Golf tournaments in Ireland

Every year the world’s best golfers descend upon Ireland’s shores to take part in prestigious tournaments, and we have rounded up the high-profile competitions that take place on some of the best courses around the island.

These internationally renowned events offer a unique opportunity to catch the world’s elite players in action on the parklands, links and championship courses around Ireland.

The K Club in County Kildare will host the highly anticipated KPMG Women’s Irish Open on its Palmer South course. Europe’s top professional female golfers will compete on the inland links course for the impressive prize fund. Around 40,000 spectators enjoy the tournament each year.

The Palmer South course combines undulating landscapes with dune-style mounding and dramatic rock features. A range of elevated vantage points for spectators makes it a great place to watch the pros in action. If you want to venture beyond the putting green, check out nearby Castletown House or uncover the county’s history at Lullymore Heritage and Discovery Park.

The 2026 edition of the Irish Challenge tees off at the historic Killeen Castle Golf Course in County Meath. It’s a key event on the European Challenge Tour, the top developmental tour on the continent. The likes of Justin Rose and Brooks Koepka have played on the tour in years past. Who knows which stars of tomorrow you’ll see in action as a hungry field of up-and-comers battle it out to earn promotion to the DP World Tour at the end of the season?

Killeen is one of only two Jack Nicklaus Signature Golf Courses in Ireland. Designed by perhaps the greatest golfer of all time, the 7,700 yard course is a proper golfing test. The magnificent castle makes for a dramatic backdrop to the action on the fairways, and it’s quite a large clue as to the region you’re in: Ireland’s Ancient East. Historic landmarks abound here. Don’t miss the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Brú na Bóinne nearby, which is home to ancient passage tombs older than the Pyramids.

Forming part of the DP World Tour’s 2025 season is the Amgen Irish Open, hosted by Trump International Golf Links in County Clare, a world-class golf destination on the stunning Wild Atlantic Way. Last year’s event saw high drama at The K Club, as local favourite Rory McIlroy secured a hometown win.

Trump International Golf Links is an 18-hole championship course that hugs a crescent-shaped beach along Doughmore Bay. Away from the course, the five-star hotel promises amazing ocean views as well as that world-famous Irish hospitality. It’s an oasis of luxury on the island’s rugged west coast.

Last hosted on the island of Ireland in 2007, this prestigious event makes its return to these shores in 2026. Lahinch Golf Club in County Clare will host the best amateur male players from Great Britain and Ireland and the United States in a tournament that has helped stars including Tiger Woods and Padraig Harrington make their names.

This will be the first time the Walker Cup will be held at Lahinch, widely regarded as one of the most challenging links courses on the island. And when the golf is over, there is plenty to see and do. Lahinch is famous for its surfing and with plenty of surf schools, it’s ideal for beginners. If you fancy something a little different, visit Doolin Cave, where you can see one of the longest stalactites in Europe.

A century after the first-ever Ryder Cup took place in Massachusetts, the best players in the US and Europe will play to win this prestigious competition when it returns to Ireland in 2027. One of the world’s great sporting events needs a venue to match – and it has found that in Adare Manor in County Limerick, just a 30-minute drive from both Limerick city and Shannon Airport. The course here is a state-of-the-art feat of engineering, recently redesigned by Tom Fazio and sprawling across 230 acres of parkland, dotted with mature trees and medieval ruins.

Adare Manor itself is the backdrop to the course but that doesn’t mean that it plays second fiddle to the manicured fairways. Its Gothic architecture, with signature arches, chimneys, gargoyles and, of course, the hallmark turrets, is only surpassed by its opulent interior, spa, fine dining and first-class hospitality. If you’re interested in attending the Ryder Cup, you can register your interest and start planning your trip to the Wild Atlantic Way, with its dramatic coastlines and challenging links courses. It will be the trip of a lifetime.