That Oscar Wilde won’t be in Thurles tomorrow makes no difference. We know implicitly what he’d say.

It’s been voted the best Santa experience. Noel Baker goes behind the scenes at Wish at Fota Island Resort to see just what it takes to bring snow, 140 elves and the man in red to Cork.  

The shortlist for the first Irish Sports Industry Awards was announced this morning.

So, how are you fixed for the Christmas?

Fota Island Resort is in the market to welcome back the Irish Open to Cork "in the not too distant future", as the city and county prepares to bid for a number of spectacular international sporting events on the back of a successful staging of the European Tour event.

Last year at Fota Island Resort’s Santa experience, six men proposed to their partners, inspired — and perhaps emboldened — by the spirit of Christmas created there. A tough act to follow. So what’s going on down there this year?

For a moment there, Paul McGinley had the cream of European golf within arm’s reach as the European Tour staged its flagship event, the BMW PGA Championship, on home turf at Wentworth.

Cork’s Fota Island resort is closing in on a deal to bring the Irish Open back to Munster next June.

A snow-coveredforest, magic fairydust — and real life husky puppies. Welcome to Santa’s grotto, Franc-style.

All that was missing was the menacing theme music from ‘Jaws’, such was the proliferation of sharks at Friday’s final of the hugely competitive Fota Island Resort Inter-Society golf competition.

Even the quickest glance through the Irish Examiner’s revealing survey of Irish golf clubs will confirm these are times as tough for them as any sector of this country’s still fragile economy.

THEY soothed our senses, purified our pores and massaged the nine-to-five from our system.

IT began with almost 500 golfers and finished on Sunday with tales of what was and what might have been around the clubhouse at Fota Island Golf Resort.

FOTA ISLAND’S 27-hole golf complex is ready to host another Irish Open, says the Cork resort’s Director of Marketing Seamus Leahy.

FOTA ISLAND RESORT’S Seamus Leahy has welcomed next month’s return of championship golf to the Cork resort.

SOME claim it’s a race to the bottom, others see it as the only way to survive but one thing is for sure — there’s never been options and value in Irish golf like this before.

GOLF directors at Cork’s Fota Island Resort insist it is business as usual despite the appointment of a receiver at the prestigious facility last week.

A €20m organic waste compost facility has been proposed for Foynes docks.

Seamus Leahy has been appointed director of marketing for the 780-acre Fota Island Resort in Co Cork — which includes a mix of championship golf courses, hotel and spa, residential lodges, a golf academy and a planned marina.