Royal County Down Golf Club
Encyclopedia
Royal County Down Golf Club is a golf
club in Newcastle
, County Down
, Northern Ireland
. Dating from 1889, it is one of the oldest golf clubs in Ireland
. It has two 18-hole links
courses, the Championship Course and the Annesley Links.
by Golf Digest
, and in 2007 it was ranked first. The Annesley Links is much shorter, but is considered to be just as challenging, with the stretch from holes 5-13 being considered to be as scenic and as much fun as any course the world over. Both the courses are generally considered to be among the best-maintained in the world. Tiger Woods
holds the course record on the Championship course, with a score of 65, made during a casual round.
, to host the Walker Cup
.
. He was hired for the sum of four guineas to build a championship course at Newcastle, which opened in 1889. His course started and finished by the railway station; thus it played through the general area which the Slieve Donard Hotel now occupies. Many of the holes were on the grounds that the present-day Championship and Annesley courses at County Down occupy. George Combe began the remodelling of the course in 1900, and was Convenor of the Green from 1900 to 1913. He was made an honorary life member in 1909 and continued making improvements to the course. Harry Vardon
modified the course in 1908, the same year King Edward VII
bestowed royal patronage on the club. In 1926, the Club brought Harry Colt in to make further improvements.
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
club in Newcastle
Newcastle, County Down
Newcastle is a small town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 7,444 people recorded in the 2001 Census. The seaside resort lies on the Irish Sea coast at the base of Slieve Donard, one of the Mourne Mountains, and is known for its sandy beach and the Royal County Down Golf Club...
, County Down
County Down
-Cities:*Belfast *Newry -Large towns:*Dundonald*Newtownards*Bangor-Medium towns:...
, Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
. Dating from 1889, it is one of the oldest golf clubs in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. It has two 18-hole links
Links (golf)
A links is the oldest style of golf course, first developed in Scotland. The word "links" comes from the Scots language and refers to an area of coastal sand dunes and sometimes to open parkland. It also retains this more general meaning in the Scottish English dialect...
courses, the Championship Course and the Annesley Links.
Details of the courses
The Championship course measures over 7,200 yards from the back tees, and the fourth and ninth holes are featured in the book The 500 World's Greatest Golf Holes. In 2005 the Championship Course was ranked as the fourth best course in the world outside the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
by Golf Digest
Golf Digest
Golf Digest is a monthly golf magazine published by Condé Nast Publications in the United States. It is a generalist golf publication covering recreational golf and men's and women's competitive golf. Condé Nast Publications also publishes the more specialized , and Golf World Business. The...
, and in 2007 it was ranked first. The Annesley Links is much shorter, but is considered to be just as challenging, with the stretch from holes 5-13 being considered to be as scenic and as much fun as any course the world over. Both the courses are generally considered to be among the best-maintained in the world. Tiger Woods
Tiger Woods
Eldrick Tont "Tiger" Woods is an American professional golfer whose achievements to date rank him among the most successful golfers of all time. Formerly the World No...
holds the course record on the Championship course, with a score of 65, made during a casual round.
Significant tournaments
Royal County Down has made outstanding contributions to Irish golf from the Club's beginnings, hosting many important tournaments, starting soon after it opened, and continuing to the present day. Notably, the Club in 2007 became just the second Irish venue, after PortmarnockPortmarnock
Portmarnock is a small suburban village to the north of Dublin, Ireland. It is in the administrative county of Fingal.-Location:Portmarnock lies on the coast and, owing to its proximity to Dublin city, is a form of dormitory village north-northeast of the city centre...
, to host the Walker Cup
Walker Cup
The Walker Cup is a golf trophy contested biennially in odd numbered years between teams comprising the leading amateur golfers of the United States and Great Britain and Ireland...
.
- Senior British Open ChampionshipSenior British Open ChampionshipThe Senior Open Championship, or simply The Senior Open is a professional golf tournament for men aged 50 and over. It is run by The R&A, the same body that organises The Open Championship. Prize money won in the event is official money on both the Champions Tour and the European Seniors Tour...
: 2000 (winner: Christy O'Connor JnrChristy O'Connor JnrChristy O'Connor Jnr is an Irish golfer. He is known as "Junior" because he is the nephew of another leading Irish golfer Christy O'Connor.O'Connor was born in Galway. He turned professional in 1967...
), 2001 (winner: Ian StanleyIan Stanley (golfer)Ian Stanley is an Australian professional golfer.Stanley was born in Melbourne. He turned professional in 1970 and was a prolific tournament winner in Australasia from the mid 1970s through to the early 1990s...
and 2002 (winner: Noboru Sugai).
- The Amateur ChampionshipThe Amateur ChampionshipThe Amateur Championship is a golf tournament which is held annually in the United Kingdom. It is one of the two leading individual tournaments for amateur golfers, alongside the U.S. Amateur...
: 1970 (winner: Michael BonallackMichael BonallackSir Michael Francis Bonallack, OBE is an English amateur golfer who was one of the leading administrators in world golf in the late 20th century.Bonallack was born in Chigwell, Essex. He won the British Boys Championship in 1952...
and 1999 (winner: Graeme StormGraeme StormGraeme Raymond Storm is an English professional golfer.Storm was born in Hartlepool. He learnt his trade at Hartlepool Golf Club, where he still holds the course record of 62...
).
- British Ladies Amateur Golf ChampionshipBritish Ladies Amateur Golf ChampionshipThe British Ladies Amateur Golf Championship was founded in 1893 by the Ladies' Golf Union of Great Britain. Until the dawn of the professional era in 1976, it was the most important golf tournament for women in Great Britain and would eventually begin to draw golfers from continental Europe...
: 1899 (winner: May HezletMay HezletMary Linzee "May" Hezlet was a British amateur golfer.Born in Gibraltar, she and her sisters Florence and Violet Hezlet grew up in Ireland and became top golfers in their era...
), 1907 (winner: May HezletMay HezletMary Linzee "May" Hezlet was a British amateur golfer.Born in Gibraltar, she and her sisters Florence and Violet Hezlet grew up in Ireland and became top golfers in their era...
), 1920 (winner: Cecil LeitchCecil LeitchCharlotte Cecilia Pitcairn Leitch was a British amateur golfer. She was born in Silloth, Cumberland, England, the daughter of a local physician and one of three sisters who excelled at the game of golf.-Biography:...
, 1927 (winner: Simone de la ChaumeSimone de la ChaumeSimone Thion de la Chaume was a French amateur golfer.In 1924, she became the first foreign player to win the British Girls Amateur and in 1927 the first to win the British Ladies Amateur, then the most prestgious tournament in British and European ladies' golf and an event her daughter, Catherine...
), 1935 (winner: Wanda Morgan), 1950 (winner: Vicomtesse de St Sauveur), 1963 (winner: Brigitte VarangotBrigitte VarangotBrigitte Varangot was a French golfer.Principal victories:* 1957 : British Girls Amateur Golf Championship* 1959, 1960, 1961: French International Junior Girls Golf Championship...
) and 2006 (winner: Belen Mozo).
- Curtis CupCurtis CupThe Curtis Cup is the best known team trophy for women amateur golfers, awarded in the biennial Curtis Cup Match . It is co-organised by the United States Golf Association and the Ladies Golf Union and is contested by teams representing the United States and "Great Britain and Ireland"...
: 1968 United States defeated Great Britain & Ireland, 10.5 to 7.5.
- Walker CupWalker CupThe Walker Cup is a golf trophy contested biennially in odd numbered years between teams comprising the leading amateur golfers of the United States and Great Britain and Ireland...
: 2007 United States defeated Great Britain & Ireland, 12.5 to 11.5.
History
The first course at County Down was built by Old Tom MorrisTom Morris, Sr.
Thomas Mitchell Morris, Sr. , otherwise known as Old Tom Morris, was a pioneer of professional golf. He was born in St Andrews, Fife, Scotland, the "home of golf" and location of the St Andrews Links and died there as well. His son was Tom Morris, Jr...
. He was hired for the sum of four guineas to build a championship course at Newcastle, which opened in 1889. His course started and finished by the railway station; thus it played through the general area which the Slieve Donard Hotel now occupies. Many of the holes were on the grounds that the present-day Championship and Annesley courses at County Down occupy. George Combe began the remodelling of the course in 1900, and was Convenor of the Green from 1900 to 1913. He was made an honorary life member in 1909 and continued making improvements to the course. Harry Vardon
Harry Vardon
Harry Vardon was a Jersey professional golfer and member of the fabled Great Triumvirate of the sport in his day, along with John Henry Taylor and James Braid. He won The Open Championship a record six times and also won the U.S. Open.-Biography:Vardon was born in Grouville, Jersey, Channel Islands...
modified the course in 1908, the same year King Edward VII
Edward VII of the United Kingdom
Edward VII was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910...
bestowed royal patronage on the club. In 1926, the Club brought Harry Colt in to make further improvements.