Set on a remote peninsula jutting into the Atlantic Ocean between Clifden and Roundstone, Connemara Golf Links is links golf in its most primal form. Designed by Eddie Hackett in 1973, this 27-hole championship course sits on undulating duneland dotted with craggy rocks, windswept fescue, and strategic pot bunkers—no artificial mounding, no manufactured drama, just the unforgiving landscape itself. The championship layout (A and B nines, 7,055 yards, par 72) features the iconic signature hole 13, a 210-yard par-three with an elevated green that demands respect. The back nine possesses the course's finest and most memorable holes, with several elevated tees and greens perched high into the hillside terrain. From virtually every hole, golfers gaze across Ballyconneely Bay, the Atlantic coastline with its white sandy beaches, and the dramatic Twelve Bens mountain range—views that shift with the constantly changing Irish light.
The wind is the real course architect here. There are no sand dunes to provide shelter from Atlantic gusts; they can add two or three clubs to an approach shot or redirect a well-struck drive into trouble. The greens are true and quick, protected by natural contours and strategic bunkering rather than excessive hazards. Connemara demands strategy over raw power, and serious golfers return year after year to experience authentic links golf as it was meant to be played—raw, challenging, honest, and utterly mesmerizing.
The facility is outstanding: a modern clubhouse with a full bar and restaurant offering panoramic views, a well-stocked pro shop, practice range, and putting green. The resident PGA Professional Hugh O'Neill (one of Ireland's top teaching professionals) offers tuition. Caddies are available and highly recommended, as local knowledge can save several strokes when navigating wind and terrain. An additional nine holes (C9) opened in 2000, offering flexibility for different experience levels. This course has been voted Best Links Course in Connaught multiple times (2013, 2016, 2018, 2023, and 2025) and is Galway's only true links course.
The signature layout stretching 7,055 yards across rugged Atlantic duneland with elevated greens, dramatic views, and iconic par-3 13th hole as its centerpiece.
Nine-hole shorter course with its own coastal character, opened in 2000 to provide variety for different skill levels and experience lengths.