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The Old Tom Morris Links at Rosapenna is, as you could guess, slightly older. The original 1893 design was by Old Tom himself, who saw the land while enjoying a scenic drive through Donegal. The area became something of a pilgrimage for golfers and, in the years that followed, James Braid and Harry Vardon, as well as H.S. Colt, added their touches to the Old Tom course.

If Rosapenna leaves you with your tail between your legs, the best place to head is Portsalon Golf Club, about 30 minutes away. Having played courses such as Turnberry in Scotland and Bandon Dunes in Oregon,

I’ve never seen a more scenic links course than Portsalon.

The course opened for play in 1891 and was one of the nine founding members of the Golf Union of Ireland, the oldest golfing union in the world. There is no shame in never having heard of Portsalon because for years its members had little interest in visitors. But even in Ireland, the membership of private golf courses is aging, and with that in mind, there has been a recent push here to get the word out and let the world in. Expect to see Portsalon improve on its Golf Digest 19th-place ranking of courses in Ireland soon.

The par-5 second hole is one you’ll be telling your friends about long after you leave. It’s a dogleg left over the ocean. Not 15 minutes into your round, you have to do the mental gymnastics to figure out how much of the sea you want to challenge in order to cut the corner. Too much and you’ll be on the beach or in the water, not enough and your ball will land on 17th fairway to the right. Judge it perfectly and you’ll have a chance to reach the green in two. All three chickens in our group stood in shame as we hit our second shots from the 17th.