Northern Ireland & Royal Portrush will be at the centre of the global sporting spotlight from 18-21 July 2019 as The Open is staged outside of Scotland and England for only the second time in the Championship’s more than 150-year history.

Course preparations and the work to create the two new holes on the renowned Dunluce Links are well underway. Both holes will have an immediate air of maturity using some of the most stunning land at Royal Portrush. As well as creating two new holes, a series of other changes are being made to the course to enhance the challenge that will face the world’s top golfers while remaining true to the ethos of Harry Colt’s original design.

The Open, which was played at Royal Portrush in 1951, when Englishman Max Faulkner lifted the famous Claret Jug, is expected to be the biggest sporting event ever held in Northern Ireland, generating more than £70 million in terms of economic impact and destination marketing benefit.

Grand Golf Travel is delighted to announce our new Full Itinerary Planning Service where you can avail of our experience in delivering seamless arrangements tailored specifically to your needs. We will still provide unlimited travel consultation to you, full itinerary proposals, assistance with all booking arrangements, sightseeing & a final travel pack plus assistance at time of arrival at your destination.

All this and more at a price that we believe is the best value in the golf travel industry. The reason for this value is you still get our 15 years plus of experience in arranging first class golf travel while avoiding certain fees that other tour operators charge including credit card fees, additional administration fees and up to 40% mark up on their overall costs. Grand Golf Travel will contact each supplier giving them your details to allow confirmation and payment of your booking.

For our planning services we charge a one time booking fee of $250 per person. Don’t delay, contact one of our golf travel specialists now via our Request a Quote and lets get the ball rolling on your next great golf travel memory.

Royal Portrsuh is overlooked by the ruins of the 13th Century Dunluce Castle and is a masterpiece of golf architecture.

Royal Portrush is located on a peninsula with exceptional views to Donegal and within minutes of one the world’s natural wonders, the Giant’s Causeway. The Dunluce Links was designed by Harry Colt who used the natural dunes to create one of the world’s greatest courses.

The course is set amongst tumbling dunes that run to the cliff’s edge with the Atlantic Ocean pounding below.

The great links winds its way through rugged coastal land whilst surrounded by the most awe-inspiring scenery to be found in Ireland. Dunluce Links will test the most seasoned traveler with knee high rough, testing greens and weather that can give you four seasons in one day.

In 1951, Royal Portrush became the first club outside of the mainland UK to host the Open with Max Faulkner winning and the Open will soon return to these beautiful shores & legendary links.

Just a short walk from the wonderful town of Portrush is the spectacular White Rocks where you can continue by footpath to Dunluce Castle.

Europe captain Paul McGinley has chosen Sam Torrance and Des Smyth as his vice-captains for the 2014 Ryder Cup at Gleneagles in September.

Paul McGinley with his two Vice-Captains, Des Smyth & Sam Torrance.

Scot Torrance, 60, captained Europe to victory at the Belfry in 2002, 17 years after holing the winning putt at the same venue. Irishman Smyth, 61, was a vice-captain under Ian Woosnam in the record-equalling win at the K Club in 2006. But it’s Miguel Angel Jiménez who will be the first to enjoy Smyth’s experience when the Drogheda legend serves as his vice-captain for the inaugural EurAsia Cup from March 27-29.

Both Ryder Cup teams now have two Vice Captains in place, United States captain Tom Watson having selected Ray Floyd last month in addition to Andy North who was named last year. The Americans have not won the trophy in Europe since 1993, when Watson was captain for the first time.

The 2014 USA Ryder Cup Captain Tom Watson.

Through a special arrangement Grand Golf Travel is able to offer our clients ‘official’ Ryder Cup tour packages, complete with hotel accommodations, ground transport and a season pass to all days of the Matches. We will also be pleased to arrange pre and post golf package options. For further details please Request a Quote from one of our golf travel specialists.

When visiting Fota Island Golf Resort choose from three championship golf courses – the Deerpark, Belvelly or Barryscourt.

The 2014 Irish Open is returning to the Cork club for the first time since Soren Hansen’s victory in 2002. Fota Island, which is 10 miles from Cork city, first hosted the Irish Open in 2001 when Colin Montgomerie triumphed and Dane Hansen took victory at the venue 12 months later.

Receptive greens and strategic bunkering impresses even the most experienced golf travellers.

It would appear that golf was first played at Fota Island as far back as the 1800’s. In 1993, a new course was developed at Fota Island, designed by Irish Ryder Cup star Christy O’Connor Jr. and twice English Amateur Champion Peter McEvoy.

Well placed tee shots allow those without the burden of a faint heart to take on some daunting approaches.

Over the years the resort has seen major development with the addition of two other Championship courses, the Belvelly and Barryscourt. In addition to the courses Fota Island Hotel & Luxury Spa was built and offers guests 123 contemporary style en-suite rooms, 8 private penthouse suites with inviting and sumptuous interiors. The 5 star property is only 15 minutes from the thriving cosmopolitan city of Cork, Ireland’s second city and vibrant home to a wide array of galleries, museums and theatres.

Fota Island Hotel & Spa boasts superb views of the surrounding woodlands and championship golf courses.

Ballyliffin Golf Club in County Donegal is Ireland’s most northerly golf club.

Irish golf lovers know Ballyliffin is a heavenly place. Now the world knows too after prestigious golf travel experts Golf Odyssey named the Donegal resort as the best international 36-hole complex outside the US. The expansive panoramic views of countryside, coastline and ocean savoured by these magnificent links course will not easily be forgotten.

Ballyliffin is home to two championship links courses and one of the warmest welcomes in golf.

The Old Links undulates in the glory of its natural terrain, presenting an immensely enjoyable challenge to every golfer. Work recently undertaken by Nick Faldo has strenghtened The Old Links and brought much acclaim from members and visitors.

The views from both courses are breath-taking. Glashedy is named after Ballyliffin’s own “Ailsa Craig”.

The new Glashedy Links is a Pat Ruddy and Tom Craddock masterpiece fashioned around the incredible dunes, and is rated amongst the best links tracks in the world. Ruddy cherishes Glashedy as his own and has returned in recent years to fine tune the stunning bunkering of this magnificient links.

The extraordinary terrain that makes a golf game on the Old Links such a unique experience.

With holes facing into every point of the compass, the player is always tested by the wind and will probably need every club in the bag.

The R&A visited Royal Porthcawl recently in an effort to see if the venue is capable of staging golf’s oldest championship, the British Open. Although the chance of hosting the Open may be years away, Royal Porthcawl is staging next year’s Senior Open Championship.

Royal Porthcawl was described as being one of the twelve finest courses in the world by the late Tom Scott.

Only once in the Open’s history, which dates to 1860, has it been staged outside Scotland or England. That came in 1951, when the tournament went to Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland. Over the years Royal Porthcawl has hosted the 1995 Walker Cup as well as six British Amateur Championships, the Curtis Cup and several European Tour events.

Royal Porthcawl is as unchanging as the magnificent links and has unrivalled hospitality.

Wales’ First Minister was interested in raising the country’s profile as a tourist and business destination after the success of the 2010 Ryder Cup at Celtic Manor and is seriously hoping to add Royal Porthcawl to the British Open rota. The Open returns to St. Andrews (Scotland) in 2015 and to Royal Troon (Scotland) in 2016. The other Open venues being used are Muirfield, Royal Liverpool, Royal St. George’s, Royal Lytham & St. Annes and Royal Birkdale in England, as well as Carnoustie and Turnberry in Scotland.

Links golf at Porthcawl is the genuine thing – the sea in sight all of the time, and the most noble bunkers.

The stunning beauty of each hole can be seen winding through the giant dunes.

On the West Coast of Ireland, the hidden gem of Carne lies in magnificent unspoiled sand dunes overlooking Blacksod Bay and the wild Atlantic Ocean. Carne Golf Links was the last links course to be designed by the late Eddie Hackett and it is now believed by many who have played it to be his greatest challenge.

From the 1st shot to the last, every yard of Carne is simply special.

The first nine holes opened in 1992. Play began on the second nine in 1993 and the clubhouse was completed in 1995. Carne has gone on to become one of the premium links golf courses in Ireland and was recently voted 7th in the top 100 golf courses in the UK & Ireland. The links is surrounded by wild and ancient landscape. Tees and greens occurred naturally and there are some breathtaking views of the legendary islands of Inis Glóire and Inis Géidhe.

One of the best hidden gems of Ireland can be found here in Mayo.

In the Highlands of Scotland you will find a beacon reaching out to golfers throughout the world, Castle Stuart links. Overlooking the Moray Firth and Chanonry Lighthouse, this great championship links was co-designed by Gil Hanse and Mark Parsinen, who was also responsible for Kingsbarns in St Andrews.

Castle Stuart bunkers sometimes saves a golfer from a worse fate.

Only opened in 2009, Castle Stuart has received worldwide praise and was voted ‘Best New Course in 2009’ by Golf Magazine. In 2011 its quality was recognised when it hosted the Barclay’s Scottish Open, first European PGA Tour event ever held in The Highlands of Scotland.

Castle Stuart is a rich tapestry. A landscape mosaic. A rugged beauty.

Both the course and its surroundings are a visual feast, and playing on it offers a varied and hugely enjoyable golf challenge. Every hole presents a new test and offers a new treat for the eye. The resort will eventually include a small luxury Hotel & Spa, ‘resort-ownership’ Lodges & Apartments, plus a second seaside course.

From tee to green Castle Stuart resonates with rugged natural bunkers. Beauty in the detail.