Royal Dublin

Overview: Royal Dublin Golf Club occupies North Bull Island in Dublin Bay, a broad links landscape of dunes, marram grass, salt air, and open views toward the city and mountains. The 18-hole, par-72 course measures about 7,269 yards and is arranged in a traditional out-and-back style. Harry Colt's design uses the island's natural ridges and hollows to create a demanding sequence of carries, angles, and wind-exposed approaches. Its scale and setting make the course a substantial test, but the architecture remains legible through the way each hole offers a preferred line across the ground.

History: Royal Dublin was instituted in 1885 as the Dublin Golf Club and moved from Phoenix Park to Bull Island in 1889. The original course was damaged by military use during the First World War. Harry Colt then wholly redesigned the layout around 1919-1920, creating the course on which the club's modern reputation rests. Royal Dublin has since hosted Irish Opens, Irish Amateur Championships, Home Internationals, and other major competitions. A 2022-2023 bunker project by Clayton, DeVries & Pont studied Colt's original work and restored the hazards in a more historically informed style.

Did You Know? Royal Dublin's course history is tied to wartime land use. Bull Island was used as a military range during the First World War, and Colt's post-war redesign turned the damaged ground into one of Ireland's most important championship links.