The Newcastle membership was based in 1889 by a bunch of what was described as a “group of influential enterprise {and professional} males from Belfast” and was granted its royal standing by King Edward VII in 1908.
There may be some proof to counsel {that a} rudimentary type of golf had been performed by the townsfolk earlier than then on the rabbit warren at Newcastle.
Legendary designer Previous Tom Morris produced the unique format and amid six architects making refinements to the hyperlinks over time, Royal County Down has constantly remained on the very prime when the subjective matter of calling the world’s prime golf course has arisen.
As lately as July this 12 months, the extremely revered Golf Digest rated Royal County Down because the world’s prime course with Royal Dornoch, St Andrews and one other nice Northern Eire hyperlinks Royal Portrush filling out the top-four positions.
“On a transparent spring day, with Dundrum Bay to the east, the Mountains of Mourne to the south and gorse-covered dunes in golden bloom, there isn’t any lovelier place in golf,” said the Golf Digest appraisal.
“Although the greens are surprisingly flat, as if to compensate for the rugged terrain and quite a few blind photographs, bunkers are a particular spotlight, most with arched eyebrows of dense marram grasses and impenetrable clumps of heather.”
And the par-71, 7,186-yard course seems to be sure to be a tricky take a look at once more this week after Dane Kjeldsen completed at solely two below par when he triumphed 9 years in the past.
