Rosapenna Sandy Hills

The verdict

Sandy Hills is the modern muscle of Rosapenna, and one of the most thrilling links to open in Ireland this century. Where the resort's original Old Tom Morris course runs gently along the lower ground, Pat Ruddy took his routing high into the dunes, so that almost every hole is framed by sandhills and almost every tee shot demands commitment. It is a course that asks for length and nerve, with elevated tees, switchback fairways and greens left open to the Atlantic wind.

For the travelling golfer it is the headline reason to make the long, beautiful journey to north Donegal, and the arrival of Tom Doak's St Patrick's Links next door has turned Rosapenna into a multi day pilgrimage rather than a single round. Sandy Hills suits the better player who wants a genuine examination in a wild setting, but anyone who loves big dune links will be grinning from the first tee. Remote it may be, but the golf more than repays the drive.

The holes worth the trip

Sandy Hills is a course of sustained drama rather than a couple of postcard holes, and its character is set from the off by the scale of the dunes. Ruddy ran fairways into and over the sandhills so that drives are funneled between towering banks of marram, and the reward for finding the short grass is a clear sight of the green; miss it and the recovery from the dunes is as hard as anything in Irish golf.

The middle of the round climbs to the highest ground on the property, where elevated tees open out across Sheep Haven Bay and the Atlantic, and the wind that was a breeze in the lee of the dunes becomes the main defence. These are the holes that linger, the ones where club selection is a guess and a well struck long iron held into the wind feels like a small triumph.

The closing stretch keeps the pressure on, exposed and demanding to the last, so a score built early has to be defended all the way in. Add the firm running turf, the constant ocean light and the sheer size of the place, and Sandy Hills delivers the kind of big dune links round that golfers cross continents to find.

Where to stay nearby

The clear choice is the Rosapenna Hotel itself, a long established golf resort right on Sheep Haven Bay with three links courses on the doorstep, so a stay and play package buys you the whole property and the easiest possible logistics. For a links obsessed group it is one of the best value multi course bases in Ireland.

The wider Donegal coast adds charm for the rest of the trip, from the village of Downings and nearby Carrigart to the dramatic drives of the Wild Atlantic Way, and the great Ballyliffin links lies within a scenic run to the north.

Looking for a base? See our recommended hotels and resorts in north Donegal.