In the Footsteps of Putin and Obama

Bo Sjosten

Translated by AI

Playing links golf can wear you out, especially when it’s windy and a bit cold. A “rest day” can be welcome. On ours we head a little inland and play a parkland course for a change.

Well, not just inland, but into another country altogether. Once again we cross the, so far, completely invisible border back into Northern Ireland and Lough Erne Resort, set on a small peninsula jutting into the southern part of the lake of the same name.

Lough Erne is our first resort on this trip, that is, a complete facility with a course, hotel, restaurants, practice facilities and everything you could want for a complete golf vacation. No corners have been cut here either; everything is of the very highest class.

The whole resort was ready in 2009, slightly unlucky timing just after the financial crisis, but it survived, and as early as 2013 it hosted the big G8 summit where world leaders met. The secluded location, combined with a row of unique, free-standing round houses with several guest rooms each, made Lough Erne a perfect setting, both for security and for creating a pleasant atmosphere for negotiations. The only thing we wonder is: how did the golf match between Obama and Putin go?

The Faldo course

On the way to the first tee you cross a long wooden bridge over wetlands. The first hole is then played along the smaller Castlehume Lough before turning up into a small wood where the first four holes lie.

The 5th hole, a par 3 played entirely over water, or rather wetland, takes us back to the side where the main buildings are. Not a hole for the faint-hearted.

From the 6th hole, the course moves to higher ground. The hole, a par 5, is played along a ridge with constant views of the hotel and the lake below. Definitely one of the best and most beautiful holes on the course.

The next hole is probably the one that appears in most pictures of Lough Erne. A par 4 played from an elevated tee down to a green on a small point jutting out into the larger lake that gave the course its name, Lower Lough Erne. Beautiful views, and even more beautiful was probably Rory’s drive when he became the first player to reach the green from the tee.

Several holes are then played entirely or partly along the water, with some greens surrounded by water on several sides, such as the excellent par-4 10th, where the long and daring golfer can go for the green from the tee.

After the 10th the course turns, and a number of holes are played on higher ground in wooded areas. From the 16th the course again runs along the water, this time the smaller Castlehume Lough, before finishing with a par 3 just below the clubhouse/hotel bar. A fine finish that can also be played in the setting evening sun.

We can only conclude that Sir Nick Faldo has succeeded beyond expectations with this course. It isn’t easy to design a course on the land that was available, especially when you also have to create beautiful views. Sir Nick succeeded, and it wouldn’t surprise us if many major championships are played here in the years to come.

We end the afternoon with a (what else) Guinness in the bar, and as we look down at the 18th green, we can’t help wondering what scenes would have played out after the match between Putin and Obama. They probably never got this far; I suspect the match ended 10 and 8 in Obama’s favor, after which Putin left the course by helicopter from the 10th green. No reports of the match on Russian state television.

Hotel and restaurant

As mentioned, Lough Erne is a complete resort with every facility. We had dinner in the finer restaurant and can only say that everything was as perfect as the surroundings promised. Good food, excellent wines and good service. Plus a fine view of the lake at sunset. So fine that I had to leave the table for a moment between courses to take some pictures of the 18th green before the sun disappeared.

Lough Erne is a place we can recommend for a long weekend: two or three rounds of golf and perhaps a day just to relax and enjoy the surroundings, or why not some fishing, the area’s other big sport.