By Dave Wensley
What an Exciting Summer we have had at Galway Bay Golf Resort, now part of the Connacht Hospitality Group, as the dust settles we can reflect on what has so far been a superb few months, scattered with so many positives.
First up we welcomed Seamus Power to our course, only 4 days after his maiden victory on the PGA Tour. Seamus won the Barbasol Championship in Kentucky on Sunday 18th July, scoring an incredible -21, joint leader with JT Poston, clinching victory on the 6th Play off Hole and becoming only the 5th player from the Republic of Ireland to win a PGA Tour event. We look forward to welcoming Seamus back again next year as always!
A day or two later we welcomed Conor Moore, aka Conor Sketches, who has been making waves in the States with his impressions of the World’s top sports stars. Last year Conor signed up to NBC’s Golf Channel, which provides him with a massive global platform to showcase his hilarious takes on some of the best golfers on the planet. Conor has nearly a million followers between his social media accounts so the benefits to Conor showcasing our World Class Golf Course through his platforms was great for us.
In early August we were delighted to welcome Tom Coyne back to Galway Bay Golf Resort, with a few friends – Hollywood A-Lister and Golf enthusiast Bill Murray, along with Bill’s Brothers, sons and Nephews (14 Murrays in total). Tom was travelling around Ireland’s top courses filming his Youtube series ‘The Links Life’ – Tom is no stranger to Ireland, having walked around the entire Coastline with a set of clubs on his back, playing every hole along the way, and documenting it in his book ‘A Course Called Ireland’. The Book was a New York Times Bestseller, but more importantly for Golf Courses in Ireland, it became a mainstay for the thousands of American Golfers that land in Ireland every year to play our incredible Courses, drink our Guinness and enjoy the First Class Hospitality that Ireland offers.
Their plan was to choose 10 of Ireland’s Top Courses, and we were very proud that Galway Bay Golf Resort was selected, alongside the likes of Carne in Belmullet, Carton House, Connemara, Ballybunion and Enniscrone. Given there are over 450 Golf Courses on the Island of Ireland, to be one of only 10 to feature on this ‘bucket-list’ trip cements our belief that we are in the top 5-10% of Golf Courses in Ireland. The incredible piece of land that the course sits on is totally unique, with views of Galway City and Connemara to the North, the Aran Islands to the West and the Burren in Co Clare to the South. Everyone that visits for the first time is wowed by the beauty, and the Golf Course, Managed by Gary Byrne, is always in top condition, and ideal for golfers of all levels.
The Group thoroughly enjoyed their visit that included a stay in the Connacht Hotel and soaking up the atmosphere at 1520 and Galways Latin Quarter. The group had many laughs out on the course and vowed to return. They were an absolute joy to host, and were smiling for the whole day and night, from the second they stepped off the bus.
We’re extremely grateful to Tourism Ireland for doing a fantastic job supporting this trip, and special mention should go to Tom Kennedy of Experience Ireland, who was responsible for organising the logistics with Tom Coyne, and of course Seamus from O’Callaghan Coaches, who negotiated the roads of the Wild Atlantic Way safely with his unmistakable Kerry banter!
We saw familiar faces at the various Am Am’s in September and even a former Taoiseach popped in for a round, and the Summer was topped off with a visit from American Actor John C. McGinley aka Dr Cox from Scrubs
Having our Restaurant open once again is a huge benefit, allowing our many groups and individuals to enjoy some pre or post-golf cuisine. The restaurant is open to everyone, not just golfers, and we are excited to be bringing back our popular Christmas Party nights in December. There really is no better place to sit and enjoy a drink on an evening watching the Sun go down on Galway Bay.
We would like to thank our members, team, visitors and loyal customers for the continued support, and we are looking forward to more exciting times ahead.
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