Louth prepares for Irish Open golf challenge

Accommodation is already reported to be booked out in the area around Baltray, Co Louth where the Nissan Irish Open golf championship…

Accommodation is already reported to be booked out in the area around Baltray, Co Louth where the Nissan Irish Open golf championship takes place from July 22nd to 25th.

A detailed plan was put in place last year when Baltray was confirmed as the chosen course. Louth County Council has been working to ensure that the road infrastructure and other services will be able to cope with the huge influx of visitors.

"Already all of the accommodation in the area is totally booked out and a bumper time is expected for the various pubs and restaurants and retailers in both Drogheda and Dundalk," said Ms Alison Condra, tourism officer with the county council.

Overlooking the Irish Sea, Baltray is preparing to welcome an estimated 80,000 visitors - the same number who will attend the annual Slane rock concert. Already it is proving to be a bonanza for tourist operators.

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Work is continuing to ensure the links course will be ready to host some of Europe's top golfers. It was designed in 1938 by the renowned Tom Simpson and is laid out in two loops covering some 190 acres, with no two holes running in the same direction. The only exceptions are the 12th and 13th, which run along the sea.

The course is regarded as world class. According to Golf Digest, it is "a hidden gem" and "one of the top 25 courses in the British Isles, and it is in the top six in the island".

Mr Gerard O'Toole, executive chairman of Nissan Ireland, described Baltray as "an exceptional links course that is guaranteed to attract world-class international and national players, and it will be one of the leading events on the tour".