Cougs take a historic trip to Ireland

Ireland – BYU women’s golf just returned from an exciting 12-day trip to Ireland where they played at historic and infamous courses like Druids Glen, The European Club and Portmarnock.

“Every day was a highlight,” head coach Carrie Roberts said. “We had the greatest hosts, played some of the best courses in the world and saw the prettiest parts of Ireland. That was one of the coolest trips I’ve ever been on.”

The Irish tour began on July 22 and 23 in Wicklow, which is known as the “Garden of Ireland” for its beautiful scenery. They went to play at Druids Glen course, which was named after the pagan high priests who worshipped in that forest during the 5th century. They visited the Powerscourt Waterfall that evening.

On July 24 the golfers teed off at The European Club located in Brittas Bay.

“It was posh but humble,” Roberts added. 

It opened in 1993 after Pat Ruddy, who is a competitive amateur player, purchased, designed and constructed it to fit his dream course. Professional golfers like Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods have played the course. 

The next day they headed to Portmarnock Golf Club which is in Dublin. Portmarnock is a 27-hole course that can be played in three different 18-hole configurations.

On July 26, the women headed to their overall favorite course of the vacation: The K Club. It’s located in Kildare and has hosted the Ryder Cup, a biennial competition between European and United States teams. 

The next day they played Mount Juliet in Kilkenny, which has been home to the World Golf Championship, the Irish Seniors Open and the Irish Open. 

They had the next day off, so they took a journey to Killarney, where they took a tour of Kate Kearney’s Cottage and the Gap of Dunloe mountain range.

They headed to Ballybunion on July 29, which is known for its sand dunes lining the course. It was originally founded in 1893 as a 12-hole course, but has since grown to 36 holes. The group saw castles built in the 1600s and stopped by the Trump Ireland Resort. That night they ate in an Irish pub and got to watch Daniel Wiffen, Irish swimmer, win gold at the Olympics alongside many natives of Ireland.

On July 30 they golfed Doonbeg of Trump International Golf Club, which was purchased by The Trump Organization in 2014. This course runs across a mile and a half of beaches and dunes.

Their second to last day was spent taking a helicopter tour of the Cliffs of Moher in County Clare. After the tour, they went to Lahinch Golf Club, which opened in the late 1800s.

The final day was spent touring County Limerick’s Adare Manor, known for its beautiful five star hotel and course. Its course was named the Ryder Cup location for 2027. They had one final fine dining experience at Adare’s The Carriage House.

“My favorite part of the trip was connecting with everyone,” Lily McCauley said. “Whether it was an activity, dinner or playing a course, sharing this unique experience with my teammates brought us even closer together. It’s such a blessing that we could spend so much time with such wonderful people.”

“Going to Ireland with my team was one of the best experiences I’ve ever had,” Berlin Long said. “Being able to play 10 rounds of golf together brought us all to be so much closer. Ireland made my teammates and I really excited for the upcoming season.”