Courses of the Week: Druids Glen and Druids Heath

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Ireland holds a well-deserved reputation for both the quality and the quantity of its links courses and justifiably so. Far less attention is paid however to those Irish courses, not quite as close to the coastline. This is unfortunate, as the Emerald Isle has a handsome collection of wonderful inland layouts, many of which are truly, world class.

Druids Glen has been compared to Augusta National.

Druids Glen's stately clubhouse befits the course.

The 13th Hole at Druids Glen

Druids Heath contains many links-like characteristics including gorse sea breezes and blind holes.

Shrewd bunkering is used effectively at The Heath.

Druids Heath - the dramatic close

Killarney's Killeen Course, after years of hosting the Irish Open, is probably one of the best known of Ireland's parkland courses. A similar celebrity status came to Jack Nicklaus' impressive Mount Juliet a few years ago after being chosen as the venue for the World Golf Championships. The K-Club's Palmer Course is another inland layout made famous through being in the global golfing spot-light as the selected venue for the 2006 Ryder Cup matches. For a week or two, the eyes of the world seemed focused on only The K-Club.

One of the true wonders of more recent Irish golf course development however, is Druids Glen, located just 20 miles south of Dublin in beautiful County Wicklow, the garden of Ireland. Course architect, Pat Ruddy, whose achievements include Ballyliffin and the highly regarded European Club, joined forces with Tom Craddock, on an assignment to create the best and most beautiful inland course in all Ireland. Money, the pair was told, was to be no object.

Druids Glen opened to much acclaim in 1995 and within an amazingly short period of just one year, was hosting Ireland's premiere golf event, The Irish Open, an honor repeated for each of the next three years. Voted European Golf Club of the Year in 2000, the meteoric rise of this relative youngster has continued and in 2002 it hosted the first, Seve Trophy, a European Tour event pitting a combined Britain & Ireland team, against the best from Continental Europe, in true Ryder Cup fashion.

Architects Ruddy and Craddock have come up with a stunningly beautiful design which many compare to Augusta National. The landscaping is to say the very least, lush and extravagant, providing a sense of maturity, well beyond its still relatively tender age, resulting in the course being a riot of color throughout the year, even in winter. But as the adage goes, beauty is often only skin deep; so what kind of character and personality does this good looker have?

The very wonderful discovery is that Druids Glen is far more than good looks alone and presents a technically demanding challenge to even the pros on the European Tour, who to a man, have been uncommonly flattering and respectful in their evaluations of the course There can be no question that Druids Glen is tough and in parts, extremely so. It demands that you have every part of your game intact, in tune and working perfectly - if you are to come up with a decent score.

From the opening hole, a 445 yard, sweeping par four, you know this will be no cakewalk and the challenge only builds from here. The par three's at Druids Glen are among the most memorable, with several playing from elevated tees. Water is not an infrequent hazard with streams and lakes coming into play often and nowhere is this more frightening than on the 17th where you play to an island green. Water is again ominously present on the closing hole, where three lakes surround the green.

The strong start you experienced has steadily built through the glorious mid-course trio of the 7th, 8th and 9th, to another crescendo at the 12th through 14th and on to the resounding grand finale of the closing holes. Once the round is completed, you will agree, Druids Glen is not just a pretty face, but a course of real substance and a relentless fighter, ready to take on all challengers.

Not satisfied with one masterpiece, work was soon underway on a companion course to Druids Glen and again the expertise of Pat Ruddy has been brought in to take on the task. Opened in 2004, the new Druids Heath, with an abundance of well positioned bunkers, water hazards, and measuring a very healthy, 6,700 yards from the back tees, delivers on the promise to be no less a test than its older brother.

It's difficult to say which of the two is the better course, as they are totally contrasting, with few if any similarities. Each has its own personality and style, The Heath offering more in the way of a links-like character.

The Heath's length provides a definite advantage to the big hitters, but that's only half of the story -- the never ending variety of hazards make this a course that demands strategy and good course management -- this is one for the thinking golfer.

Multi directional fairways make the constant sea breezes an ever-changing factor to be reckoned with. The undulating greens are frighteningly well protected by a multitude of deep, hungry pot-bunkers and for those without the power, strategically placed fairway bunkers are only too willing to eat up any wayward lay-up shot.

In classic links style there are blind shots, an abundance of gorse bushes and rolling fairways; trees, streams and lakes only adding a further dimension to a layout that offers more variety than most of us are accustomed to. And all the while, the distractingly handsome, Wicklow scenery, that does anything but encourage the concentration needed to end with a good scorecard.

Invigorating, challenging, even sensational and always spectacularly good looking, Pat Ruddy has managed to do it again and successfully captured the very essence of golf in the Druids Heath Course, a very worthy companion for the original Druids Glen. This is a case where you simply can't play one without also tackling the other -- just be ready for a strenuous day

So if Ireland is in your golf travel plans, don't just think links. To miss this pair of real gems is almost like refusing an invitation to play Augusta National. If you have the opportunity to test your skills on these masterpieces, don't miss it.

Druids Glen and Druids Heath can be conveniently fitted in to any itinerary including a Dublin area stay, with the option of staying directly on site at the very enticing, Druids Glen Marriott Resort. Five star luxury in every way, a stay here might be the best idea of all

For other ideas on how Druids Glen and Druids Heath can be included in your Irish golf trip, click here.

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