CRUIT ISLAND - 14 POINTS
The par 3 6th at Cruit Island is something pretty special!
I have Twitter to thank for discovering Cruit Island. The green-keeper’s account of this remote Donegal course had bewitched me with pictures of sun-drenched views and spectacular vistas. Lawrence Donegan, of MacKellar fame, had also tweeted about it, calling it one of the best 9 hole courses in the world. So when I was planning a Donegal golf trip it didn’t take me too long to decide that Cruit Island had to be on the itinerary.
The course is about 45 miles north of Narin & Portnoo and just over an hour from Rosapenna. While it’s not far away from either of those courses in miles, the roads around here aren’t great! You should expect some winding single track roads in places. Having said that, they are well surfaced and not too hair-raising to navigate. In some ways getting here reminded me of the trip to Durness, but it’s nowhere nearly as remote as that Scottish extremity.
Cruit Island is a short 9 hole course, and while I don’t think it can quite claim to be the best short course in the world, it’s loads of fun and well worth playing. It’s short - measuring only 2800 yards - however there are seven par 4s and only two par 3s. This actually makes for some testing holes where length is a factor.
The course lies along the coast of this wild peninsula (not an island despite the name) and its 1986 design ensures it incorporates the coastline to full effect. The quirks start from the off, with the entrance road bisecting the fairway in the landing area. Cars are requested to beep their horns by way of warning!
The 3rd is a lovely 330 yard par 4 which takes you steeply down towards a green perched in front of the water. As on virtually every hole on this course, you will hit a blind shot and, first time round, simply have to hope you got your line right.
The par 3 6th hole is the signature hole and the one which will live you the longest. 140 yards, over a chasm of rocks and beach, mean that you need to hit it with precision to come out of this hole with a par - short, long and right are all certain doom.
There’s lots of elevation change at Cruit which leads to so many blind holes, and there is a very good chance the wind will be blowing hard. You shouldn’t spend to much time worrying about your score, just soak up the lovely views and have a bit of a fun on the way.
The welcome I got at the clubhouse was very warm and it’s well worth making sure you have time to have a drink there before or after your round. It’s got a lovely setting perched above the 9th green.
I would thoroughly recommend stopping off at Cruit Island when you’re in the area - it makes sense to play it when heading back up north from Narin & Portnoo. You will leave with memories of a rugged, natural golf course and a reminder that, to be enjoyable, golf doesn’t need to take 4+ hours and cost 400+ Euros!
BOOKING THE COURSE
As with most Irish courses it’s easy enough to book Cruit Island online. You just go onto their website here and book. Tee times were €50 in the summer but they also have regular ‘hot deals’ on the website, via Golf Now, where the price drops under €30.
TOUR TIPS
Cruit Island is in a fairly remote part of Donegal on the west coast of Ireland. The last bit of a road is on a single track but don’t worry, buses can, and do, get down the road so you should be fine!!
The club makes a good double-header with Narin & Portnoo which is only 45 minutes away. The other obvious course to pair it with is Rosapenna, about an hour and 15 minutes away. I stayed at Rosapenna which was a great spot to be based, in the middle of a lot of good courses. However, for those used to travelling around in Scotland, it is fair to say the journey times here are a bit longer than you may be used to - everything is a bit more spread out. But, don’t worry, it all just takes a bit of planning!
CONTACT DETAILS
Cruit Island Golf Club
Cruit Island
Kincasslagh
Donegal
Ireland
Tel: +353 (0)74 9543296
E-mail: patloughnane147@gmail.com
Web: www.cruitislandgolfclub.com
