Donegal is the last great undercrowded links coast in Ireland. Tom Doak's St Patrick's Links and Pat Ruddy's Sandy Hills share the dunes at Rosapenna, Ballyliffin's two courses fill the Inishowen Peninsula where the Irish Open came in 2018, and Portsalon and Narin and Portnoo have been quietly polished by Ryder Cup hands. Here are the eight we rate most highly, ranked, with our verdict on each.
Photograph: Ballyliffin Golf Club, via Google
Donegal asks more of the travelling golfer than Kerry or the east, longer drives, fewer flags, smaller towns, and repays the effort with the emptiest world class links land in the country. The county now holds two modern designs of true international standing: St Patrick's Links at Rosapenna, the Tom Doak course that opened in 2021 to almost unprecedented praise, and Glashedy at Ballyliffin, the Pat Ruddy and Tom Craddock layout from 1995 that hosted the 2018 Irish Open, won by Russell Knox. Around them stand a century of quieter treasures.
Every fact here, from designers and dates to hosting and access, was checked at the time of writing. All of these clubs welcome visitors, generously by the standards of championship golf, which is part of Donegal's charm. The verdicts and the order are ours, and the gap between first and fourth is honestly slim. If you want any of these built into a costed Donegal trip with the tee times handled, that is exactly what our concierge does.
The course that put Donegal on every world ranking panel's itinerary. Tom Doak's first Irish design opened in 2021 across a vast dunescape above Sheephaven Bay and drew almost unprecedented praise from the day it debuted, huge greens, heaving fairways and a routing that finds the ocean again and again. It is already spoken of among the best modern links anywhere, and it is the single strongest reason to drive north. Book it first and build the trip around it.
The big championship test of the far north, named for the rock that stands offshore like Donegal's Ailsa Craig. Ruddy and Craddock built a tall, broad shouldered links through the Inishowen dunes in 1995, and the 2018 Irish Open, won by Russell Knox, confirmed what members long knew: this is a major venue in waiting. Brawny, beautifully kept and far easier to get on than its quality suggests.
Pat Ruddy's 2003 course at Rosapenna, threaded through marram covered sandhills between the resort and the Atlantic, was the best course in the county until its Doak neighbor arrived. Tighter and more demanding off the tee than St Patrick's, it makes Rosapenna a genuine two day stop, with the resort's golf heritage running back to its Old Tom Morris links of 1891.
The older, bouncier half of Ballyliffin's 36 holes, running over wrinkled, fast links land that needed almost no shaping at all. Nick Faldo famously admired it, and many visitors quietly prefer its charm and humor to the Glashedy's muscle. Played together they make one of the great unsung 36 hole days in Irish golf.
A Victorian links reborn, strung along Ballymastocker beach on Lough Swilly since 1891, with recent refinements guided by Ryder Cup captain Paul McGinley. The setting, golden strand on one side and the Knockalla hills on the other, is among the loveliest in Ireland, and the golf has caught up with the view. The best value serious links in the county.
A par 70 holiday links of 1905 on the headlands of west Donegal that Gil Hanse, architect of the Olympic course in Rio, has reshaped into something far more serious, new holes along the ocean and greens with real teeth. Remote even by Donegal standards and all the better for it.
Eddie Hackett's giant par 73 on the wooded Murvagh peninsula in Donegal Bay, long known as one of the biggest links tests in Ireland. Tall dunes seal the course from the world, the walk is heroic and the welcome is warm. The natural stop between Sligo's links and the far north.
Nine holes on a tied island off the Rosses where several greens sit on cliff edges above coves and blowholes, golf reduced to land, ocean and nerve. It costs little, takes ninety minutes and supplies the photographs everyone takes home. No serious Donegal itinerary skips it.
Designers, dates and access verified June 2026. All of these clubs welcome visitors; Rosapenna and Ballyliffin timesheets fill fastest in summer. Green fees are indicative by season for 2026; always confirm directly before booking. Check tee time availability.
Tell us which of these are on your list, Rosapenna's 36, Ballyliffin's 36, or the full northern sweep, and roughly when. One concierge handles the tee times, the bases and the driving plan, and costs the trip to the head, with no obligation.
St Patrick's Links at Rosapenna is our number one, the Tom Doak design that opened in 2021 to almost unprecedented praise and immediately entered the conversation among the best modern links anywhere. Glashedy at Ballyliffin, host of the 2018 Irish Open, and Ruddy's Sandy Hills run it close. All welcome visitors, so book ahead and confirm access and fees directly.
Yes. St Patrick's Links is part of the Rosapenna Hotel and Golf Resort and welcomes visiting golfers, with priority and packages for resort guests. Summer timesheets fill far in advance, so book early, consider a night or two at the resort to pair it with Sandy Hills, and confirm directly before booking.
Five days covers the heart of it: two at Rosapenna for St Patrick's and Sandy Hills, a day across to Portsalon, and two on Inishowen for Ballyliffin's 36 holes. A full week adds Narin and Portnoo, Murvagh and Cruit Island on a loop down the west coast. Distances are short on the map and slow on the road, so build the trip around two bases.
May to September brings the longest days in Ireland, daylight past ten in midsummer this far north, and the links at their firm best. April and October are quieter and better value, and the courses stay open through winter for the hardy. Always check the forecast and confirm tee times directly for your dates.
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Researched and written by the GolfForKings editorial desk. Course facts, access and fees verified June 2026. Last reviewed June 2026.