North West named top golfing spot for 2011
The International Association of Golf Tour Operators (IAGTO) has bestowed the singular — and potentially lucrative — honour on the north west for 2011, following in the footsteps of such celebrated golf hotspots as Provence & Cote D’Azur, the Algarve, Andalucia, and Turkey.
The North & West Coast Links Golf (N&WCL) represents a dozen of the country’s finest tracks and beat off the likes of the Fife region in Scotland — home to the world famous Old Course at St. Andrews — to top spot.
N&WCL revenue is up 40% this year compared to 2009, ensuring a major golf tourism spend in the region.
The awards ceremony took place at the weekend in Valencia, where over 1,200 industry professionals from 60 countries attended a gala dinner to recognise and reward the exceptional contributions to the world of golf travel.
350 international golf tour operators from 52 countries across the world voted and initially selected 20 European golfing regions before whittling down the competition to six finalists — Fife in Scotland, the Czech Republic, Tenerife, Murcia in Spain and Lisbon in Portugal before the North West of Ireland was selected as the overall winner.
Said a beaming John McLaughlin, GM of North & West Coast Links Golf: “Needless to say we are thrilled to be selected for such a prestigious award, as it gives the links the recognition they deserve amongst its global counterparts. The region has injected significant investment over the last 10 years to bring their golf product up to the standards expected from today’s golfer.”
Established as a small marketing cooperative over 20 years ago, N&WCL has grown from just four clubs to 12 of the finest courses in Ireland — Ardglass, Royal Portrush, Portstewart, Ballyliffin, Portsalon, Rosapenna, Narin & Portnoo, Donegal Golf Club, Co. Sligo, Enniscrone, Carne and Connemara.
Visit www.northandwestcoastlinks.com or call 091-868642 for further details.
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