There are two courses at Royal Portrush, but it’s fair to say that it is Dunluce, the championship course, that people come from all over the world to play, especially after it hosted the 2019 Open. It was the first course to hold a professional tournament in Ireland, back in 1895, but it wasn’t really until Harry S Colt redesigned the course in 1932 that it started getting recognised as a true links championship course.

The Dunluce is named after the castle that overlooks the course, now a magnificent ruin, which contributes to the stunning entrance views as you drive towards the club. 

Both the Dunluce and the Valley courses were amended before the 2019 Open Championship by Mackenzie & Ebert, the most significant being the replacement of hole 17 and 18, which were instead forged out of the Valley course’s 5th and 6th holes. This in turn meant that the Valley course needed two new holes, in the end it got three new holes, one of which has stunning views of the beach and the sea. It will be interesting to see if the Dunluce continues to be the course people come to play or if the Valley course now starts pulling players in on its own merit!