Golf In Southwest Ireland

By Matt Ginella

After over 2,000 miles in 15 days, 12 courses, 50 Guinness, two goats, one trophy, a car ferry, spectacular cliffs, a dire wolf, a giant's causeway and lobstering in a mini wooden skiff, several members of the Fire Pit Collective get together to reflect on Covid, camaraderie, culture and the craic on the island of Ireland. You'll hear from dignitaries, tournament directors, directors of golf, course owners, and we talk architects, value and the two new shiny pennies in the North, which are going to be worth their weight in gold to everything that's happening around them. (Especially Carne and Cruit Island.) Get in the huddle of a Gaelic football match, hear the punchline to a joke and listen to some Irish folk music as we're going over an hour on an itinerary that included six of Golf Digest's 100 Greatest in the World, two that will be there soon and several others that were built by shovel. And those were the ones that we'll never shake from our adventurous souls.

Ireland doesn’t take too many things seriously—except for making sure you’ll want to come back. Show up with a thick skin, a positive attitude and your best rain gear, and you’re guaranteed to have a great time. Join Matt Ginella and his crew as they venture through the South and Northwest regions of Ireland, stopping along the way to play the most notable golf courses, make off-course excursions, and sit down with local storytellers. In our first of two “Journeys”, through Ireland, we landed in Dublin and started our golf trip in the Southwest. From a sunrise at Ballybunion to sunset at Lahinch, with Waterville and Tralee in between, we got history, culture, camaraderie and a whole lotta craic. Presented by Golf Ireland.

Watch Part 2 - Golf in North and Northwest Ireland