After liquidation in 2011 Ballyneety’s fairytale recovery reached another milestone when it was crowned Great Britain & Ireland Golf Course of the Year at the Golf Course Awards in London.
From the brink of disappearance to punching alongside heavyweights like St Andrews and Sunningdale, to hosting the 2027 Junior Ryder Cup, Ballyneety Golf Club has emerged from the wilderness as a premier golfing destination.
“It was a huge surprise for us. We were not expecting to win. When we were called up as the winners, we were blown away and thrilled to bits,” said a delighted John Leamy who is General Manager of the club which also claimed the Affordable Excellence award.
“It was only afterwards when you got to talk to the organisers that they were looking for something different. The integrity of their awards is something important to them. Our story enthralled them. It was wonderful.
“You had the great clubs like St Andrews, Carnoustie, Sunningdale and all the great Irish clubs so it was fantastic.”
It’s a journey that has been a rollercoaster for Ballyneety and its members and not one that Leamy would have believed to be possible if he was told back in 2011.
The course which housed the former Limerick County Golf Club closed in early 2011 after the company behind it went into liquidation. It was a tragedy that went on in front of Leamy’s eyes who has a house on the land.
A deal was eventually reached in 2013 for €1m with the liquidator to re-open it as a members club now christened Ballyneety.
Ballyneety has made transformative upgrades across the board, including a successful overhaul of all 50 bunkers and a game-changing drainage programme all while suspending sustainably.
Everyone is familiar with a good rags to riches story but Leamy and co have changed the narrative and the club is now the main protagonist of a thrilling novel that will see them host the 2027 Junior Ryder Cup.
“You couldn’t have written the script,” laughs Leamy. “I’ve been a member here for a long time, I was a member when the place crashed and it was privately owned at the time. I live on the property so it was a tragedy unfolding in front of your eyes. For the club to come back was a miracle. A lot of credit is due to a few of the former members of the old club driving it on.
“The story of Ballyneety is well known down here. I sometimes think that story is over because what we are looking at here now is the quality of the golf course and the plans we have to provide an excellent golfing facility.
“We are changing the narrative. Everyone knows the phoenix from the ashes story but we want it to be about the quality of the golf course. We will never lose the run of who we are or where we come from.
“One of the biggest things we did four years ago was drain the golf course to a very high standard which gave us the momentum to increase membership and people started to come. That gives you a playability all year round.
“We ran a comprehensive bunker project to the highest standard, overseeding fairways and brown bent grass on the greens this season so we have taken agronomics to a higher level and that’s making the difference here.”
There is no time to rest on any laurels. Planning for the 2027 Junior Ryder Cup will begin with Ryder Cup Europe on the 14th of January in preparation for an anticipated 8,000 spectators which would be spectacular for the curtain raiser to the main event in Adare Manor.
“Ryder Cup Europe want to take this competition to the next level,” said Leamy. They loved our facilities, the last thing they actually looked at was the golf course. There’s not much point in having a good golf course if you don’t have the facilities and can’t get people in and out. They wanted to see everything like buildings, logistics, open spaces.
“When they looked at the golf course, they loved it. It’s something to look forward to. Ryder Cup fever will take over in Limerick, it’s going to be a juggernaut.”
Also at the awards held at Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium, Sligo’s Enniscrone won the Irish golf course of the year.
