Enniscrone (Dunes) - Sligo - Ireland

Quite simply one of the very best links courses you will play, anywhere in the world. It is literally, jaw-droppingly brilliant!! Played it twice in a day on a very windy weekend tour alongside County Sligo and Carne with three pals (handicaps of 4, 6, 6, 6) in September 2016. After a somewhat inauspicious first tee shot the course begins to wind its way through some of the largest and dramatic sand dunes you will find anywhere on the planet. It really gets going from the 11th or 12th onwards, although that is not to say the holes that come before are inferior as they are all truly marvellous. It I was being very picky holes 5, 6 and 7 don’t quite compare to the grandeur of the rest of the holes but they are still excellent holes with brilliant green complexes.

I rate it above all the other courses I have played in Ireland, namely Ballybunion Old, Waterville, Tralee, Lahinch, Ballyliffin etc. It is straight in at my all time number 3 behind Royal County Down and Royal Birkdale.

Paul Mortlock

Fantastic Golf Course, great setting and great value. Its a real test and has some of the most dramatic dunes and golf holes you will see anywhere. The warning light system on the blind 13th, probably my favourite hole, was particularly good, cant wait to go back!!

Played for second time in April 2016 on a beautiful stay. What a stunning course and setting and terrific value at about Eur50. Terrific test, great condition, undulating fairways and incredible Dunes. Maybe my favourite course in Ireland. Highly recommend it.

Some might think it strange that golfers return to the same courses when they venture overseas, even if there are plenty of other places to visit that they haven’t yet seen. Well, truth be told, it’s like wrapping yourself in a golfing comfort blanket when you return to the likes of Enniscrone – you basically know what it’s like (as in you’re aware of how good it is) and you just want more of the same, safe in the knowledge that there’s every chance you’ll get what you’re looking for.

I returned here last week for the third time in seven years to sample yet again some of the best links golf that Ireland has to offer. It helped to have Vice Captain Liam Hallinan with me as he helped point out lots of little things around the course that I’d have otherwise overlooked.

The new holes on the front nine attract most of the plaudits and rightly so, but there are plenty of good things to admire on the flatter holes, like the wonderful sets of cross bunkers that lie short of the green at holes 7 and 9.

On the inward half, the 12th is a brilliant doglegged par four, requiring two very precise shots to reach a green that’s benched into the dunes and there’s now a green/red traffic light on the downhill 13th which is triggered by golfers crossing a beam in front of the hidden green but I still think that system won’t stop big hitters going for the green with their tee shot, risking potential health and safety issues.

My latest round on the Dunes course can be summed up by another playing partner who hadn’t been here before, walking off the 18th green with the biggest smile I’ve ever seen on any golfer’s face – no matter how poorly you may have played, if you don’t finish here in a happy frame of mind then an appointment with the local doctor for anti-depressant tablets might well be needed for you. Jim McCann.

There are so many things you can say about Enniscrone. First, if you love playing dramatic holes in sand dunes (who doesn't?) you must go there, absolutely, and you will rate it very highly. Many other links courses have a few holes like this - very few have almost a full 18. Second, it is a brute in the wind...not because it is long or narrow (it is one of the widest courses I have played off the tees) but because you will really be challenged to put the ball close to the flag, or even to hold some of the rock hard plateau greens. It does not give you extra chances, it does not leave you feeling "if only...", but it challenges to play at your best and intimidates you if you do not. An example: par 5s often present a teasing birdie opportunity, but here many of the greens made ambitions ridiculous, at least in a strong wind. Will always remember and cherish, but maybe one visit is enough, at least for now.

I love Enniscrone but... the course is spectacular and beautiful. But I didn’t enjoy up turned saucer rejecting greens. When you're playing a course as tough as this you need to give the player a chance. I couldn’t see how anyone could shoot par around here. Ennsicrone has some great holes, is a magical place, and the holes in the dunes 11-13 are awesome.

It can be a disappointment sometimes to return to a course that you’ve played once before and it turns out to be not quite as good as you remember it. On the other hand, what a joy to pay a second visit somewhere and discover it’s even better than you thought it was originally.

When I renewed my acquaintance with the Dunes course at Enniscrone a few days ago, it fell distinctly into the latter category - partly I suppose because I’d been forced through lack of time to play it using a buggy in 2009 so maybe I didn’t really appreciate the true scale of the place, epitomised by a number of relatively long walks from green to next tee. I also didn’t properly appreciate before just how well routed the holes are, dipping into the dunes early on, coming out onto flatter terrain for a change of pace around the turn then climbing back into the sand hills again for the remainder of the back nine.

I know the cliché’s much abused, but Enniscrone really is a golfing roller coaster ride of epic proportions, where fairways tumble from tee to green through acres of mountainous duneland -- that’s why it’s so important to have a few “breather holes” mid-round, otherwise you’d be walking off the 18th green completely giddy from such a full on big dipper experience!

Jim McCann.

Brilliant golf course. I don't know why the course is not rated higher as it is clearly superior to many rated above it. I have played 70+ links courses in GB&I and this is in the top 10. It is both aesthetically stunning but also with solid design. The holes offer variety with some offering respite, particularly in the wind. The holes on the coast in the dunes are sensational. The back 9 is as good as Tralee's back 9, which in turn, is one of the very best 9 holes in Ireland. (6 handicap golfer)

superbe links; des trous incroyables et un entretien parfait. A découvrir

Stunning golf course, the best I have played in Ireland so far (including Waterville, County Sligo and Portmarnock). So many amazing holes between the dunes, although my favourites are the par 4 12th and 13th and the 15th. There are many good courses in the West Coast (Co. Sligo, Donegal...), but none gets close to Enniscrone. Una pasada de campo!!!!