Ryder Cup Country: How Limerick became Ireland's most exciting new golf destination

Come September next year, Ireland will be a country inexorably transformed by Ryder Cup fever.

With more than tens of thousands of local tickets already sold and more than 100,000 now selling at a rapid clip to outside visitors, it's expected that there will barely be a free hotel room in the entire nation when the USA arrives to take on Team Europe at Adare Manor.

The allure of the 2027 Ryder Cup's host course is already near-mythical among both local and international golfers. Widely regarded as the Augusta of Ireland, Adare Manor sits 20 minutes from the quaint city of Limerick. Local business tycoon J.P. McManus oversaw the property's transformation into perhaps Ireland's most desirable and exclusive golf resort, restoring its sweeping parkland layout and implementing standards of accommodation, hospitality and course conditioning that were beyond anything seen in the country before.

Adare Manor will, naturally, be out of action to anyone but Ryder Cup team members for most of 2027. However the city that lies quaintly nearby is already undergoing something of a metamorphosis as GolfMagic arrives to take in some of the region's most underrated golfing gems.

Until recently, Limerick's main function for visitors (and, indeed, golfers), was two-fold. Shannon Airport, which serves the city, is now a crucial junction between the US and the British, providing daily routes across the Atlantic to both New York and Boston, as well as flights onward to London and Manchester.

More importantly, as the main city in the Ireland's far south west, it serves as the main gateway to the Republic's Wild Atlantic Way. Two of Ireland's greatest courses, Ballybunion and Lahinch, are both barely an hour's drive away.

In 2027, however, Limerick itself will become the temporary focal point of the golfing world. While Bethpage had the entirety of New York City to house its visitors, this city of just 100,000, the main hub of which can be effectively run around in around 20 minutes, is an entirely different proposition. 

However Limerick is uniquely placed to welcome the masses, with many of its local golfing landmarks poised to capitalise on the influx of players set to arrive on the banks of the Shannon throughout the year.

Our first stop on a whirlwind tour of the area's golfing gems lies just over the County Clare border in the form of Dromoland Castle: a property that will no doubt earn a reputation as something of an Adare Manor lite in the years to come. Beautifully manicured and laid out by Ron Kirby and JB Carr, Dromoland Castle has all the hallmarks of a classic country estate course, and is undoubtedly the closest golfers will come to playing the Ryder Cup course itself next year. 

Boasting some spectacular par threes and an undulating parkland layout, its two main focus points are a large manmade lake and, of course, the Castle itself: a towering 15th century monolith that, in its time, has hosted US President George Bush, Nelson Mandela, Muhammad Ali and two Beatles. 

The Castle now functions as a five-star hotel, with additional lodges also available on-site, while a multi-million-pound renovation is underway to bring the hospitality offering up to scratch for Ryder Cup visitors. 25 new guest rooms, a speakeasy bar, lakeside saunas and a wet spa facility will all be open and operational by mid-2027.

Back in County Limerick itself, Ballyneety Golf Club is emerging from a long period of dormancy to becoming a championship proposition in its own right. Stepping foot into its bustling, modernist clubhouse, it's hard to imagine that this indeed one of Ireland's true phoenix courses, formerly housing the Limerick County Golf and Country Club, lapsed into liquidation in 2011. 

Revived as what we now call Ballyneety a couple of years later, substantial investment is now being into turning what was already once a true championship course into something of a monster, making the most of this heavily undulating, often rather open parkland layout. 

A sizeable twenty bay driving range, six grass tees and a large putting green form the club's upgraded practice facilities, while five holes were redesigned and six new tees constructed a few years back. Ballyneety's first real nod of recognition came shortly after, as it was chosen as the host of next year's Junior Ryder Cup. Work has already begun on lengthening this 6,400 yard layout to give the juniors a true test come Cup weekend, but Ballyneety's steep undulations and ample bunkering will ensure it proves more than a match for visitors.

Back in the city, Limerick proves as hospitable and progressive as you'd expect from a small, vibrant Irish city. Straddling the banks of the Shannon, Limerick quickly devolves into a charming jumble of alleyways and former market thoroughfares, dominated above by King John's castle, built by the English monarch in 1200. Hotels like the Limerick Strand, our base for the trip, stand tall as a testament to the city's rapidly growing renown with tourists and visitors passing through Shannon on their way across the Atlantic.

Just around the corner, the guided beer tasting at Treaty City Brewery, led by charismatic founder and head brewer Stephen Cunneen, is an absolute must, while The Locke delivers a charming blend of home-cooked bistro fare, traditional music and, of course, outstanding Guinness. 

Our final stop on the golf itinerary is Limerick Golf Club, sitting just a stone's throw from the city centre. Old, tight and twisting, golf has been played at Limerick since 1891. Even so, it's a wonderfully welcoming place to play, and will no doubt prove popular to those based in the city on their visits to Ireland in 2027. 

A Ryder Cup is, of course, not simply a one weekend affair. Its ripple effects on tourism and a nation's golfing prestige (even for a country already as well-renowned as Ireland) last years, if not decades. As such, Limerick can expect Adare Manor's temporary success to feed into its own transformation well into the 2030s. Already, we feel an undeniable sense of a small city excited, and ready, for what's to come.

For more information, visit Tourism Ireland's Website.