Ireland's hidden gem golf courses

The Irish golf circuit most international visitors follow is well established: Ballybunion, Lahinch, Royal Portrush, Royal County Down, Old Head. Those courses deserve their reputations. But Ireland has a second layer — equally good golf in more obscure locations — that most touring golfers drive past on the way to the famous names.

Every course in this guide has been named a hidden gem or genuinely underrated destination by at least one credible external source: Golf Digest, LINKS Magazine, Golf Monthly, Ireland.com, GolfPass's Golfers' Choice, or The Fried Egg. None of these are marketing claims. We have not included courses simply because they are quiet or affordable — only where there is independent editorial or industry validation behind the recommendation.

Most golfers who visit Northern Ireland play Royal County Down and Royal Portrush and consider the job done. County Down has two more courses that specialist golf media consistently flag as among the most underrated on the island.

Ardglass Golf Club

Ardglass Golf Club runs along two miles of jagged rocky coastline above the Irish Sea, with almost every hole exposed to the water. The clubhouse is housed inside a 15th-century tower house — one of the oldest golf clubhouses in the world. Golf Digest included it in their Ireland hidden gems feature. The Fried Egg reviewed it and wrote that "the secret is now out." LINKS Magazine covered it in their lesser-known Northern Ireland piece alongside Royal County Down and Portrush.

The opening hole charges uphill past the castle ramparts. The par-3 second plays directly over the cliff. Green fees are a fraction of Royal County Down, which is 45 minutes up the coast. Book a morning round and drive to Newcastle for the afternoon.

Kirkistown Castle Golf Club

Kirkistown Castle Golf Club on the Ards Peninsula is the most easterly 18-hole course in Ireland. James Braid laid it out in 1934; the club was founded in 1902. FOGOLF dedicated a full episode of their Hidden Gems series to it. Ireland.com includes it in their ten best Northern Ireland hidden gems. LINKS Magazine covered it alongside the county's more famous names.

The most compelling endorsement comes from Michael Bannon — Rory McIlroy's longtime coach, who grew up playing here: "It is a wonderful links course with a great mix of holes to test all areas of your game. It is still my favourite place and in 40 years I have never tired of playing this course." On a clear day you can see Scotland from the higher holes. Green fees are very low for the quality of the golf.

Strandhill Golf Club, Co. Sligo

Strandhill Golf Club is the course most visitors skip when heading to Rosses Point. It should not be skipped. Golf Digest included it in their Ireland hidden gems feature; LINKS Magazine put it in their "15 Hidden Gems in Ireland" list. Christy O'Connor Senior called it "the jewel of the North West." Top 100 Golf Courses describes it as "Ireland's quirkiest 18-hole links... one of its most scenic and entertaining."

The course sits between the Atlantic and Knocknarea mountain — the cairn-topped hill of Yeats' poetry — and plays in constant exposure to the sea wind. Green fees are around €35. Strandhill is the right warm-up round before Rosses Point, not the course you miss to have another go there.

Castlegregory Golf Club, Co. Kerry

Castlegregory Golf Club is a nine-hole links on a narrow neck of land between Lough Gill and Brandon Bay on the north side of the Dingle Peninsula. Mount Brandon rises behind; the Atlantic drops away below the 6th tee. Golf.com ranked it in the world's top 50 nine-hole courses. Multiple reviewers use "hidden gem" without prompting.

The course plays as 18 holes from alternating tees — worth knowing before you arrive so the format doesn't surprise you. Green fees are a fraction of Ballybunion, Tralee, and Waterville, all of which are within an hour. The course is the Dingle Peninsula golf experience most visitors miss entirely.

Kilkee Golf Club, Co. Clare

Kilkee Golf Club sits on the Loop Head Peninsula, 45 minutes past Lahinch on a road most golfers never take. The original nine holes date to 1886; the current layout is a clifftop course above the Atlantic, with the signature 4th hole requiring a carry over a sheer cliff drop. GolfPass's Golfers' Choice 2025 included it in Ireland's hidden gems list. Golf Europe described discovering it as "a bit like finding a small pot of gold at the end of a rainbow."

Almost always quiet. Green fees are low. If you are driving the Wild Atlantic Way through Clare and have a spare afternoon, this is the stop you will not regret.

The southeast — Wexford, Waterford, Wicklow — is statistically the sunniest part of Ireland and almost entirely ignored by the international golf market. The three courses below form a three-day loop that almost no visiting golfer makes, but that rewards those who do.

Rosslare Golf Links, Co. Wexford

Rosslare Golf Links is the only true links course in the southeast — a slender peninsula between the Irish Sea and Wexford Harbour, founded in 1905 and redesigned in 1926 by Hawtree and Taylor. It consistently ranks in Ireland's Top 100. LINKS Magazine included it in their "15 Hidden Gems in Ireland," noting the green fee as exceptional value. The Irish Examiner described "tight little gullies, unexpected rises and ridges, blind shots and sharp bunkering." The Wandering Golfers ran a dedicated piece headlined "Rosslare Golf Club: Seaside Gem On Road Less Travelled."

The southeast sees less wind than Clare or Sligo, the course is rarely busy, and green fees are well below the western links corridor. It is the strongest argument for routing a trip down the east coast rather than defaulting to the west.

Tramore Golf Club, Co. Waterford

Tramore Golf Club was founded in 1894 and is one of Ireland's oldest clubs. The 27-hole layout sits on elevated ground above Tramore Bay with views to the Comeragh Mountains. It has hosted the Irish Close Championship three times. It ranks in Ireland's Top 100. Green fees are low and the course is almost always uncrowded. Not the first course on anyone's Ireland list — which is exactly why it appears on this one.

Wicklow Golf Club, Co. Wicklow

Wicklow Golf Club is a clifftop course formed in 1904, perched above the town with the Irish Sea visible throughout. GolfPass's Golfers' Choice 2024 included it in their 20 best hidden gems in Ireland and Northern Ireland: "Stunning views on every single hole. It's like a hybrid of a parkland and links course." The Irish Times covered Wicklow golf specifically in a July 2025 feature on the county's bucket-list courses and hidden gems. The signature 6th — nicknamed "Pebble Beach" locally — plays along the cliff edge with a carry above the sea.

Forty-five minutes south of Dublin city centre. Priced well below the Druids Glen and European Club tier of Wicklow golf. An easy add-on for anyone based in the capital with a spare morning.

Esker Hills Golf Club, Co. Offaly

Esker Hills is the strongest case in this guide for formal external validation. It won "Ireland's Best Hidden Gem" at The Golfer's Guide to Ireland Awards — an independent, industry-recognised accolade. Golf Monthly named it one of Ireland's best inland gems. Top 100 Golf Courses reviewers call it "the gem of the midlands." Shane Lowry — the 2019 Open Champion — learned the game here and won the 2009 Irish Open as an amateur from this club.

The course is built on glacial esker ridges: long, narrow hills of sand and gravel deposited by the retreating ice sheet. The terrain produces naturally rolling, sand-based fairways with a heathland quality entirely unlike typical Irish parkland. A Christy O'Connor Jr. design. One hour from Dublin on the M6. Green fees are low. There is very little reason not to add a round here to any trip that passes through the midlands.

Glasson Golf Hotel, Co. Westmeath

Glasson Golf Hotel on the shores of Lough Ree was included in GolfPass's 2025 Golfers' Choice "25 hidden gem golf courses of Great Britain and Ireland." Discover Ireland features it in their "Golf in Ireland's Hidden Heartlands" editorial. The Irish Golfer Top 100 ranks it at number 89. A Christy O'Connor Jr. design from 1993, every hole plays in view of the lake. One reviewer: "I prefer this course and setting to most of the other championship courses in the country."

The midlands location is part of what makes it a hidden gem — this is Irish golf that has nothing to do with the famous coastal circuits and everything to do with quiet, well-made golf beside still water. The family-owned hotel on site is small and well run.

Each hidden gem sits within a day's drive of better-known bases. A few anchors worth knowing:

Co. Down (Ardglass / Kirkistown). Stay in Newcastle at the Slieve Donard — you're forty-five minutes from both courses and beside Royal County Down. Mourne Seafood Bar in Newcastle is the best dinner option in the area. For something more casual after Ardglass, the town has a handful of good pubs on Castle Street worth stopping at before the drive back.

Sligo (Strandhill / Rosses Point). Stay at Markree Castle twenty minutes from Rosses Point — a working castle hotel with atmosphere to spare. For food, Eala Bhán on the riverfront in Sligo town is the best dinner option. Hargadon Bros on O'Connell Street is one of the finest Victorian pub interiors in Ireland — go for a pint before or after.

The southeast (Rosslare / Tramore / Wicklow). This circuit is best done driving south from Dublin. Wicklow town is a useful overnight stop — the Brooklodge Hotel in Macreddin is worth the detour for a special dinner. Rosslare Strand has good holiday accommodation and is the natural base for the Wexford end. The region is Ireland's sunniest and the courses are almost always quiet — plan around an early start and a long lunch.

Midlands (Esker Hills / Glasson). Base in Athlone — central, easy on both courses, and a proper town rather than a village. Sean's Bar on Main Street claims to be the oldest pub in Ireland (and the claim is backed by archaeology). The Glasson hotel is small and family-run and worth booking for at least one night if you're playing the course.

These courses work best when combined with their regional context rather than treated as a standalone circuit.

Ardglass and Kirkistown pair naturally with Royal County Down — one day at Royal County Down, one day each at the hidden gems. A three-round Northern Ireland trip with a very wide range of green fees.

Strandhill and Kilkee fit into the Wild Atlantic Way circuit between Rosses Point and Lahinch. Neither adds much distance to the standard coastal route.

Rosslare, Tramore, and Wicklow form a southeast three-day loop that almost no international visitor makes but that rewards those who do. Drive Dublin to Wicklow to Waterford to Wexford and back — the sunniest golf in Ireland with almost no queues.

Esker Hills and Glasson are both within an hour's drive of Dublin and easily combined into a midlands day trip — a strong option before an early flight home.