Surf & Turf Country Club
One of the infinite number of things I love about golf is playing and exploring different courses. There are hundreds of golf courses in Ireland and most of them are great. And through the likes of No Laying Up and The Fried Egg, I’ve gained an appreciation for golf architecture, or at least started to think about golf holes and courses in different ways.
In an attempt to capture this interest, I'm tracking the best of each hole I play in Ireland and build a composite course from them. What this means that only Hole 1 on a course can be the 1st hole on the composite course, it’s not just the best 18 holes.
This composite golf course has been christened the Surf and Turf Country Club. "Surf" representing the links courses, and "Turf" for the parklands tracks. You think I'd be a Dad with a pun that bad.
Hole 1 - Arklow, Par 4
Source: Kevin Markham, Golf Monthly
The conditions in this photo could not be further from the hot, muggy day we had here, but I’m sure it was still as great in winter. A wide open fairway from an elevated tee box but one that pinches in at driver distance if you do want to take the big stick. The approach is naturally easier if you take it on with some excellent bunkers and an undulating but fair green that is the perfect indication of things to come.
Hole 2 - K Club South, Par 3
Source: Breaking Par: The Quest
There’s a proper links vibe to this place, which is a good trick considering it’s about 30km from the nearest beach.
This par 3 has a great green site perched up and protected short by a vast sand trap. The green is also long and skinny which puts distance control at a premium and any chip shot that isn’t pin high only mildly terrifying.
An excellent par 3 which isn’t even the best one on this front 9.
Hole 3 - Corballis, Par 4
Source: x.com/@jamierkennedy
This might be the best value hole in the world. A course built by the county council that charges as little as €25 for a midweek round, the 3rd at Corballis is one of the great par 4 links hole. A big boy tee shot (that has to clear the two dunes guarding the dogleg to have any hope of a shot at the green) is followed by an approach to an elevated green which will definitely not be on an even lie. It might be true love.
Hole 4 - Concra Wood, Par 4
Source: fairwaysandfundays.com
This might be our new favourite hole at S&T CC. The best trick this hole plays is that for every shot there is always more room than it looks. The uphill tee shot has a generous landing area and the layup shot is the same. The problem is it is difficult to trust this given the restricted views and strategic bunkers, which means that if you don’t back yourself, the shot to the green can be very difficult. You could play this a hundred times and never get bored.
Hole 5 - Strandhill, Par 5
Source: Strandhill Golf Club
One of the most dramatic golf holes you will ever get to play. The tee box is sitting on the end of an enormous dune that runs along most of the west side of the golf course. The fairway then is basically like the lunar surface and feels as natural as it so clearly is. You have to climb up onto one of the many humps to see the green because your ball will inevitably be in a little valley. Spectacular.
Hole 6 - Powerscourt West, Par 3
Source: powerscourtgolfclub.com
McLay Kidd has chosen and curated a gorgeous green site set between a stream short and trees long. As you can probably imagine the bunker in front is a nightmare to get out of with a comically tall face (I can confirm you cannot see the flag when you’re down there) and the green itself is no picnic either. Finally, a tricky swirling wind is the cherry on top.
Hole 7 - K Club South, Par 5
Source: noahjurik, golfpass.com
This par 5 at the K club plays along water framed by some gorgeous rock outcroppings, and the green site is propped up by a number of bunkers that play visual tricks as you line up your approach. Getable with a good drive, but with that bunker complex and perched green you have a decent amount of risk reward like a lot of great par 5s.
Hole 8 - K Club North, Par 4
Source: golftop18.com
A dogleg left cosied up along the banks of the River Liffey, I always enjoy a golf hole where driver is not only not required but arguably the wrong club entirely. There's a video explainer of this hole on our Instagram page.
Hole 9 - Strandhill, Par 3
I think if you asked anyone who played this course no one would pick the 9th hole as the most memorable. Set up against the entrance with no view of the ocean, it is not as dramatic as those working their way amongst the dunes. But the clever bunkering and amazing view of Knocknarea make it a really great par 3, and it brings you back into the town a little as well which adds to the sense of place of the course. (My apologies for the standard of photo, this is a screengrab of a video I took but I didn’t have anything else that demonstrated the view)
Hole 10 - K Club North, Par 4
Source: golftop18.com
Much like the 8th hole, this dogleg right to start the back 9 also calls for some restraint off the tee. But the real highlight is the mound guarding the green in front. It's so big you can't see much if any of the surface, and the mount is actually about 20 metres short of the green, so it plays a visual trick on you as well. We played it in winter so I can only imagine how good it looks with the trees in full bloom.
Hole 11 - Jameson Links, Par 3
A beautiful view of the golf course and surrounding Dublin Bay from the tee box, the treacherous green is set beautifully into the dunes of Portmarnock.
As with all par 3s, hit the green and you're in good shape. But if you miss it there is trouble literally everywhere, and with the prevailing wind off the right it can be a challenge to even get near it.
Hole 12 - Jameson Links, Par 5
Source: Jameson Golf LInks
This is one of the maddest green complexes I've ever played. A relatively straightforward dogleg right is all about setting yourself up to attack this green from a decent position.
Missing it to the right in particular can leave some of the more hilarious lies I've ever seen, and with the way the slopes look you have no idea if you're going to end up in a bunker or not. Is it a little contrived? Maybe. Is it tons of fun? Yes.
Hole 13 - K Club North, Par 5
Source: golftop18.com
Speaking of needing your brain, the 13th at K Club North is another thinker. A deceptive tee shot with the fairway wrapping around a fairly large mound on the left, your second shot then has to carry a pretty impressive bunker system.
Again the layup isn't that obvious so you have to be sure of your yardages, but the green is a generous size so it isn't utter madness to go for it if that is your decision.
Hole 14 - Moyvalley, Par 3
As mentioned previously, the Moyvalley site is pretty flat all told, but where there is some elevation they use it really well. This tee box is a highlight of the back 9 because as you walk onto it the rest of the course opens up beyond the hole.
And even though it is downhill because it plays into the wind it can play pretty long too, and with two bunkers short to gobble up anything short, it’s important to commit to your club choice and your swing.
Hole 15 - Moyvalley, Par 4
The first driveable par 4 of the S&TCC. We like that.
Playing back up the same hill as the previous Par 3, as with all great short par 4s there is a very safe and obvious lay up location. But if you do fancy taking it on there is a decent size green to hit, just as long as you carry the pot bunker short right.
Birdies and bogeys are equally likely here, plus some doubles if you put yourself in real trouble. A true risk reward shot, which is all thanks to the great design.
Hole 16 - Powerscourt East, Par 3
A lovely place for a picnic and also for a golf hole, the signature hole is tucked into the northern most corner amongst the trees of Powerscourt estate (and coincidentally just the other side of trees surrounding the 15th of Powerscourt West, also in the S&T CC). Distance control is at a premium here because while you definitely don’t want to be short, chipping back towards the water from a downhill lie beyond the green is no fun either.
Hole 17 - Killeen Castle, Par 4
Source: Killeen Castle Golf Club
I'm not going to get too into the weeds here, but for those who don't know there is a series of "template holes" defined by C.B MacDonald, one of the first and arguably most important architects in America. His National Golf Links course is made up of these templates, and the 17th at Killeen Castle is a castle example of the "Cape". Essentially a tee shot where you decide how much you want to bite off, as this hole is a severe dogleg right around a pond.
The hole continues to turn right such that the green nearly feels like an island when you're aiming at it.
Very satisfying if you stay dry. If you stay dry.
Hole 18 - Naas, Par 5
Source: Naas Golf Club
A very fair but challenging hole, the 18th fairway at Naas is reminiscent of a nascar track, banking right around the dogleg. Hit a straight tee shot up there and you have a real shot at getting home in two, but if you veer off course a punch out of the trees and a scramble for par or bogey is all you can hope for. As with the tee shot on the 8th at Arklow, the approach is easier than it looks, with more green on the left over the bunkers than it looks.