Hideki Matsuyama of Japan, left, Jon Rahm of Spain and Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland walk down the fourth fairway during Day 1 of the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open Golf Championship at Portstewart Golf Club in Portstewart, Co Derry. (Photo By Brendan Moran/Sportsfile via Getty Images)
Andrew Balfour, Local Democracy Reporter
Yesterday at 16:40
Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council has greenlit upgrade plans for Portstewart Golf Club.
At September’s meeting, the council’s Planning Committee approved plans for improvements to the Riverside and Strand courses, new chipping and practice greens, realignment of the practice area, and an overspill car park with 30 additional spaces, at the club on Strand Road in the town.
Development Management and Enforcement manager, Shane Mathers, said the application had received 13 public objections and nine items of support, and the overspill car park would alleviate the parking of vehicles on the edge of the course on peak days.
Hideki Matsuyama of Japan, left, Jon Rahm of Spain and Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland walk down the fourth fairway during Day 1 of the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open Golf Championship at Portstewart Golf Club in Portstewart, Co Derry. (Photo By Brendan Moran/Sportsfile via Getty Images)
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Founded in 1894, the Championship Strand Course was the host for the 2017 Dubai Duty Free Irish Open won by Jon Rahm – attracting crowds of over 92,000 for the whole week.
Club chair David Lamont noted that the the club had been developed into a “world-class facility” in the last 30 years.
“It’s recognised internationally to the extent that we attract 25,000 paying visitors, 10,000 of whom are North American [and spend] a lot of money in the area.
“We cannot pretend that those people, when they come to Portstewart, aren’t seriously impressed with what we have but there is a lack of practice facilities, which is the predominant element of this proposal.
“We really need to up that game to maintain our place right at the top of the golf echelons, not just in Ireland but in the world.
“What we’re left with is a very expensive and very major project that will be a fantastic asset to the Causeway Coast and Glens area, to Portstewart, and to our members.
“It will send a message out that the North Coast is where you want to come and have your golf holiday.”
