Archive for the ‘Golf Blog’ Category

I came across a very interesting interview of Wally Uihlein – the CEO of Ascushnet (Titleist, Footjoy and Cobra Golf) where he discusses the role of technology has had on golf and possible trouble coming down the line with the rule changes being planned/imposed by the R&A and USGA…. interesting article and shows how far technology has brought the average golfer on (in terms of distance and spin!)

Today saw the official announcement that the 3 Irish Open will be moving to Killarney in 2010. The 2009 tournament was held at Baltray and saw the most dramatic finish ever witnessed. A young Irish amateur golfer stole the show as he mastered the wind and rain to become the Irish Open champion – Shane Lowry take a bow!

Another interesting point to note is the change in date, its moving to end of July and will take in the an Irish Bank Holiday. Killarney will be the place to be and is a great setting. The town itself is geared towards golf and will cater superbly for the expected large crowd.

August of this year saw the announcement that the 2011 Solheim Cup will be held in Ireland. Killeen Castle (located in County Meath, a short distance from Dublin) has been chosen as the venue. What makes this venue so unique is that it hasn’t held any type of competition before. This course is specifically designed for a major international tournament. With that in mind it is very similiar to the K-Club (Palmer), host to 2006 Ryder Cup – Dr. Michael Smurfit purchased that estate with a view to holding the Ryder Cup and did everything in his power to ensure it was held there. I was lucky enough to attend the Saturday and Sunday of that weekend – a memory that will linger long into the future.

The importance of major international golf events for Irish tourism is hard to overstate — the golf industry is heavily reliant on them being a success. The Ryder Cup was an easy sell. The Solheim Cup may not be as well known but you can be assured the Irish public (and particularly the golfing public) will get behind this tournament and ensure that its an event to remember.

The golf industry in Ireland over the last 18 months has taken a beating. In the “Celtic Tiger” era courses and golf resorts where launching week after week, memberships were rising along with green fee rates. However as we all know the party is now over. Clubs are struggling, resorts that had planned on selling exclusive property find them lying idle, membership rates are on the decline and green fees are “heading south”. What can be said is that golf in Ireland is built on a sound foundation – we have the best courses in the world, a great climate for producing lush fairways and greens and courses that deserve to survive . A realisation has unfold that prices need to drop making golf more affordable and ticking the value box for consumers. Golf, so much like airlines fall foul to opportunity cost rule of economics. You can’t sell an airline ticket once the plane takes off, the same as you can’t sell a tee-time once the clock ticks by. What we see now is better value for golfers coming to our shores. The Solheim Cup will play an integral part in keeping the golf industry alive but it will also take action by the industry to get it back to full fitness.

Hi All,

Welcome to our new Golf Blog. I’ll be posting the latest news and views on golf, of course with a leaning towards all things Irish. I’ll be bringing you the latest developments on courses and competitions and keeping my eye out for any amusing stories.

First off I’d like to draw your attention to our new website design – we feel its an improvement on what went before with some great new features such as our interactive map.

We’ve also updated our video -check it out here.

I look forward to updating this blog reguarly and I hope you find it interesting.

Michael