Golfing In Ireland

Links vs. Parkland

True links courses are on the coastline overlooking the sea. The terrain is generally fairly barren, hilly, sandy dunes, and very windy. For example St. Andrews.

Parkland courses are  inland often with lakes or ponds featuring.  The terrain is usually much flatter than links, soft soil underfoot, and many trees lining the fairways. For example Augusta National. 

Links Courses

If you have never played a links course before you are in for a real treat. For several hundred years links style courses were all that existed. It wasn't until the birth of golf in the United States that parkland courses became popular.

To succeed on a links course you need to know about:
 
 

Personally links courses are my favorite.  They demand accuracy, creativity, and good shot selection in order to score well.

Parkland Courses

Parkland courses dominate the American golf scene. In Ireland however there are a few subtle differences. Those most evident would be the wind and the length. As I said before wind is a large feature of Irish golf see "Playing in the Wind" above for advice. 

The length of courses here are generally shorter than those in the States. Rather than placing a premium on booming drives and hitting into parking lot size greens, Irish parkland courses require accuracy off the tee and again when hitting into the small greens.  Therefore your time is best spent on perfecting pinpoint driving and above all else the short game.  In fact I don't even carry a driver most of the time lest I be tempted to use it.

Although the styles are very different, both Links and Parkland Courses in Ireland, demand accuracy, an immaculate short game, and good course management.