The Course
Hole One
Black Castle
Tip: A well protected green with bunkers protecting the front left and right hand side. Too long results in a difficult blind chip shot to an elevated green.
History: The cliff ruins in the distance are known locally as the Black Castle. Built circa 900 A.D. by Viking invaders. It was subsequently occupied at various times by the Normans, the English and lastly by the Wicklow clan - the O'Byrnes.
| Tee | Par | Yards | SI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | 5 | 522 | 8 |
| White | 5 | 515 | 8 |
| Red | 5 | 446 | 8 |
Hole Two
Marl Hole
Tip: Drive down the right-hand side of the fairway. A difficult approach shot, Out of Bounds left of the green and a bunker or worse on the right hand side. Try to play through the gap.
History: This is the local name for the inlet beside the green. It dates from the time sailors used the well located there to fill their water casks and they used the marl to caulk the casks.
| Tee | Par | Yards | SI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | 4 | 401 | 2 |
| White | 4 | 392 | 2 |
| Red | 4 | 317 | 2 |
Hole Three
Hens & Chickens
Tip: Aim slightly right as the fairway slopes right to left. A long drive will get you on the green.
History: A cluster of one large and a number of smaller rocks just south of the marl hole. Its well known by local fishermen, past and present, as a good place to 'shoot' their lobster pots.
| Tee | Par | Yards | SI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | 4 | 269 | 18 |
| White | 4 | 258 | 18 |
| Red | 4 | 218 | 18 |
Hole Four
The Churn
Tip: A good drive is required here, danger on the left in the form of Out of Bounds, Spinneys and bunkers, but gorse bushes also lurk on the right hand side.
History: Local name for a swirl of tides at the foot of the cliffs below the 4th tee.
| Tee | Par | Yards | SI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | 4 | 302 | 12 |
| White | 4 | 297 | 12 |
| Red | 4 | 294 | 4 |
Hole Five
Codling
Tip: A blind tee shot, aim straight down the fairway. Care is needed with the approach shot; try to carry onto the green - it is more difficult than it looks.
History: This hole faces a treacherous sand bank twelve miles out in the bay known as the Codling Bank. Up until recently it was marked by a lightship (the Codling lightship) but now has a flashing buoy.
| Tee | Par | Yards | SI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | 4 | 301 | 16 |
| White | 4 | 296 | 16 |
| Red | 4 | 271 | 16 |
Hole Six
Pebble Beach
Tip: A daunting tee-shot from 'the nose', with a carry of 190 yards. Aim at the spinney for your safest landing area, or take the Tiger line down the middle of the fairway! You decide!
History: The coastline along this hole resembles that of the famous American golf course. This has to be one of the most daunting driving holes in Ireland if not Europe, where the only thing between you and the fairway is 190 yards of a carry over the biggest water hazard on the east coast of Ireland - The Irish Sea. Come and test your nerve.
| Tee | Par | Yards | SI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | 4 | 406 | 4 |
| White | 4 | 365 | 4 |
| Red | 4 | 302 | 10 |
Hole Seven
The Vineyard
Tip: Club selection is paramount. If the pin is at the back make sure you take enough club. If the pin is at the front make sure you do not take too much club. A good score can be undone on this hole.
History: In the days when the course was a farm, there was a vineyard situated on the banks fronting the green. It was an ideal location, sheltered from northerly winds, with a southerly aspect.
| Tee | Par | Yards | SI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | 3 | 137 | 10 |
| White | 3 | 119 | 10 |
| Red | 3 | 102 | 12 |
Hole Eight
The Orchard
Tip: Aim tee shot left of the spinney on the right hand side of the fairway. Only the biggest of hitters can take on the line over the trees on the left hand side.
History: The valley on the 8th hole contained the farmhouse and apple orchard of the O'Connor family who once farmed the area. Peter, a member of the family held the title of World Long-jump Champion for 25 years. His record jump measured 24ft 11.75", a truly wonderful feat.
| Tee | Par | Yards | SI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | 4 | 396 | 6 |
| White | 4 | 364 | 6 |
| Red | 4 | 287 | 6 |
Hole Nine
Lark's Nest
Tip: All the trouble is short, in the form of heavy bunkering. The green may be big but it is easy to 3 putt!
History: Larks can be seen and heard here all summer. They nest in the nearby furze bushes and long grass.
| Tee | Par | Yards | SI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | 3 | 144 | 14 |
| White | 3 | 143 | 14 |
| Red | 3 | 131 | 14 |
Hole Ten
Scratching Post
Tip: Very tight driving hole meriting it's low index rating. The fairway bunker on the left is reachable for bigger hitters. A difficult approach shot to an elevated green follows.
History: In the early days when the club had its own pony-drawn mower, there were three scratching posts on the course for the use of the pony. The only one remaining is an upright stone on the right hand side of the fairway.
| Tee | Par | Yards | SI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | 4 | 364 | 1 |
| White | 4 | 354 | 1 |
| Red | 4 | 342 | 1 |
Hole Eleven
Monkey Pole
Tip: Try to land your tee-shot on the green rather than using the bank on the right. Gorse on the right and Out of Bounds on the left.
History: The monkey pole was situated in the middle of the 11th green to enable the cliff rescue teams to practice and train new recruits in the operation of the Breeches Buoy. The pole is now situated at the Murrough.
| Tee | Par | Yards | SI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | 3 | 170 | 15 |
| White | 3 | 164 | 15 |
| Red | 3 | 136 | 15 |
Hole Twelve
Lovers Leap
Tip: Aim down the right-hand side of the fairway with your tee shot. Out of Bounds all along the left hand side.
History: Name of a local landmark. As the story goes, two lovers jumped to their deaths from the cliff edge below the twelfth fairway because the young man was unacceptable to the girl's family.
| Tee | Par | Yards | SI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | 4 | 397 | 5 |
| White | 4 | 383 | 5 |
| Red | 4 | 320 | 9 |
Hole Thirteen
Wishing Well
Tip: Aim at the right-hand side of the fairway. Out of bounds and heavy rough on the left hand side. Care needed with the approach shot to avoid the bunkers.
History: St. Bridget's Well is located at Coal Strand, visible from the tee. Local lore attributes good luck to anyone who drinks from it.
| Tee | Par | Yards | SI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | 4 | 350 | 9 |
| White | 4 | 342 | 9 |
| Red | 4 | 325 | 3 |
Hole Fourteen
Brides Head
Tip: Aim down the right-hand side of the fairway with your tee shot. Out of Bounds all along the left hand side.
History: The name of the adjacent headland. St Bridget's Church was located there.
| Tee | Par | Yards | SI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | 5 | 545 | 7 |
| White | 5 | 540 | 7 |
| Red | 5 | 418 | 7 |
Hole Fifteen
Lacey's Hill
Tip: Aim at the mound on the left hand side with your tee shot. Approach shot is to an elevated green so remember to take an extra club.
History: Called Bride's Hill on the ordnance map, this hill was renamed Lacey's Hill by the locals. It is named after long-dead landowners.
| Tee | Par | Yards | SI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | 4 | 347 | 3 |
| White | 4 | 318 | 3 |
| Red | 4 | 261 | 4 |
Hole Sixteen
Sugarloaf
Tip: Aim down the left hand side of the fairway with your tee shot. Approach shot is to an elevated green so consider taking an extra club.
History: The views of Wicklow Bay and the mountains from Djouce to the Sugar Loaf to Bray Head provide the beautiful backdrop to this hole.
| Tee | Par | Yards | SI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | 5 | 482 | 17 |
| White | 5 | 467 | 17 |
| Red | 5 | 424 | 5 |
Hole Seventeen
The Glen
Tip: Trouble surrounds this picture perfect Par 3, pick your club and commit to it!
History: The Glen is the local name for the valley that splits the course. Both strand and road-bend take their names from it. This road was built in the Famine years to give work to the needy.
| Tee | Par | Yards | SI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | 3 | 160 | 11 |
| White | 3 | 147 | 11 |
| Red | 3 | 109 | 17 |
Hole Eighteen
The Whistlers
Tip: Aim tee shot left of centre for the best approach.
History: Attributed to a musically inclined family of that name, who lived and played in an adjacent house.
| Tee | Par | Yards | SI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | 4 | 348 | 13 |
| White | 4 | 337 | 13 |
| Red | 4 | 307 | 13 |