They used to go hand in hand; Masters champions playing at the Irish Open.
But that was in the 1980s and 1990s when European golfers won the famed Green Jacket 11 times over two decades and the likes of Seve Ballesteros, Bernhard Langer, Nick Faldo, Ian Woosnam, Sandy Lyle and Jose Maria Olazabal would take on the challenging Irish links of Portmarnock or Royal Dublin, or the parkland tracks of Killarney, Druids Glen or Mount Juliet.
After the deluge, the drought, as no European could get their hands on that most prized of golfing attire for the next 17, years with Olazabal’s 1999 victory the last time that the Jacket travelled transatlantic.
Until this year, of course.
England’s Danny Willett was lying in wait for the most unlikely of slip-ups by reigning champion Jordan Spieth, and showed his class on the finishing holes at Augusta National to secure that much-needed European win.
This week, Masters champion Willett will make his first European appearance since winning in Augusta to take on the majestic Ryder Cup Palmer Course at the K Club in the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open, having made his competitive return at last week’s Players Championship.
Ten years on from Europe’s famous and emotional Ryder Cup victory at the Kildare estate, the elite of European golf will battle it out in this year’s tournament, which starts on Thursday .
And the venue is certainly worthy of what is the most prestigious event on the Irish golf calendar with Rory McIlroy, Padraig Harrington and fellow major winners Graeme McDowell, Darren Clarke and Martin Kaymer all featuring, while Shane Lowry, Matt Fitzpatrick, Lee Westwood and defending champion Søren Kjeldsen add to the star-studded field.
The Ryder Cup Palmer Course
Privileged to get a chance to play this prestigious course just a week ahead of the tournament, and standing on the first tee with the spectator stand in situ, it brought back memories of the raucous atmosphere of the 2006 Ryder Cup.
The Arnold Palmer-designed course is in pristine condition and it is no surprise that it is consistently recognised as one of the best parkland tracks in Ireland.
What followed was 18 holes of pure parkland pleasure with fairways meandering along each hole like freshly laid carpet, while the omnipresent threat of water, trees and deep bunkers make it a formidable challenge. The greens were fast and true and if the sun shines later this week, the worldwide golfing audience will be guaranteed aesthetic excellence to complement the play of some of the world’s top players.
How the course is set up
The European Tour have been working with the K Club green-keeping staff over the past few months to get the course into the ideal shape for a competitive week of tournament golf.
With so many natural hazards in play, they have thankfully kept the rough quite manageable, consistent at 85mm, however, it has certainly thickened up over the past few weeks due to the ideal growing conditions.
While the rough is playable, the presence of so many fairway trees is going to cause a lot of players to take their medicine with anything wayward off the tee, especially when taking the ‘safe’ side on holes with water in play.
The greens are in pristine condition, running fast and true, and will be set at 11.5 on the stimpmeter for the tournament.
Viewing locations
With several grandstands located around the course, there are plenty of places to get a good look at every golfer in the field. But if you fancy getting out and about the course, there are several locations around certain holes that allow you to watch golfers playing into one green and away from the next tee, which will give you more variety than a grandstand and take you closer to the action. These are best found around the 4th green-5th fairway, 7th and 8th, 11 & 12th, 17th & 18th.
One of the best ways to get a true experience is to pick a group and follow them from the 1st to the 18th and you will get to really experience the entire course. For this option, you might be better off picking one of the non-marquee groups as the big players will attract huge numbers. And make sure to bring a packed lunch as it will take a good five hours to get around.
Alternatively, head down to the driving range and marvel at the players going through their warm-up routines and witness the marvellous sounds and shapes of the best players at close-range.
Around the Course
A huge public village area will feature a ‘Beat the Pro Challenge’ as well as interactive golf zones where children can pick up tips from a PGA Pro and participate in fun golf challenges, face painting and much more.
The bar area and adjacent food court is always a popular spot for fans wanting to relax and keep up to speed with the action on large TV screens.
A novel way to watch the golf will be from a new bar area on the iconic 16th green as, for the first time at the Irish Open, Dublin bar 37 Dawson Street will be transporting itself to the Palmer Course.
Getting there – free buses from Maynooth train station
The European Tour will run a complimentary bus service between Maynooth Train Station and The K Club.
The service will meet passengers arriving on trains from Dublin Connolly from 06:50hrs to 13:30hrs and transport them to the event, returning every half hour from The K Club to Maynooth Station from 15:00hrs to 18:00hrs.
Spectators arriving at Maynooth Station should follow the directional signage to board the buses, which will be waiting on the R406 near the station entrance. Spectators returning to Maynooth Station from the K Club should return to the South Entrance Bus Stop at The K Club.
Located in the village of Straffan, the K Club is normally less than a 30-minute drive from Dublin city centre. Take the N7 or N4 off the M50 and the resort is equidistant from Maynooth (N4/M4) or the Straffan exit on the N7. However, if driving, expect delays and a bit of a hike to the course from one of the several official car parks.
Live Coverage
If you cannot attend the event, RTÉ Television and and RTÉ Player are broadcasting live from all four days of the Irish Open while there will also be a live blog on RTÉ.ie and updates/live coverage on RTÉ Radio.
For more information, visit: www.dubaidutyfreeirishopen.com
