This is your definitive guide to the best golf courses in Northern Ireland for travelling golfers.
But it’s not just another ranking article.
Meet Paul Vaughan, PGA Head Professional at Ardglass Golf Club, who has provided you with expert playing tips for each course on our must-play list.
Take notes for when you embark on your golfing adventure.
Now, prepare to tee off on wild links, plush parklands, eccentric hybrids, hidden gems, and championship icons.
When it comes to sheer variety, there’s nowhere quite like Northern Ireland for quality golf courses.
Across the centuries, inspired by its ancient landscapes and blockbusting backdrops, virtuoso designers have created an unrivalled collection of masterpieces in counties Down, Antrim and Derry.
See for yourself.
Est : 1889 | Par: 71 | Length: 7,186 yards
How much does it cost to turn a schoolteacher’s 9-hole layout into the world’s greatest golf course?
Old Tom Morris received £4 to extend Royal County Down to 18 holes.
A bargain, as you’ll probably agree.
Harry Vardon, Harry Colt, and Donald Steel later refined this beacon of the best golf courses in Northern Ireland.
Scenic, exhilarating, bewildering – Royal County Down offers you everything.
That’s why the Championship Links in the majestic Murlough Nature Reserve is beloved by everday golfers and top pros alike.
Beneath the Mountains of Mourne, surrounded by blazing heather and gorse, you rollercoaster through epic dunes along Dundrum Bay.
Laden with blind shots, bearded bunkers, narrow fairways, and domed greens, Royal County Down is a formidable challenge.
Yet this five-time Irish Open host will also downright delight you.
Plus, the club offers top-notch caddies.
Naturally, you must play Royal County Down on your Irish golf tour.
Est: 1896 | Par: 70 | Length: 6,268 yards
You could probably still call Ardglass a hidden gem among the best golf courses in Northern Ireland.
But every year, this clifftop thriller gains new international fans, who often arrive via the nearby Royal County Down.
Why?
In short, Ardglass is one of the most jaw-dropping links you’ll play on your travels through the region.
And not just because it’s Paul’s club.
Notably, Golf Digest ranks Ardglass as Northern Ireland’s No.6 course.
Ardglass mesmerises from start to finish.
Every tee and green reveals spectacular vistas across the heaving Irish Sea.
Then you’ve got the exhilarating opening salvo, particularly 1 and 2, that surge uphill along ramparts, across craggy cliffs, and over a rocky inlet.
But that’s only the beginning.
Ardglass delivers non-stop excitement with wild elevation changes, crafty pot bunkers, and eight holes right on the water.
It’s hungry work. Thankfully, the extraordinary clubhouse (a 14th-century castle) serves award-winning cuisine.
Est: 1881 | Par: 70 | Length: 6,185 yards
What makes Royal Belfast unique among the top 10 golf courses in Northern Ireland?
Firstly, although set on the Irish Sea, it’s the sole parkland.
Secondly, founded in 1881, Royal Belfast is the oldest club on our must-play list.
Thirdly, you’ll discover this historic venue in Hollywood, County Down, the hometown of Rory McIlroy.
Now, enough of the trivia, let’s look at this award-winning layout along the shores of Belfast Lough.
Royal Belfast is a joy to behold and a pleasure to play.
But don’t be lulled by the lush, lilting, tree-lined landscape and blooming flora, because Harry Colt’s multi-directional creation is a serious undertaking.
Here, brains beat brawn.
Undulating fairways flow through onslaughts of cunning bunkers towards lightning-quick sloping greens.
The par-3 4th and shoreline holes from 9 to 11 are particularly memorable.
After your round, enjoy the bistro-style dining and amazing memorabilia in Royal Belfast’s elegant Victoria clubhouse.
Est: 1889 | Par: 66 | Length: 4, 548 yards
Welcome to your first second golf course in Northern Ireland.
Unsurprisingly, the Annesley Links often gets overlooked by golfers ticking Royal County Down off their bucket list.
Don’t make that mistake.
Because this short but sweet layout goes together with the Championship Links like peanut butter and jelly.
Between the two, you’ll need every shot in your locker.
The Annesley – or Wee Course – is a fun 4,548-yard test that requires a more subtle touch than its brutish big brother.
With tight, twisting fairways and firm, fast greens, you need accuracy and precision on this links.
That said, you’ll notice pleasing similarities across both golf courses in Royal County Down, such as the quilted duneland, sensational seaside scenery and abundant memorable holes.
On the Annesley, that’s the three corkers around the turn added by Mackenzie & Ebert in 2015.
Enjoy.
Est: 1888 | Par: 71 | Length: 7,337 yards
Even Royal County Down has never hosted a Major.
Royal Portrush of County Antrim is the only golf club in Northern Ireland to have held the Open Championship.
Max Faulkner triumphed in 1951. In 2019, Shane Lowry prevailed. The Open returns – with record crowds – to Royal Portrush in 2025.
Interestingly, in 1895, the venue also hosted the first professional tournament in Ireland.
Clearly, there’s something special about the Dunluce Links.
Newsflash: Ireland’s top-ranked golf course is a masterpiece.
You can thank Old Tom Morris, Harry Colt and Martin Ebert for the spellbinding Royal Portrush experience.
Although the unparalleled greens belong to Colt.
Set on the cinematic Causeway Coast, the Dunluce Links takes you between tumbling dunes, into sweeping valleys and along the seashore, as one showstopping hole follows another.
Buckle up for the notorious 5th and 16th!
Meanwhile, at every turn, expect epic Atlantic backdrops to greet you.
Est: 1890 | Par: 71 | Length: 5, 876 yards
Sometimes, you need to throw a little weird into the mix.
Certainly, Ballycastle Golf Club is not your average tee time.
It’s part parkland, part links and 100% blockbuster.
Before you tackle oddball Ballycastle, take in the wonderful panorama of Fair Head, Rathlin Island and Scotland’s Mull of Kintyre.
You couldn’t ask for a more inspiring sight than the Antrim Coast and Glens.
Next, get started on this intriguing championship hybrid course that calls for steady iron play.
At Ballycastle, your first five holes play on luscious parkland beside the Margy River and medieval Bonamargy Abbey.
Then you hit the links for the final 13.
Undoubtedly, the invigorating stretch from 11 to 17 will be a highlight on your Northern Ireland golf tour. You go up, over and down a cliff.
Ballycastle co-hosts the annual Causeway Coast Amateur Golf Tournament with Castlerock, Portstewart and Royal Portrush.
Talk about an itinerary!
Est: 1888 | Par: 71 | Length: 6,346 yards
Iconic Open Championship venues cast a long shadow.
But the Valley Course at Royal Portrush looks set to share the limelight with its world-famous sibling.
In Spring 2025, Martin Ebert unveiled his revamp of this championship links, including an all-new front nine.
It’s masterful.
You’re in for a treat on the enchanting course where local legend Graeme McDowell first honed his game.
As the name attests, the Valley nestles among soaring sandhills in the secluded War Hollow between the ocean and higher ground occupied by the Dunluce course.
The layout is tight off the tee, so accuracy is key.
Meanwhile, the redesigned run between the 5th and 9th holes is a razor-thin tightrope of risk and reward.
Finally, there’s the cracking closing stretch of par-3, par-4, par-5 and par-3. It’s a classic all-or-nothing endgame.
Long story short, with the remade Valley, you’ve now got two reasons to visit Royal Portrush.
Est: 1894 | Par: 72 | Length: 7,118 yards
Your golf holiday in Northern Ireland must include a round on the ‘sleeping giant’.
And that’s the rip-roaring Strand Course at Portstewart Golf Club.
Jon Rahm won the 2017 Irish Open on this windswept, beautiful beast in County Derry.
Here, amidst the mountainous dunes of Thirsty Hollow, you’ll encounter the finest front nine in links golf.
Like Ardglass, the 425-yard opener sets the tone for a breathless seaside adventure you’ll never forget.
From the elevated tee, where you get incredible views of the glistening Atlantic, the heart-stopping par-4 1st hole plunges downhill and doglegs right towards the crashing waves.
Phew!
Just don’t expect any respite from the Strand.
The 3rd and 6th holes, both searing par-3s, are punctuated by the ominously named 2nd and 5th, Devil’s Hill and Rifle Range.
Fortunately, you can regroup in The Bothan before tackling the ever-improving back nine. Portstewart’s halfway house does a mean Guinness.
Est: 1901 | Par: 73 | Length: 6, 764 yards
Your next stop is only a 20-minute drive along the glorious Causeway Coast from Portstewart and, conveniently, Royal Portrush.
Welcome to Castlerock, home of the lesser-known links in this unmissable trio.
The picturesque Mussenden Course never disappoints.
Sure, its neighbours are more famous, but this rugged, rolling layout is up there with the best golf courses in Northern Ireland.
When it comes to classic links experiences, the Mussenden ticks every box.
So brace yourself for tumbling fairways, hefty dunes, tricky bunkers, slick greens, and hair-raising winds.
Bounded by the teeming River Bann, Belfast-to-Derry railway line, and raging Atlantic Ocean, Castlerock can feel like uncharted territory.
Focus is essential.
Because there are no gimme holes. Not least the infamous 4th, Leg O’ Mutton.
Named after a mysterious local temple, since 1908, the Mussenden Course has been refined by Ben Sayers, Harry Colt and Martin Hawtree
You’re going to love their handiwork.
Est: 2012 | Par: 34 | Length: 2, 446 yards
Castlerock has more in common with Royal Portrush, Portstewart and Royal County Down than geography.
Like the other three, it offers you mouthwatering multi-course escapades.
At Castlerock, you’ve also got the 9-hole Bann Course, the pocket rocket and last of our best golf courses in Northern Ireland.
This lovely little links rumbles through towering dunes along the Atlantic coastline and the River Bann for 2,446 rollocking yards.
But it’s not just practice for the Mussenden.
Bring your shot-making skills because blinds, doglegs and undulations abound on the beautiful Bann.
Needless to say, your golf vacation in Ireland needs a perfect 27-hole day in Castlerock, County Derry.
Get Paul’s tips for the Bann and then explore your amazing accommodation options with Irish Golf Tours.
As your Travel Planner will tell you, for a top-notch golf tour, where you stay is almost as important as where you play.
Almost.
Happily for you, Northern Ireland’s hotels are on par with its courses.
Here are our handpicked accommodations to consider when planning your trip.
Plus, a selection of nearby natural and cultural wonders for your off-course adventures.
You’ve seen the courses, banked the tips, perused the hotels, and noted the attractions.
What happens next?
Get in touch with the team who have created once-in-a-lifetime golf travel experiences since 1993.
Irish Golf Tours will arrange and tailor your dream group trip to Northern Ireland for 2026, including tee times, accommodations, transportation, and local experiences.
Let the planning begin.
Author: Tom Rooney
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