K Club Palmer Ryder Cup Course Review

K Club Palmer Ryder Cup Course Review - This tribute to the design work of Arnold Palmer wends its way through specimen trees and alongside the River Liffey

K Club Palmer Ryder Cup Course Review

Green Fee Range: €120-€240

Medal Tee: Par 72 - 6,815 Yards

Visitor Times: Every Day

Website: www.kclub.ie

Significant Changes

All fairways over-seeded to create greater composition and density

Rough was extensively over-seeded in order to create a greater density of grass

Trees were crown lifted to improve light into the rough and facilitate seed and grass growth

All bunkers were renovated and replaced with 500 tonnes of fresh sand

Tees and greens were intensively aerated and sanded to improve surface firmness

The 2006 Ryder Cup was as emotional as it gets, and this dramatic, water-strewn parkland course played no small part.

Arnold Palmer’s 1991 design runs through the most mature and stately trees, and had previously hosted several European Opens.

The 4th is a majestic, sprawling double dogleg par 5, and the 7th is one of the most lovely but scary par 4s you will find anywhere with a lake protecting the green.

If you make it over, you still need to avoid a tricky bunker. Behind the green is your first glimpse of the River Liffey, which makes its first real impact as it borders the short 8th.

There are plenty more fine holes before you reach the long 16th – another real feature with its green on an island in the middle of the Liffey.

During the Ryder Cup, packed grandstands were willing the golfers to go for the green in two, an incredible risk-and-reward hole.

There is quite a walk to the 17th tee from which the river hugs the hole for its entire length, and a lake features heavily on the closing hole.

Actually, there are only a handful of holes where you are totally safe from the intrusive water. On the plus side, this makes for many lovely views.

K Club Palmer Ryder Cup Course Review - Golf Monthly Verdict

A wonderful match play course packed with drama and memorable holes