Minnesota Golfer - Directory 2018 - 3

EDITOR'S
LE T T ER
First-world Problems
Planning a dream golf trip is a luxury , but
even luxuries can present difficult choices.
I
" Cobbling
together a
once-in-alifetime
links
intinerary
requires
thoughtful,
even soulsearching,
decisions. "
nside
this issue take a vicarious do-ityourself
vacation to Ireland with Rick
Shefchik, who, along with his spouse
Barbara Lundgren, rented a car and hit
the road, stopping at a half-dozen of the
Emerald Isle's great links courses: Royal
County Down, Royal Portrush, Enniscrone,
Carne, Ballybunion and Lahinch. While
his selection of six historic and scenic seaside
golf destinations is unimpeachable, it
begs the question: How do you trim your
itinerary down to just six, knowing that
both Irelands-Northern Ireland and the
Republic of Ireland-boast nearly 60 seaside
links courses?
Well read on the subject of links golf,
Shefchik picked four of his courses based
on rankings, but the final two were chosen
by a serendipitous twist. As a member
of Golf Club Atlas, an online group of golf
course architecture aficionados who debate,
discuss and champion courses with inspiring
layouts, he has a " one-up " advantage
on most of us. As Irish Luck would have it,
the club had scheduled matches between
its American and European members at
Carne and Enniscrone at the same time the
husband-and-wife duo (both members of
the MGA with 5.4 and 18.2 handicap indexes,
respectively) was touring the Emerald Isle.
As Shefchik notes, a hosted or tour trip
pairs the happy camaraderie of traveling
with a group with the carefree benefit of
leaving the important decisions to someone
else. In contrast, the DIY adventurer has the
freedom of going wherever the craic (Gaelic
for " fun " ) may take them. Still, cobbling
together a once-in-a-lifetime links itinerary
requires thoughtful-even soul-searching-
decisions. Tom Coyne avoided this particular
hurdle by playing all of Ireland's seaside links
courses during a four-month period in 2007,
which he recounted in his book, " A Course
Called Ireland. "
At the end of Coyne's odyssey-he walked
the circumference of the Emerald Isle carrying
his clubs and kit on his back-the
Philly-based golf writer had planned to toss
his golf clubs into the Atlantic, but instead
asked the starter at Ballybunion to make
them a gift to a deserving caddie.
While opinions on where to play vary,
Shefchik's pearls of wisdom (below) may
help you plan your next trip:
* Include at least one or two lesser-known
gems. Exploring beyond the beaten
path will invariably add flavor and
context to your experience. And the
further you venture from the " mustplay "
courses, the less the experience will
remind you of home.
* Take time to linger. After each round,
you'll wish you could play the same
course again.
* Don't put it off. If you have dreamed
of a golf trip to the British Isles, do it.
* Finally, once you return home, start
planning the next trip.
Whether you go DIY or not, may the
fairway rise up to meet you. May the wind
always be at your back, and if you're lucky,
may you experience the real Irish craic.
See you on the tee.
W.P. Ryan, Editor-in-Chief
mngolf.org
Directory 2018 MINNESOTAGOLFER
3
http://www.mngolf.org
Minnesota Golfer - Directory 2018

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