Carne Golf Links (Wild Atlantic Dunes)

The Carne links at Belmullet sits in splendid isolation on the Atlantic edge of County Mayo, where holes are laid out on a peninsula amidst gigantic dunes with far-reaching views across Blacksod Bay to the islands of Inis Gloire and Inis Geidhewild.

Eddie Hackett designed the original 18-hole layout which is owned and operated by a community-based company and it was developed in the early 1990s to attract golfing tourists to an isolated and somewhat unappreciated part of western Ireland.

The Kilmore nine opened for play in 2013, with architect Ally McIntosh telling us:

“A new nine holes through some of the most dramatic dunes at Carne was first tabled in 2004. In conjunction with course director Eamon Mangan, an initial routing plan was prepared by architect and club member Jim Engh. 

Some early works were undertaken but these were halted in 2007 and towards the end of 2010, the course committee engaged me to take a fresh look at the possibilities which were immediately apparent and incredibly exciting.

Whilst Eddie Hackett used the rolling inland ground for his front nine, our small team had the spectacular sand hills adjacent to the existing back nine from which to create the new holes. Our overarching philosophy was always to use the natural features of the land wherever we could.

Because of big elevation changes, one of the main challenges was to keep the course as compact and walkable as we could. This has been achieved and we deliberately left many unique shots and options that are more typical of a bygone era.”

Following storm damage to the Kilmore nine which resulted in a 2-year closure, the holes reopened for the 2019 season. Two years later, the club hosted the Irish PGA Championship with the new Wild Atlantic Dunes 18-hole layout (Kilmore and back nine of the original Hackett course) used for this event.

A golf trip to Ireland’s west coast would not be complete without playing here. Include County Sligo, Enniscrone and Connemara on your itinerary, alongside Carne, and you’ll play four of the most naturally beautiful links courses in the world.