Royal Portrush: what happens when a bad golfer takes on The Open course?

Belfast Telegraph

8 hours ago

The stands were fully constructed, yet empty – my duffing the ball off the tee and losing a second into the thick gorse was suitably microcosmic of my entire round on a baking Tuesday afternoon in the north coast sun.
In just a few weeks, Royal Portrush will play host to the greatest golf tournament in the world – The Open, and see roughly 250,000 people descend on the seaside town.
When it last hosted it, it attracted 237,500 visitors, generating 128,019 commercial bed nights across NI, and delivered combined economic and media benefit in excess of £100m. Well over half of those attending were from outside Northern Ireland.
And with plans well-progressed, the course prepared, and much of the infrastructure already on display, there was a chance to experience what this world-leading links course will offer the world's top golfers.
I'm a high, very high, handicap golfer. My formative years were spent alongside my dad on the equally challenging and beautiful Portstewart Strand course, come rain or shine – and duffing the ball into the thick swathes of grass and gorse lining many of the holes.
There was a long hiatus, until I put together a set of clubs a few years ago and started going out more often. But with a small man in the house these days, it'd had been a year since I'd been out for even nine holes, until a couple of weeks before my Portrush debut.
Arriving, the infrastructure was already evident – some of the larger stands, including the 18th already up, while the first was being built, and work continuing on the hospitality tents.
This won't be a blow-by-blow account of how I played, how many balls I lost, or the odd decent shot that made up for all the mess during what was a truly wonderful experience.
A photographer and probably a couple of dozen people in and around the first tee didn't help the initial shot. A sliced hybrid into the gorse on the right. Out of bounds. A second? Knocked fewer than 50 yards in front of me after hitting the ground behind the ball. Time to get moving.
The condition of the fairways was stunning. They blend beautifully into the snooker table-like putting surface, which makes putting off the green a possibility for the higher handicapper like me, worried about thinning a wedge from 40 yards.
Each hole has its own personality and challenge. This is a course with some lengthy holes, but it's about keeping it straight, on the fairway, and dealing with the wind – which, fortunately, was only a breeze on this occasion. Our team caddy kept us right with yardages and where to try and land the ball.
On several occasions, this means me listening and then hitting it poorly, thus defeating the point of the advice.
But it also makes all the difference. On two occasions I think I've around 100 yards to go, and would grab a pitching wedge. But our caddy Mark says it's playing up hill and with a touch of wind into us, so it'll be 130 yards. I opt for the eight iron on two occasions and land it on the green.
There are a couple of par putts along the way, and I post a handful of bogeys. The challenge with somewhere like Portrush is when you have a bad hole, it can become very bad indeed.
For me, it's about the experience. A decent drive on the final par five, Dhu Varren, a fairway wood and a seven iron not far from the green gets me in for six shots, and one over par.
Then there's the 16th – a long and rough par three called Calamity Corner, with a steep ravine on the right. I'm not going to get a driver on the green with my accuracy, so a hybrid to the left lays me up for a second from the gorse, on the edge of the green, and walking off with a five.
It's the quality of golf we have on our doorstep here that makes us so attractive for visitors. We have a plethora of courses, right across Northern Ireland, which remain some of the best in the world. While the less high-profile spots that many of us play are considerably better than comparable spots elsewhere.
New figures released by Tourism Northern Ireland show the overall value of golf tourism reached a record £86.2m in 2024.
Research conducted by Sporting Insights for Tourism NI's annual Golf Tourism Monitor show the value has risen by almost 66% since 2019, when The 148th Open was held at Royal Portrush.
In addition, the value has more than doubled in the past decade, from £33.2m in 2014.
'Tourism NI has been working with local government stakeholders to ensure a successful delivery to ensure this year is an even bigger success than 2019,' Eimear Hone, major events manager, said.
'Planning has been well under way for some time. Tourism NI, local stakeholders, and the R&A are really happy with the progress to date and we are raring to go for July.
'… for us, it's about the weeks, months, and years after that, and the impact that will have.'
A total of 29,400 non-domestic golfers visited Northern Ireland to play in 2024, which was a great year for golf thanks to more North American and international golfers and a notable increase in luxury market spending and longer stays.
The Tourism NI research found that North America remains the priority market for golf visitors, accounting for 70% of visitors, who generated £44.3m to the tourism sector last year compared to £36.2m in 2023.
There was also a rise in the spend of golfers from the rest of the world – predominantly Australia – rising from £3.1m in 2023 to £11.6m last year.
GB golfers generated £12.5m into the local tourism sector in 2024, up from £11.9m the previous year.
On average, golfers spent around nine days on their visit to Northern Ireland, playing five rounds on different courses during their stay.
The visiting golfer is defined by the primary purpose of their travel being to play golf in Northern Ireland.
And while golf would be the purpose of the trip, for every £1 spent on green fees, a further £4 is spent on ancillary services such as accommodation, transport and food and beverage.
The vast majority of golfers rated their experience in Northern Ireland as excellent.
The figures have been released just two months before The 153rd Open is due to take place at Royal Portrush Golf Club from July 13-20.
Sheffield Hallam University has estimated that the event will deliver a combined economic and media benefit of £213m to Northern Ireland.
'Tourism NI is really encouraged by the figures in this year's Golf Tourism Monitor, which show the appeal of Northern Ireland as a leading golf destination,' Naomi Waite, director of marketing at Tourism NI, said.
'Northern Ireland remains a highly sought after destination for golfers from North America, who consider this to be a bucket list golfing experience. The return of Australian visitors post pandemic is very positive news, along with our close to home markets in Great Britain and the Republic of Ireland remaining strong.
'The 153rd Open, which is taking place at Royal Portrush in July, will continue to showcase our exceptional destination to a huge international golfing audience. This will build on the current demand for many years to come.'