Seapoint  – nominated by Fergal – added 26^th August 2006 – words by Fergal

If the adjacent County Louth course is off the golfing radar of most people then Seapoint must be positively subterranean in comparison! Maybe it’s because it has only been in existence for such a short time – it was only designed by Des Smyth in the early 1990s – that it is taking some time to build a reputation next to a course established in 1892 that still struggles for recognition!

Seapoint is a championship course that extends to over 7,100 yards from the back tees, with a par of 72. Located beside Termonfeckin Beach on the east coast and with fantastic views of the Cooley and Mourne Mountains in the background, it is routed through two hundred and sixty acres of largely unspoiled, rugged links land.

Former Irish Amateur Internationalist Declan Branigan assisted in the original design and he was the driving force behind further course developments in 2004/5, including the introduction of some water hazards on several of the opening holes.

The first few holes have a parkland feel to them as trees border the west side of the property. The 443-yard 4^th and 423-yard 5^th are two back-to-back par fours where water comes into play around the greens to make life difficult early on.

The majority of the round is then played out on fairly open, intuitively laid out links with crisp fairways, imaginative bunkering and firm greens. The rough, however, is punishing for any truly wayward shots. A particularly demanding stretch occurs at the long par fours – all over four hundred yards long – from the 11^th (with nine bunkers) to the 14^th (with a blind green).

The four closing holes are sited in sand hills running along the shore and they culminate in the closing 560-yard par five, where some original bunkers have been removed in recent remodeling and the putting surface re-contoured.