Royal County Down Golf Course

Royal County Down is no ordinary links. It’s arguably the world’s best golf course you can play without being a member.

It’s the kind of course that people play in their most ecstatic dreams, with an abundance of blind shots, long carries and nestling greens laid out like a velvet carpet.

It’s a golfing stage with few equals, a riot of gorse and heather skirting the Irish Sea and backdropped by the Mountains of Mourne – the inspiration for one of Ireland’s most famous folk ballads.

RCD’s beauty, however, comes with a bite: this is not a place to miss too many fairways, nor is it advised to venture out without some local knowledge – many a first-timer has lost their way in the penal rough or looking for a line that is invisible to all but the lucky, or the more experienced.

One thing is guaranteed; whether it’s your first or fortieth time, RCD is a place you’ll want to come back to, again and again.