Ballybunion Golf Club ~ Ireland 2014

2014
Ballybunion Golf Club ~ Ireland
W
hether you love to golf or golf is your living, Celtic Golf would like to
invite you to play the challenging and stunning links of Ireland, England,
Scotland and Wales. There is no experience like teeing up on these
legendary courses. The undulating fairways and lush greens, along with the splendid countryside and cozy pubs, all make golf in this part of the world like golf
nowhere else.
Celtic Golf has been leading vacations to these venerable clubs for decades. They
are eager to show you the remarkable charm of these countries and every detail
of your trip – from meeting your flight, to meals and accommodations – is first
class and forever memorable.
Please join one of our special event golf vacations or let us create a custom designed itinerary just for you.
Celtic Golf is a business run by the Quinlan Family, Americans with deep Irish
roots who are passionate about creating memorable golf vacations to Ireland,
Scotland, England and Wales as well as many destinations in Europe.
Jerry and Josephine Quinlan and co-founders Peg and Jack Quinlan have been
delighting golf travelers for over twenty years.
The business is built on creating one great vacation at a time. “Celtic Golf customers travel with us repeatedly and refer us to their friends.”
If you are interested in a unique Celtic Golf vacation – whether you’re a pro or
an avid weekend golfer – an individual, a family or a large group – we’ll help you
plan the trip of a lifetime.
This October, the New England PGA will be collaborating with Celtic Golf for
the 2014 Ireland Pro Am.
Southwester Ireland is a course designer’s dream. The country’s rugged natural
landscapes come together to create some of the most challenging tests of links
golf, not just in Ireland, but throughout the world. As you make your way from
the County Clare to Limerick and County Kerry, you’ll play rounds at Ireland’s
best courses, included Doonbeg Tralee, Ballybunion-Old Course, Old Head and
Waterville. And if you want to explore beyond the clubhouse, you’ll have plenty
of opportunity to join local guides.
Register on NEPGA.com/travelproams
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he Caesars Entertainment Corporation is the
world’s most geographically diversified casinoentertainment company. Since its beginning in
Reno, Nevada more than 75 years ago, Caesars has grown
through development of new resorts, expansions, and
acquisitions, and now operates casinos on three continents. The company resorts operate primarily under the
Harrah’s, Caesars, and Horseshoe brand names. In addition, Caesars owns the London Clubs International family
of casinos. Caesars Entertainment is focused on building
loyalty and value with its guests through a unique combination of great service, excellent
products, unsurpassed distribution, operational excellence, and technology. Caesars is committed to environmental sustainability and energy conservation and recognizes the importance
of being a responsible steward of the environment.
The iconic Caesars Palace is a luxury hotel that sets the standard for opulent details, impeccable service, and lavish Las Vegas accommodations. Caesars Palace earned the coveted 2014
Gold Star Rating from Forbes Travel Guide, and was voted the “Best Strip Hotel” in the 2013
The Best of Las Vegas poll. When you stay at Caesars Palace, you can connect with the green
by booking a tee time at one of their top-rated golf courses, Rio Secco and Cascata Golf, both
located just minutes away from the Las Vegas Strip.
Golfweek ranked Cascata as the #2 course in Nevada and one of the Top 100 in the country.
Cascata Golf offers breathtaking beauty, as well as a stiff challenge. With sweeping mountain
vistas at every turn, it provides Las Vegas’ most breathtaking 18-hole golf experience. Cascata, Italian for “waterfall,” is aptly named, as a 418-foot waterfall from the steep mountainside
that towers above the driving range meanders through the practice facilities and cascades into
a river that roars through the clubhouse, eventually culminating in a tranquil stream.
Just a short drive from Caesars Palace, Rio Secco is a Las Vegas golf treasure that blends the
beautiful natural scenery of the desert with a play challenge requiring skill and strategy. It was
designed and built in 1997 by golf course architect Rees Jones. The course lay at the foothills
of the Black Mountain Range 13.5 miles southeast of the Las Vegas Strip. Rio Secco can play
to over 7,400 yards and very difficult, but also offers four teeing grounds to allow golfers of
any skill level a memorable golf experience. Features include six holes through steep canyons,
six holes on a plateau overlooking the city, and six holes in a broad desert wash.
Rio Secco is also home to the Butch Harmon School of Golf, which offers guests at Caesars
Palace the opportunity to improve their swing with high-tech analysis tools. The Butch Harmon School is a world-class Las Vegas golf training facility, with a 90-yard short-game hole and
expert instructors who can help improve your swing.
Register on NEPGA.com/lvproam
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C
asa de Campo Resort is located in La Romana, a city situated on the
southeast coast of the Dominican Republic with white-sand beaches
and blue water. Oceanfront villas, hotels, spas, and conference venues
are among the unmatched accommodations offered at Casa de Campo. The
resort is also a great destination for sailing, fishing, and shopping. Casa de
Campo also offers three Championship Golf courses and 63 holes all designed
by Golf Hall of Fame member Pete Dye. From the imposing coral shores and
winding fairways of the Caribbean’s #1 golf course, Teeth of the Dog, to the
craggy mountains of Dye Fore and the undulating hills and lagoons of The
Links, Casa de Campo summons a player’s inner champion.
Ranked as the number one course in the Caribbean and 43rd in the Top 100
Courses Worldwide by Golf Magazine, Teeth of the Dog attracts the best professional and amateur golfers in the world. Tricky shots such as a devilish dogleg and signature Dye obstacles captivate the world’s best. Toss-in trade
winds courtesy of Mother Nature and “seven holes created by God,” and you
discover the magnetic force of this amazing course. But if you dare challenge
the Dog, “at some point in your game, this Dog will bite you,” says Gilles Gagnon, Director of Golf at Casa de Campo.
Dye Fore’s numbers are staggering: 27 holes, 7,740 yards in length; 7 cliff-side
holes dropping 300 feet to the Chavón River below; 40 mph gusting winds –
and 360 degrees of breathtaking views. Of the 27 picturesque holes on the
Dye Fore course, #12 and #15 are two of the greatest par-3 holes in the
world. The course has spectacular views of the Caribbean Sea, the Dominican
mountains – the tallest in the Caribbean, the Chavón River, the Casa de Campo Marina, and the Altos de Chavón artists’ village. The course is visually intimidating and rivals Teeth of the Dog.
The beautiful inland Links course may not seem as challenging as its sea-side
and cliff-hugging siblings, but looks can be deceiving. The Links is located on
the interior of the Resort property with spectacular views of the Caribbean
and the Resort. Its moderately hilly track, with tall bahia and guinea grass
roughs, plus multiple sand traps keep you on your toes. Thought by some to
be reminiscent of traditional British and Scottish courses, there are several
lagoons and even lakes with wading birds. There are five holes where water
comes into play, making it a challenge unto itself. Ask any golfer who has
played The Links and they will tell you that this course is equally as challenging
as the Teeth, it’s a demanding, merciless course for the unwary.
Register on NEPGA.com/travelproams
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The Grand Golf Resorts of Florida is an unparalleled golf and family destination that stretches from the Gulf to the Atlantic. Presented by Salamander
Hotels & Resorts, the destination unites Innisbrook Resort near Tampa Bay,
Reunion Resort in Orlando, and Hammock Beach Resort at Palm Coast. It
features 162 holes of golf designed by Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Tom
Watson, and Larry Packard, featuring some of the highest-rated courses in
Florida. The courses have hosted PGA TOUR, Champions TOUR, LPGA
Tour, and Legends Tour championships. The Grand Golf Resorts of Florida
also includes 1200 spacious villas and homes, 200,000 square feet of meeting
and function space, 25 swimming pools featuring slides and lazy rivers, 17
tennis courts, 16 restaurants, three spas, and numerous nightlife options.
Innisbrook Resort – Palm Harbor, FL
The newly renovated Innisbrook near Clearwater, and less than an hour to
Tampa Bay, is one of America’s most celebrated Florida golf resorts, as it
consistently receives top accolades. All four courses were designed by Lawrence Packard, who has worked on over 600 courses in his career. The
Copperhead Course (Golfweek’s 2013 Best Courses You Can Play – No. 6
in Florida) is home to the annual PGA TOUR Valspar Championship Presented by BB&T, is a favorite of PGA TOUR players. Tree-lined fairways and
rolling terrain make this course a challenge at 7,300 yards. The surrounding
lakes and ponds are home to abundant wildlife, including fox squirrels, bald
eagles, alligators, and blue herons, and the course is mostly free of residences.
The Island Course is considered by many to be as equally demanding as Copperhead, after being lengthened and undergoing renovations. The course has
tight fairways, intimidating water hazards, abundant bunkers, and extraordinary elevation changes. The picturesque Island has played host to many U.S.
Open qualifiers and NCAA Championships. The course has been ranked
among the country’s Top 50 resort courses by Golf Digest. The LPGA also
selected Island as the site of the ISPS Handa Legends Tour Open Championship.
The North Course is similar in terrain to the Copperhead Course, and remains challenging at about 6,300 yards. Known for its daunting par 3s, North
features tight fairways, an abundance of trees, and well-bunkered greens,
placing a premium on accuracy from tee to green. The South Course is reminiscent of a links-style design, both in terms of rolling terrain, and numerous
fairway bunkering. This course is a great challenge thanks to ample waste bunkers, 10 water hazards, undulating terrain, and
breezes from the Gulf of Mexico.
Reunion Resort – Kissimmee, FL
Reunion Resort, less than 30 minutes to Orlando, is the only destination in the world to boast three Signature golf courses
designed by golf legends Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, and Tom Watson. Combining the beauty of their natural landscaping
with unique and challenging layouts, these courses have won numerous awards and followers over the years.
The Arnold Palmer Course, named a Top 100 Resort Course by Golfweek in 2009, is innovatively routed on hilly, roller coaster-like terrain and boasts dramatic elevation changes. The 6,916-yard, par-72 can get up to 50 feet in some places, creating a
unique variety of risk/reward shots. The varied menu of shot-making opportunities is further insured by six tee locations on
each hole, a variety of natural preserve areas, generously wide fairways, and strategically placed bunkers across all 18 holes.
The Jack Nicklaus Course was named one of Golfweek’s Best Courses You Can Play (No. 17) in 2010, and can be as deceptive
as it is beautiful (Top 25 Toughest Golf Courses, The Orlando Business Journal, 2009). This Parkland-style layout is smooth
and flowing, with long horizon lines and elevated tee boxes and greens. The course is designed to tempt golfers into hitting
risky shots with potentially big payoffs, challenging the golfer to step up to the ball with a carefully organized series of shots in
mind. Continued on page 7 ...
More on www.grandgolfresorts.com...
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The Old Course at St. Andrews in Scotland is a course like no
other and an experience like no other, as each and every year
thousands of golfers make the pilgrimage to St. Andrews in the
hope of playing the Old Course. But with the Old Course Experience those dreams can come true. Through an exclusive contract with the St. Andrews Links Trust, the Old Course Experience provides guaranteed access to all St. Andrews Golf Courses, including the Old Course, as part of its Scotland Golf Packages. This allows for an offer of an unmatched St. Andrews Golf
Package by eliminating the need to enter the daily ballot, as all
others are required. The Old Course Golf Experience is able to
offer guaranteed tee times on the Old Course between April and
October.
These guaranteed Old Course and St. Andrews tee times form
the basis of a full range of golf locations in St. Andrews. All St.
Andrews Golf Packages can be extended to take in Scotland’s
and Ireland’s other famous courses and resorts. All golf programs include the services of the fully-staffed office in St. Andrews. Their team will customize visits prior to arrival, meet
guests upon arrival at the airport or hotel, and take care of all
the requirements during the stay. Whether a party includes four
golfers on vacation or a corporation entertaining top clients,
everything is taken care of to ensure a truly memorable St. Andrews golf experience.
The Old Course at St. Andrews is the cultural and historical
home of golf, with the game being played here since the 15th
Century. Despite its age, St. Andrews Old Course continues to
challenge the best golfers in the world into the 21st century.
From the moment a player arrives at the first tee in the shadows
of the majestic Royal and Ancient Clubhouse, they will be striding along fairways so often trodden by golfing greats, past and
present. Players will experience famous features along the way
such as the enormous Hell bunker, the Road Hole (site of so
many famous Open Championship moments), and the Swilken
Bridge. Created by Mother Nature and only touched by man in
the later stages of the course’s evolution, the “Old Lady” serves
as a master class to any would-be golf designer.
As well as featuring a guaranteed round on the Old Course,
many other championship courses may be included in the program at St. Andrews and at other resorts in Scotland. Additional
rounds are also available on the legendary links of Carnoustie,
Royal Troon, Turnberry (Ailsa Course), and Prestwick, all venues
for The Open Championship; Gleneagles, whose PGA Centenary
Course is scheduled to host the 2014 Ryder Cup; and hidden
gems such as Crail, North Berwick, Murcar, and Dunbar.
More on www.oldcourse-experience.com...
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Kiawah Island Golf Resort is located on a beautiful
barrier island just a few miles from historic Charleston, South Carolina and is the Official Golf & Tennis
Resort at Kiawah Island. Kiawah is rated Best U.S.
Golf Resort by Golf World Magazine and also won
Most Excellent Golf Resort from the Condé Nast
Johansens Awards for Excellence. Guests can choose
from one of five incredible golf courses and play
where the pros play, including the legendary Ocean
Course, host of the 1991 Ryder Cup and 2012 PGA
Championship. In addition, all five of the championship courses are certified as Cooperative Sanctuaries
in South Carolina by Audubon International. Condé
Nast Traveler also voted Kiawah the “No. 1 island to
visit in the U.S. mainland” with recreational activities
from kayaking and nature tours to bicycling and
spending days at the beach.
In addition, Kiawah offers excellent accommodations
and dining. The oceanfront Sanctuary Hotel is a
beautiful seaside mansion that has been recognized
with the Forbes Five Star Award, AAA Five Diamond,
and the “Top Property in the World” rated by Andrew Harper’s Readers Choice. In addition, guests
can choose from a wonderful array of beach vacation
rental homes and villas featuring exclusive guest benefits. This is the perfect option for families and groups
of any size, and budgets of any range. The dozen restaurants and lounges include The Ocean Room, the
resort’s premier steakhouse; The Atlantic Room, the
signature seafood restaurant; Tomasso at Turtle Point,
serving Charleston’s finest Italian fare; and Jasmine Porch, where authentic Lowcountry cuisine is paired with Southern charm.
The Ocean Course, host of the 1991 Ryder Cup and the 2012 PGA Championship, was designed by the legendary Pete Dye in
1991, and is one of only four courses in the U.S. to have hosted each of the PGA of America’s major championships. Probably no
other golf course in the world outside of the United Kingdom and Ireland is affected as much by the wind. From one round to the
next, a player can experience up to an 8-club difference on holes depending upon the direction and strength of the wind. There
are no prevailing winds on the course and Dye took this into account when designing the course by designing two courses into
one, one for an easterly wind and one for a westerly wind. Located on the eastern-most end of Kiawah Island, the course has
more seaside holes than any other course in the Northern Hemisphere. Although it was originally designed to sit behind the
dunes, Dye’s wife, Alice, suggested raising the entire course to allow players to clearly see Kiawah’s beautiful Atlantic coastline
from every hole. However, this made The Ocean Course substantially more demanding as it also exposed to the area’s brisk and
unpredictable sea breezes. Golf Digest ranked it as the #4 Public Golf Course in the U.S. and 25th amongst the 100 Greatest U.S.
Golf Courses.
Turtle Point Golf Course requires accuracy and a strong mental game. This exciting course was designed by Jack Nicklaus and has
been selected to hold many important championships including the Carolinas’ Amateur, the Carolinas’ PGA, the South Carolina
Amateur and the 1990 PGA Cup Matches. Because of its traditional design, Turtle Point is the most popular course on Kiawah
amongst many of the better players. With narrow fairway corridors, small greens, strategically placed water hazards, and plenty of
out-of-bounds, the course calls for great accuracy and intelligent strategies. Since it is one of the longest courses on the island,
proficiency with fairway woods and long irons is a must, as well as the ability to scramble. The greens on Turtle Points are small,
so players need to be able to hit shots high if they want them to stop. The course calls for players to be able to shape their shots
in either direction and be proficient with every club in the bag, as drivers are not necessary on every hole. Continued on page 9 ...
More on www.kiawahresort.com...
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Located on Florida’s picturesque Treasure Coast, PGA Village - Port St. Lucie is
truly a golf experience unlike any other. This golf resort is home to 27,000
PGA Professionals from around the globe, and is where they come to play and
train. The 54 holes of championship golf in a trio of world-class courses
(Wannamaker, Ryder, and Dye) were laid out by design legends Tom Fazio and
Pete Dye. In addition, the resort is home to the 6-hole Family Short Course,
the perfect place for youngsters and beginners and is a fun way to warm up or
wind down. Then there is also the impressive 35-acre PGA Center for Golf
Learning and Performance, where golfers of all skill levels can take advantage of
some of the most advanced golf training and instruction.
All three courses have been recognized on a variety of “top courses in America” lists, including recently being ranked No. 30 in GolfWorld’s inaugural
“Readers Choice Awards – Top 50 Public Courses.” The resort as a whole also
ranks 51st on Golf Digest’s list of the “75 Best Golf Resorts in North America.”
In addition, each of the courses have also earned Audubon International
“Signature Sanctuary” status for maintaining and enhancing the habitat by conserving wildlife, water, and energy through sustainable
maintenance practices.
The Wannamaker Course is named in honor of Rodman Wannamaker, who in 1916 inspired the birth of The PGA of America.
Fazio’s Wannamaker Course is a classic Florida layout that is set against a backdrop of wetlands, palm trees, and palmettos, and is
considered one of the state’s most beautiful courses.
The Ryder Course is named in honor of Samuel Ryder, the namesake and founder of the Ryder Cup, one of the pre-eminent
events in golf. This course has a distinctive Carolina-feel with its rolling hills, majestic pine trees, and challenging water hazards.
With various hole locations, one could play this Fazio-designed course every day and discover a different layout.
Emphasizing the native surroundings and Dye’s uninhibited style for creative design, the Dye Course features pine straw roughs,
vast coquina waste bunkers, and grass-based bunkers. This links-style course that weaves by the 100-acre “Big Mamu” Wetlands
offers pure Florida surroundings with hints of design from the older British Isles’ courses for flavor.
More on www.pgavillage.com...
Continued...
The Tom Watson Course, one of the Best Courses of the World by YourGolfTravel.com (2010), is a 7,154-yard, par-72, but is as
much about strategy as it is about length. The course is highlighted by fast, firm and wide rolling fairways, a variety of strategically
placed bunkers, and large greens, demanding a well thought-out approach from every player regardless of skill level. It puts a premium on a solid short game with spacious green complexes where club selection can vary from putter to lob wedge to threewood.
Hammock Beach Resort – Palm Coast, FL
Hammock Beach was listed as one of Golf Digest’s Top 75 Golf Resorts in 2011 and features two immaculate golf courses that
have been host to PGA Tour events, and tout some of the highest rankings in the state. Designed by legends Nicklaus and Watson, each championship course offers a distinctive style of play surrounded by spectacular views of the natural landscape.
Jack Nicklaus’ Ocean Course is a Top 100 golf course that not only winds along pristine wetlands and sparkling lakes, but also plays
six holes directly on the Atlantic Ocean. The 10th Best Course You Can Play in Florida according to Golfweek (2013), it concludes with a thrilling finale dubbed “The Bear Claw,” a collection of four daunting holes precariously edging the sweeping coastline. The Ocean Course also received a ranking as one of Florida’s Top 5 Courses, and is truly “Florida’s Ocean Course.”
Tom Watson’s Conservatory Course is the longest in Florida, at 7,777 yards, and is truly a masterpiece. This breathtaking course
is highlighted by waterfalls, babbling brooks, and veneered field stone work. Watson added three sod-faced bunkers to the 140
sand and coquina bunkers, a nod to his affinity for British links-style golf. In its January 2008 issue, Golf Digest ranked the Conservatory Course third on its elite list of America’s Best New Public Courses.
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Continued...
True to Nicklaus’s philosophy, Turtle Point plays best hitting to specific landing areas to get the best angles into the greens. Like
all of the courses on Kiawah Island, Turtle Point experiences a lot of wind and it blows in different directions throughout the day.
Trees protect many areas of the course so players won’t always sense how the wind might affect their shots, making local
knowledge very important. Turtle Point is rated 48th on Golf Digest’s 100 Greatest Public Golf Course List.
Osprey Point Golf Course was originally designed as a members’ only layout by Tom Fazio, and this beautiful South Carolina Lowcountry course has long been a favorite of members and guests alike for its playability and variety, as well as after-round libations
and dining. The setting for the course features four large, natural lakes, fingers of saltwater marsh, and dense maritime forests of
live oaks, pines, palmettos, and magnolias. Into that backdrop, Fazio blended a par-72 layout that takes advantage of its setting.
Osprey Point offers a wide variety of holes, each presenting its own unique challenges and beauty. There are four distinctive par3s, four extremely distinctive par-5s, and ten outstanding par-4s ranging in length from 340 yards to 461 yards from the championship tees. Since the original design was for a member’s only type course, the course is very playable for the average golfer, featuring generous landing areas and few forced carries. From the proper tees, Osprey Point poses appropriate challenges to the better
golfers and fairness to the high-handicapper, senior golfers, and junior golfers. For the better player, the course is very challenging
with plenty of hazards, numerous risk/reward options, and doglegs that go both left to right and right to left, requiring a premium
on both accuracy and finesse. Osprey Point was recently awarded a near-perfect 4 ½ stars in Golf Digest’s “Best Places to Play”
reader’s poll where it was considered one of the best values in South Carolina.
The Clyde Johnston-designed Oak Point Golf Course,
with its undulating fairways and challenging greens, is built
for shot-makers, where strategy and a thinking approach
will be rewarded over pure power. In this sense, it is a
bit of a throwback to the classic courses of the 1920s
where the ability to place the ball in a certain portion of
the fairway or a certain spot of the green was more important than power. More than any other course on the
resort, Oak Point, which was purchased in 1997, has
gone through dramatic changes over the last couple of
years, greatly enhancing both the quality of golf and the
overall guest experience. Johnston, a noted Southeastern golf course architect, designed this course on the
grounds of former cotton and indigo plantations. With
its close proximity to the Kiawah River and the Haulover
Creek, with its surrounding maritime forest, he was able to mold the rolling landscape into a first-class layout. Undulating fairways
and challenging greens are some of the unique features of Oak Point. Major renovations to the front nine were completed in
2004, in consultation with Johnston. Gone was the notoriously challenging par-4 third hole that featured a sharp dogleg right requiring an iron off the tee, then a short iron to a green with absolutely no margin for error. The green on No. 1 was pushed back
approximately 130 yards to make up the four shots to par that the elimination of the hole caused. This changed the opening hole
from a 402-yard par-4 to a demanding 535-yard par-5 with the green guarded by water on three sides. Additionally, a new 152yard par-3 ninth hole was added next to the new clubhouse with a picturesque view of the Haulover Creek as a backdrop. Oak
Point also recently received 4 ½ stars from the readers of Golf Digest magazine in their biennial “Best Places to Play” poll.
Cougar Point Golf Course is a great strategic layout redesigned by Gary Player, where players need to think their way around
short and long par-4s, great risk/reward par-5s, and extremely scenic and challenging par-3s. One of the most dramatic vistas on
the island is the middle of Cougar Point’s front nine, along the Kiawah River, making this course a very memorable one. Originally
named Marsh Point, the course was redesigned by Player in 1996 and plays 6,875 yards. Cougar Point’s long par-4s feature wide
landing areas putting the driver in the player’s hands, and open-run-up areas in front of the green making them reachable by the
shorter hitters using a wood or long-iron. The course’s short par-4s feature great “target golf,” where players must find specific
landing areas on their drives to avoid obstacles and provide the best angles to the greens. It has become a great strategic layout
where players need to think their way around the course. For example, players want to be to the right to avoid hitting over and
around trees on No. 5, while players must be to the left to avoid trees guarding approach shots on No. 7 and No. 8. No. 6 has a
spectacular view, and No. 17 is considered by many to be one of the prettiest and challenging golf holes on the island. Cougar
Point was recently rated the “Golf Course of the Year” by the South Carolina Golf Course Owners Association.
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