom Simpson and Molly Gourlay were called in to make suitable alterations to the layout. Little has changed since.
Ballybunion is a thrilling challenge, a supreme test of golf. If you are a very good golfer and there’s a gentle breeze blowing, you might score well. If there’s an onshore gale blowing, you are best to forget scoring well and simply try to enjoy this exhilarating golf course. Bill Clinton played here in 1998, apparently taking more “mulligans” than you can shake a golf club at!
There are so many excellent holes on the Old course at Ballybunion that it is fickle to single out one, so we’ll select three. The 2nd is a long 445-yard par four, the line for the tee shot a narrow gap between two towering sand dunes. A strong accurate drive will leave a long approach shot to a raised plateau green. The 7th is another tough par four measuring 432 yards with its tee perched on the cliff-edge overlooking the seashore. It’s an absolute cracker. If there is such a thing as a signature hole on the Old course at Ballybunion then it would have to be the 11th, yet another supremely challenging par four of 453 yards.
Tom Watson fell in love with Ballybunion and he goes out of his way to extol the course’s virtues. After several visits, Watson agreed to write an article for the course guide/planner. He writes: "After playing Ballybunion for the first time, a man would think that the game of golf originated here. There is a wild look to the place, the long grass covering the dunes that pitch and roll throughout the course making it very intimidating ... in short, it is a course on which many golf architects should live and play before they build golf courses. I consider it a true test of golf."
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If the above course review article is not accurate, let us know by clicking here |
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In the section below, headed “Your Reviews”, are golf course reviews posted by visitors to the Top 100 website. There are no specific rules for reviewing a golf course except you MUST have played the golf course first. Merits of each course are left entirely to your discretion. Important factors, such as course location, condition (or presentation), course difficulty and historical importance are all left for you to judge and we have developed a simple rating system where you can allocate one score to each course. | |
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 |  | | Average Reviewers Score: |  | | Played the old course along with waterville, lahinch, tralee and doonbeg in october 2009, it was such an unbelievable experience, i went back and played it again. i can't imagine golfing in ireland and not going back to play ballybunion.  | | Thursday, July 29, 2010
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| | | Played the Old Course June 22 and June 24, 2010. It certainly deserves its #1 ranking. The back nine is truly superb. While the course itself is without peer, the pace of play is unacceptable. It took 5 hours 24 minutes the first day and 5 hours 12 minutes the second day. Mandating play in fourballs is the basic problem. Additionally, no one checked handicaps. I doubt anyone in the group in front of us either day broke 200. Please set a maximun handicap of 18 for men and 22 for women and enforce those limits. The course is much too difficult for anyone with a higher handicap. Furthermore, we never saw a course ranger either day. | | Tuesday, June 29, 2010
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| | | BBunion is the most fun I have ever had playing golf. This is links golf at its finest. Yes it is expensive but the whole experience is worth it. Holes 1-5 are good as well, they are just not on the ocean. But starting with number 6 hold on, this is as good as it gets. The turf is the best links turf I have played upon, very spring. Overall 6 *. | | Sunday, June 27, 2010
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| | | Played Ballybunion Old 2 years ago with a group of 8 from the Myrtle Beach area. Out of 7 consecutive days of golf, they day we played Ballybunion, we encounted a monsoon with 40 MPH winds and rain coming down sideways. Despite not being able to write down scores, the course was superb. Standing on the 1st tee with the cemetary on the right was something undescribable. It was a very fair test of golf, but with the rough wet and gnarly, you had to be in the fairway in order to hit approaches into greens. #18 was one of the most difficult driving holes (played from the back tees) and very intimidating. Service in the clubhouse was excellent and enjoyed drinking a Guiness watching other soaking wet people coming in with a huge smile on their faces. | | Saturday, January 23, 2010
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| | Sorry but I was extremely disappointed - perhaps it was all th hype I had read. Played the course in Sept 2009 in very calm conditions and that may be the reason. In those conditions the course was relatively benign. If you reduce the fairway width on any course to 12 yards and allow the rough to grow totally wild it would be tough. Ballybunion is difficult for those reasons not because the holes are anything special. Ignore the ocean view and you have a very ordinary course. I agree with others that the clubhouse leaves a lot to be desired and the attitude of the clubhouse staff was less than cordial. At $300 for the round a great disappointment. | | Sunday, December 20, 2009
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| Response: | | | hugh | Sunday, December 20, 2009 | | No way should the Old course at Ballybunion receive a 2-ball (poor) rating. Sure it may be expensive and over hyped but it’s not a poor course, even in the kingdom of the blind. | | | Ally McIntosh | Monday, December 21, 2009 | | I find the comment about reducing the fairway widths to 12 yards very strange. One of the many reasons Ballybunion is so great is that it offers so much width in so many places. I really hope this hasn't changed recently. A truly great course. | | | max | Tuesday, December 22, 2009 | | What the reviewer hasn't told us is that he probably went round in 125 and lost 15 balls! Ballybunion is a truly great course....yep its pricey but in this case you get what you pay for. Where does this guy usually play his golf to give Ballybunion a 2 ball rating!! |
| | It is tough when you are comparing links courses in Ireland as the competition is fierce. With RCD, Lahinch and Waterville as my top 3 (Royal Portrush has yet to be played) - Ballybunion suffers from a rather ordinary (in comparison) front 9 - the back is obviously outstanding - but I don't have the front matching up to the opening 9 at some of the others. Outstanding course overall - tough competition in Ireland. Oh, and Listowell was a great town to stay in while playing.  | | Wednesday, August 05, 2009
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| | | Played the Old course in the morning followd by the Cashen in the afternoon. I doubt there can be many better 36 holes of golf out there. The Old course was superb, the greens excellent and all round condition great, especially considering the rain the course had experienced in the preceeding 3 days. The Cashen gets mixed reviews on this site but we all agreed that although its some way off the Old course its still a great track in its own right... bit OTT in places but a lot of fun. Not a cheap day out but at 180 euros for the day its worth it. Also played Waterville which was very good, but Ballybunion was the one that stood out for all of us. Very good bar food as well. One thing to mention...we had prebooked our green fees for all the courses we played but a lot of golfers we met out there mentioned they had got very good discounts on green fees, so next time we go we'll be shopping round a bit. | | Monday, April 27, 2009
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| | | Played the Old Course on two consecutive days in April 09. I’ll echo Tom Watson and put it with the greatest golf courses in the world. On the first day I played in calm conditions with 3 members who through their stories and gracious gestures enhanced the trip more than I can say. The second day I played by myself in a light rain and 20 MPH winds. There is a lot of hype surrounding the Old Course, and I for one think it is well deserved. The 11th hole is almost mystical. | | Friday, April 17, 2009
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| | Played this in July sandwiched in between Doonbeg and Lahinch and followed by Tralee and Adare Manor. My son and I were in complete agreement that Ballybunnion was the lesser of the 5 courses. It is a good links but not top-notch. It is expensive and visitors are treated like cattle. We were so slow getting away because of poor weather that we could not get out on the Cashen and mention of a refund was met with a stone-wall no. The clubhouse is a monstrosity on the outside and pretty soulless inside. For peace and tranquility play Doonbeg, for history play Lahinch, for views to rival RCD and a friendly atmosphere play Tralee and for top quality play Adare.  | | Tuesday, February 24, 2009
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| Response: | | | Cedric | Wednesday, February 25, 2009 | | Expensive, yes, agreed! Visitors treated like cattle? You must have caught the great staff on a bad day... Missing the Cashen is no big deal really, instead return when it's all done again (big project going on there). Monstruosity is the term I'd rather use for the clubhouse at Doonbeg! Doonbeg a better course that Ballybunion?? No way... | | | Birdietime | Monday, May 11, 2009 | | I have played all courses mentioned, and Balybunion old course wins the watch everytime, the staff are very nice i just dont believe these comments! | | | John O Shea | Tuesday, December 22, 2009 | | First of all, Adare Manor shouldn't even be in that list - a pleasant parkland course - not in the same league as the others mentioned. Doonbeg is also universally considered to be at the bottom of the list of 4 links courses you mentioned and there is a reason for that. Ballybunion, Lahinch and Tralee are all fantastic courses but most that know about golf course design would acknowledge that Tralee is a notch below Ballybunion / Lahinch. John O'Shea |
| | | Played in Sept. 2008. The oceanside holes are great. The others are fine. Maybe a touch overrated? My group has different opinions, some love it, some merely think it's good but overhyped. Definitely a must-play, though, so you can find out for yourself. | | Friday, December 05, 2008
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| | | Just played both courses in very strong wind! Not too much to add that hasn`t already been said. The opening 6 on the classic Ballybunion don`t have a great backdrop but are still pretty good holes particularly the 2nd.6 to 18 are phenomenal and i loved the way the course changed direction making every shot a challenge.I rate this course second only to RCD but the back 9 on the `Bunion is probably the best 9 holes i`ve ever played. The Cashen is fun but in parts a bit OTT. | | Saturday, September 13, 2008
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| | | Played in early August 08. The course starts out bland (#2 however is a nice hole). The course picks up after number 7 and is one of the tops courses I've played. I liked Royal County Down a little bit better than this course. Skip the Cashen course as it is a big waste of real estate. I'm not sure what folks who rate this course low are lookng for. Ballybunion Old is on my top 5 of all time (this includes Pacific Dunes, Whistling Straights, Pebble Beach and Royal County Down). | | Monday, August 18, 2008
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| | | Played towards the end of May, a little too commercial for me. First few holes leave you wondering what all the fuss is all about, obviously improves later. Might be one of those courses you have to keep visiting before you fall in love with it. | | Saturday, July 26, 2008
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| | | I played Ballybunion a few years ago when my handicap was around 15, and boy, did I struggle. But what a test. Every hit had to be good or a lost ball ensued, the wind was howling, and that was in July!!. The most memorable point of the round was coming up the 18th to be greeted by a huge crowd hanging from the balconies of The Starship Ballybunion Clubhouse (surely they could have built something more in keeping with the course??) and surrounding the green. Unfortunately they weren't there to see us, but it was the week before The Open and a certain Mr Watson was out for a practice round. Still, a man can dream. | | Thursday, July 03, 2008
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| | Wow - I was totally unaware of the divided opinions on the Old course until I read the reviews on this page before composing my own. If some people think this course does not live up to the hype they have a big shock coming when they play one or two others in the area,  starting with RTJ’s Cashen next door! And another thing; if the Ballybunion golf club committee had the good sense to decline the offer of the Presidential statue that now sits outside the police station in town then I’ll raise a pint of Guinness to that decison as there are enough larger than life golfing statues sitting outside clubhouses in this part of the world!!! Having spent a very comfortable evening across the road at the up-market, and very reasonable, B&B that Tom Watson uses when playing here (The 19th Lodge), I was all set for a “double dunt” on the Old and the Cashen at Ballybunion. While the latter disappointed, the former delivered – big time! Yes, the opening half dozen holes do not have the best of backdrops, but they are, individually, very good holes (especially the par four 2nd, played uphill into the dunes) to set you on your way into the real action. I did find teeing over the 3rd green at the fourth hole a little quirky (but then, the Old course also has back to back par threes later in the round, tut tut). The sequence from the 7th to the 18th are just sublime, using dune land that modern day links designers can only dream about. The only weak hole I felt was the 14th (played, admittedly, from a side tee below the regular tee up to the plateau green) but maybe I was unlucky to tackle that one on a day when the usual teeing area was off. I was almost blown off my feet, quite literally, standing on both the 16th and 17th tees as the wind freshened off the Atlantic but what an exhilarating climax those closing holes are (despite the blind approach at the last) to any round of golf – fantastic fun. In keeping with many courses in the extreme west of Ireland, the club are fighting a fierce battle against nature to preserve - note, conservationists, preserve, not destroy - the coastline and I saw a huge mechanical digger on the beach piling rocks up against the dunes to help reduce the erosion of the wind and the waves – maybe you had better play the Old course soon before it all disappears in the next big storm. Jim McCann | | Thursday, May 08, 2008
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| | | A lot has been said already about Ballybunion Old, so not much to add really… I’ll just pick up a few points: the first 6 holes are not the greatest on the course but are not poor at all. 1st is a great hole to get you away from the club house. 2nd is great. The weakest would be the 5th in my opinion. Small note about the par 3 14th: when we played they had set the back tees on a very forward position which doesn’t do the hole justice at all, great hole from the real back tees! 18th green position is a little quirky…But that’s only if one wants to be picky! This is really a big big place, no question about it! Someone was writing he wasn’t sure which of the Old or the Cashen he prefers?? There is not even a possible comparison!! The Old is some classes over…I still think Lahinch is a funnier course to play but in fairness, this one is an all around better course. Cedric | | Saturday, May 03, 2008
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| | | I can't understand this low rating, this course deserves to be N°1 on the british isles | | Saturday, February 23, 2008
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| | | Played the Old Course in July and was an unforgettable experience, can't understand some of the poor reviews - The first 5 holes may not be on the cliff edge but are serious golf holes in their own right - Compared to some of the famed courses in scotland this is right up there and certainly derserves its place as one of the best in the world. | | Tuesday, October 30, 2007
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| | | It is a very good course but I cannot accept it as the 26th best in the world. The first five holes are not memorable but, the trailor park on the right is. From the 6th on it is a thing of beauty until the 18th. I do not like nor understand Mr. Watson's design of that green. I would play Ballybunion again in a heartbeat but it does not deserve the 26th spot. | | Tuesday, August 28, 2007
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| Response: | | | Nial | Tuesday, December 22, 2009 | | Clearly this review is from a sincere American who knows very little about golf architecture. It’s nice to see that his comments were ignored as Ballybunion has now gone up to 10th in the world. No doubt this guy is a member of some exclusive Nicklaus, RTJ or Fazio course… but what is he going on about re Tom Watson’s design of the 18th green? Unless this leprechaun is mistaken, I think Watson simply oversaw, through Bob Gibbons, some tee and bunker renovation and did nothing whatsoever to Ballybunion’s greens. Am I wrong? |
| | | Loved it. Yes, the opening holes could be more spectacular, but they cannot be described as bland by any stretch of the imagination. Once you hit the cliff-top at the 7th tee, though, the course really takes off. High dunes and winds off the sea make for a classic links experience. I also played the Cashen, which is harder, and cannot honestly say which I preferred. Play both if you can. | | Thursday, August 09, 2007
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| | | I have played Ballybunion twice, and it certainly lived up to its billing. While much is often made of the somewhat understated start to the course, the first few holes are far from weak, and give one an opportunity to begin to find your game before you are thrust into the teeth of the course. The second in particular is a great hole in the early going. Obviously the course really starts going around the 6th, and never really looks back. I personally think the par 3 8th is as good of a hole as you will find anywhere, and the 7th, 11th, 16th, and 17th are also personal favorites. While it is pricy for sure, there is a specical feeling that you have while playing ballybunion that in and of itself makes it worthwhile. It is also a fair course, and if the wind is not blowing it is certainly possible to play to your handicap. My most recent visit was marked by the fact that Tom Watson, the man generally given credit for putting Ballybunion on the map, was playing a few groups behind me. Watching him play up the 18th (a hole he helped redesign) was a truly special experience. I will add that the Cashen course, while more penal and extreme in nature than the Old Course, is also a truly great course that would be a destination course if it were anywhere else but in the shadow of its older sibling. Just don't try to tee of from the tips if you have a handicap over 5, the starter kicked me and my 7 handicap off the back tees quicker than you can say "Slainte". | | Wednesday, August 08, 2007
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| | | It is wonderful course and my grandad lives right outside the 9th hole on Sandhill road. It is the best course i have ever played on. | | Thursday, November 23, 2006
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This is a golfer’s paradise. From the complimentary leather bag of golfing goodies on arrival, to the moment you step out of the 19th, this golf course exudes class. If the standard of the greens left a little to be desired in November, the course’s design and flow more than made up for it. If one could play only one approach again, it would be the 9-iron into 11. As the ball rises against the Atlantic and plops onto the dancefloor, there are very few better feelings in life, let alone golf. From hole 7 until a pint of Guinness, I don’t think there is a better stretch of golf holes in the British Isles, with perhaps the slight exception of Lahinch which is 40 miles away and has 18 breathtakers. This area of the world is golfing mecca and no where more poignantly does Ballybunion represent what it means to play 18 holes of golf with mates next to the sea. Truly wonderful experience. Would love to go back and not hit it in the graveyard next time!
| | Tuesday, November 07, 2006
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| | | Frankly, some of these posts are outrageous. Ballybunion Old is one of the truly great courses of the world.
One common criticism is that the course gets off to a poor start. Let's take a quick look:
#1: Once you're off the tee it's a fairly average opener, but how many first holes have you staring at a graveyard full of Celtic crosses while a gallery of golfers from around the world mill around the clubhouse, waiting for you to pull the trigger? It's a fun first shot of the day.
#2: An ordinary tee shot, but a significantly uphill approach to a green perched in the dunes. Not exactly easy stuff, nor something you see every day.
#3: A long, tough downhill par-3. The tee is exposed to the wind and you have OB long of the green. The hole faces inland and isn't especially scenic, but it's not bad at all.
#4 and #5: Two back-to-back par-5s occupying some of the flattest ground on the course. I can understand why some would knock these two, although both have plenty going on in the way of bunkering and subtle fairway contours. It's the interior of the property, no getting around that, but there are entire links in the UK 100 that occupy land this flat. So lighten up!
#6: This is a GREAT hole! So what if you're looking at a caravan/trailer park from the tee? You have loads of options off the tee to try to hit this fairway on the diagonal--OB long makes the floggers think twice. And did some of you critics bother to LOOK at the green complex here? You had better be dead-F'in-right with your short iron or you'll have an up-and-down try worthy of Pinehurst #2 on either side of this green.
At #7 the Old course reaches the coastline and from this point on I really don't see how its greatness can be questioned. I'll leave it to others to rave about the soul-stirring back nine--I simply wanted to express a dissenting view about the opening.
Nick Faldo once said about Merion that the middle third of the course always drove him crazy because while the holes seemed easy (compared to the finish) he could never score on them. A great golf course routing, like a great novel, builds tension before releasing it, and the openers at Ballybunion do a great job of this, with plenty of fun and challenge along the way. Are there better 6-hole opening stretches out there? Of course! But Ballybunion's early holes are by no means poor.
| | Monday, August 14, 2006
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| | | I simply loved this course. Sure, there are a couple of weak holes, but the great holes, and strong finish, more than offset those. Standing on the seventh tee and looking at over 800 yards of fairway for the 7th and 11th holes with the Irish sea below you and to the right is one of the most memorable sights in my golf memory bank. We liked the course so much we cancelled another top Irish course to play it again the next day. (I will deduct points now that I have heard they have erected a statue of Clinton there, but surely someone will chop that down soon!) | | Thursday, May 11, 2006
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Ballybunion has THE BEST BACK 9 of any course. Never will you play a stretch of such exhilarating holes as 15, 16 and 17...other than holes 10, 11, 12 and the awfully underrated sweet par 5 thirteenth hole.
But because the word on the street is that "the course doesn't really begin until the sixth hole or so, I personally can NOT put it as high as many people do.
You see...I like to play 18 holes and when I judge this place on all 18 holes, those first few certainly bring the overall rating down. | | Friday, February 03, 2006
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| | | Played Ballybunion 1 and a half year ago,while my "golfing career" was still pretty new,especially on abroad links courses....Since then I have been thinking a lot about this round and have compared it to other courses I have played elsewhere in Ireland and Scotland.And my conclusion is that while the last 10-12 holes were terrific,the first ones were probably too average for the course to be rated so highly.Maybe I would also need to return and play a new round,now that I am a much better golfer... | | Friday, December 30, 2005
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| | | Ballybunion Old is a gem that deserves all of the praise and accolades that it has received. This is a pure test of links golf. Every hole is outstanding and a challenge in its own right. The course starts with a cemetary ominously situated to the right of the first tee. #2 is a magnificent par 4 with a very difficult approach shot. The par fives are all solid, as are the par threes, but par fours like 7, 11, and 16 are among the best links golf holes I have ever played. With a manageable wind a good golfer can negotiate his way around this course. It is emminently fair and enjoyable. I would love to be a member here and play this course as often as I could. Of all the links courses I've played I rank Ballybunion Old, Royal Dornoch, and Muirfield as the top three, with little to choose between these three magnificent tracks. The townspeople are also friendly, althought too proud of their statue of President Clinton for my conservative political views! | | Sunday, November 20, 2005
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| | | Most who visit Ballybunion do so with a great deal of expectancy due to it's exhalted status. Driving out of the village towards the golf course only serves to enhance that expectancy as the land is as dramatic as you will find anywhere. Some of therefore disappointed by the opening holes but not me. A gentle first hole is not the greatest hole around but to me a gentle introduction is no bad thing. The challenge of holes 2-6 cannot be underestimated. Usually played in a cross wind you are tested by excellent bunkering, raised greens with run off areas and elevated tees. The disappointment here is the scenery (or lack of) against your expectation beforehand. However, the golfing challenge is huge without question. Put a ring of sand dunes around the 3rd green (instead of the caravan park backdrop) and people would suddenly rave about the hole. From hole 7 onwards the terrain and views are superb and so is the golf. Standing on tees at 11, 15 or 17 is an amazing experience and one not to be missed.
Best of all spend the day and take on the even more dramatic Cashen Course too because virtually every hole requires a deep intake of breath as you stand on the tee.
Majestic!
| | Monday, November 14, 2005
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| | | Many of the comments here are spot on. Ballybunion is a hugely over rated course. I have played many of the Open rota courses and their surrounding qualifiers and I would happily play at any of them ahead of this one. The Cashen; (the new course) is better. How it gots its name as one of the top courses in Britain serves notice that once a reputation is gained its hard to shake off. Not to say that there are not 9 great holes but there are also 9 that are as ordinary as any you will play. Its short too! | | Wednesday, November 09, 2005
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| Response: | | | Jim | Tuesday, October 30, 2007 | | Ballybunion is in the Rep. Ireland and not Britain (Did you play a different course?)
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| | | Perhaps it is the name which gives this course its reputation. From accross the ocean you plan your whole trip around this course, with visions of leprechauns and Old Tara. And while its worth playing with some memorable shots involved, I found it somewhat disappointing. The front includes holes shoehorned together with a graveyard and a trailer park along side. Too many shots involve severe elevation changes, as in a cheaper mountain course. The condition was average and not up to the standards of its better neighbors Lahinch, Tralee and Waterville. I didn't particularly love the new Cashen course either. | | Thursday, October 13, 2005
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| | | Some holes here could easily be described as ‘as good as anywhere’ certainly amongst my favourites were 11th, 15th and 17th. But oh dear …. the early holes are ingrained in your mind in the first hour or so of the round and to be honest are not very good. The first third of the round was such a letdown I thought we were in the wrong place ! The Old course at Ballybunion is known throughout the world but for me I came away very disappointed – I needed to go and play but the extremes between very poor and very good were too wide for me to want to play it again. Can still be described as a must play course (make your own minds up) but as a world famous collection of 18 holes, it is left wanting. | | Monday, October 10, 2005
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| | | I'm not sure what Tom Watson meant when he said that "it is a course on which many golf architects should live and play before they build golf courses". Perhaps he meant that architects should learn how NOT to design a golf course by playing Ballybunion Old. Six of the first nine holes are frankly average and the close proximity of greens tees and fairways make you feel like you are playing on a cheap and cheerful seaside golf course. Driving over greens and across other fairways is NOT in my mind classical routing. Having said that, the back nine is simply magnificent and it's exactly what I was expecting. Huge dunes, rippled fairways and stunning coastal views. However, there are too many dull holes on the front for this to be one of my classics. | | Monday, September 19, 2005
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| | | I played here last week, with some rain and wind (about 30-35 knots). I'm a young French player with a 13 handicap and I've played 4 shots over my limit. The approaches to the green and the putting are really tough, but driving is quite easy because the course is very fair. Every good shot will be rewarded, every bad shot will be punished. This course is absolutely the best one I've ever played. The back nine is really perfect to me, every hole looks like a signature hole. The 15-16-17-18 is really the best course finish I've ever seen. Don't miss this course..... | | Saturday, September 03, 2005
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| | | Magnificent in a word. It starts slowly and you wonder what all the fuss is about but from the 6th when the course takes you out to the cliff tops it's one great hole after another. It's the best course I have played in 30 years golfing, the last 4 holes staying in the memory. | | Monday, April 11, 2005
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| | | I played 7 rounds in southwest Ireland in August 2004 and I found the Old Course at Ballybunion to be the most interesting, strategic layout of the bunch. The Old has great variety in its layout and I believe you will have great respect for this course once you have played it. Be prepared to be challenged on every approach to greens that are difficult to hit. The Old Course is not to be missed and don't listen to those who detract because the grass is not plush. This is links golf at its best. | | Sunday, August 22, 2004
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| | | I'm not sure who votes this course into the top 10, have they actually played other courses in the UK & Ireland? Does condition of the course count for anything in these rankings? For mine any course that has Poa greens should not be considered for the top10, let alone the top50. It has way too much traffic and seems like a trumped up public course. I would play the Cashen before the Old any day. | | Wednesday, July 14, 2004
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| | | Simply magnificent, a course of great variety and challenge and truly memorable scenery, it has to be on everybody's must play list. And don't forget they have a second excellent links on The Cashen Course. | | Tuesday, June 15, 2004
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| | | This is one place I never tire of playing. It has it all and the finishing four holes must rank amonst the best finishes anywhere. Ok some complain of the opening holes and then you talk about them, 1st hole a nice test for an opening hole, 2nd hole a great par 4 where you have to get your tee shot down the left to get on to the elevated green in two, 3rd hole a par 3 from an eleveated tee usually with a cross wind that is as challanenging a par 3 as any I have played............ | | Wednesday, June 09, 2004
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| | | Which joker put Ballybunion at number 4? Surely a blinded disciple of Tom Watsons' attempt to be endeared by the local people.
I admit there are some fine holes, 2, 11 and 17 spring to mind, but there are too many holes that are best described as 'ordinary' to afford it such a high mark. Those 3 or 4 holes are worthy of the acclaim they receive, but there are too many uninteresting holes that take the overall glow away from Ballybunion. The finishing hole is especially disappointing. Top 100 - certainly, top 50 - maybe, but top 10, you're kidding. | | Monday, June 07, 2004
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| | | Sometimes, because of expectation based on wonderful reviews, a film disappoints.
This was my feeling about Ballybunion, which I enjoyed, but....
My opinion was not coloured by my form on the day which was reasonable, but somehow I expected more. | | Thursday, May 27, 2004
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