When it comes to favorite courses, golfers are like religious fundamentalists: once you've made your choice, you look upon those who opt for something else with bewilderment and contempt.
But despite all those true believers who worship at the altars of Ballybunion and Lahinch, Golf Magazine's top-ranked Irish courses have always been located across the border in Northern Ireland.
Royal County Down Golf Club
Newcastle
7,181 yards, par 72;
Green fees: $273-$342; 0114428-43723314;
royalcountydown.org
Laid out by Old Tom Morris in 1889 and ranked No. 7 on our Top 100 Courses in the World, this masterpiece 40 minutes southeast of Belfast is without equal as Ireland's finest test of golf.
From the opening tee shot alongside Dundrum Bay to the final putt beneath Slieve Donard Mountain, RCD is breathtaking and demanding. How tough can it play? During a 2001 visit Tiger Woods shot 83 in a 50 mph gale — including a 150-yard 2-iron that came up short — and his was the low score in the group.
Return visitors will find the atmosphere much more relaxed than it used to be.
Royal Portrush Golf Club
Portrush
6,818 yards, par 72;
Green fees: $234-$264; 0114428-70822311;
royalportrushgolfclub.com
This Harry Colt design is still the only course outside Britain to host the Open Championship (1951) but recent Senior Opens here have shown that Portrush's Dunluce Links has lost none of its bite.
The course deserves its fearsome and penal reputation, and though the drama peters out over the closing holes, the challenges it offers earlier — the 384- yard 5th hole and the celebrated 210- yard 14th (dubbed "Calamity") — more than justify the cost of admission.
The club's Valley Course is a worthy second 18, and might be rated much higher were it not in the shadow of its sibling.
GETTING HERE
Continental Airlines flies nonstop
daily from Newark Liberty airport
to Belfast. Flight time is six hours.
continental.com
){kind=link}