Golf course architects are notorious for praising the land of their next project. Sometimes that praise is warranted… sometimes not.
Put golf course architects Dana Fry and Jason Straka in that “warranted’’ category in regards to Curracloe Links, the course the duo is creating in Southeast Ireland. Already being touted as Ireland’s “next great seaside golf course,’’ Curracloe Links includes Ravenport Resort, which is located 90 minutes south of Dublin. Curracloe Links will be seeded in the spring, with an expected opening in the summer of 2026.
Neville Hotels, one of Ireland’s foremost hotel operators and the owner of Curracloe and Druids Glen, has partnered with 54, a global sports and entertainment agency with deep links to the golf industry, to manage each operation.
“The attention to detail will be at the highest levels,’’ Francisco de Lancastre David, executive director of operations for 54 told me. “I was lucky enough to work with Jason and Dana in Abu Dhabi (nine-hole Yas Acres Golf and Country Club), so when you have guys like them involved, you’re going to get quality.’’
The opportunity for Curracloe and Druids Glen is what drew 54 into the project, de Lancastre David said.
“This is a terrific new engagement for 54 – showing off the full spectrum of the expertise and experience we can bring to two courses at very different stages of their journey.
“Druids Glen is a venue with a fantastic reputation, and we’re looking to ensure our support keeps the course right at the top of people’s wish lists. Throughout our history, we have provided strategic launch advice for a number of amazing courses across Europe. With Curracloe Links, we have a destination really worthy of the challenge. It’s going to be an incredible asset for Irish golf.”
“It’s never easy to find a site that will ‘wow’ people,’’ John Clarkin, president of Turfgrass, the County Wicklow-based company overseeing the building of Curracloe Links, told me. “But when you look at all the design features – the terrain, the bunkering, the greens complexes – it’s all very special. It’s really going to open up Southeast Ireland as a ‘bucketlist’ course.’’
Fry and Straka have been alternating visits to Curracloe Links since this past Spring to build what is the newest “from scratch’’ layout in Ireland in a decade.
“It’s a beautiful piece of land, with massive rolling hills and valleys,’’ Fry told me after returning from his most recent visit. “We found the 10th hole, 11th hole and 12th tee box the first time we visited the site. They are epic settings for golf. What makes great golf is the settings they are in. You fit it into the topography.
“It’s not ‘true’ links – it’s inland from the sea about one mile – but it has massive valleys and big hills. You’re always hitting from the hills into a low spot or hitting a ridge line. It just has great natural topography.’’
In other words, Straka said, the views around – and from – Curracloe are “quintessentially Irish.’’
“You have a view of the Sea in one direction and Curracloe Beach and the dunes in the other direction,’’ Straka said. “We tried to capture something unique. I don’t think there is anything like it in Ireland.’’
Curracloe Links’ short game area and putting course, each also designed by Fry and Straka, are almost fully complete. With 49 rooms, a spa, dining options, and golf lodges to follow in 2026, Ravenport offers a picturesque base for exploring the untouched beauty of southeast Ireland and Curracloe Beach, generally considered the best beach in Ireland. Curracloe Beach, by way, was the site Steven Spielberg used as Omaha Beach in the film, “Saving Private Ryan.’’
“Curracloe Links will be a standout design in a breathtaking location, and it’s strategically important that such a key launch will be executed with partners of the experience of 54,” said Seamus Neville, Director of Neville Hotels. “Druids Glen stands proud as one of the most iconic and stunning courses in Europe, and working with 54 will ensure things run smoothly and align with our ambitious plans.”
Photos Courtesy of Curracloe Links
https://www.druidsglenresort.com/
https://www.ravenportresort.ie/
https://curracloelinks.com/