As a significant postscript to their staging of the Murphy's Irish Open for the last four years, Druids Glen have been honoured as "European Golf Course of the Year", at the annual Hertz International Travel Awards. Given that the award comes from those directly within the travel business, it can be seen as quite a boost to the Wicklow venue.

"There is undoubtedly a clean link between golf tourism destinations and European Tour venues," said Peter Walton, chief executive of the International Association of Golf Tour Operators in Dublin yesterday. "But more importantly, I feel that this award tends to emphasise Ireland's current standing in the industry."

By way of illustration, he went on to point out that Ireland was "Golf Destination of the Year" for 1999. And apart from the efforts of individual venues such as Druids Glen, the country's overall tourism success reflects very favourably on the work of Bord Failte.

Other Award Winners: Worldwide Golf Destination of the Year - The Algarve; Worldwide Golf Resort of the Year - Pinehurst (US); The Americas Golf Course of the Year - Pebble Beach; European Golf Resort of the Year - Gleneagles; Emerging Golf Destination of the Year - Republic of South Africa.