Fantastic golf, great craic and stunning landscapes

IRISH tourism welcomes another exhilarating chapter in Irish golf as the Irish Open returns to Killarney, bringing golf to the heart of Irish tourism — as it is in the hearts of all sports fans throughout the country.

Why are Fáilte Ireland so committed to the Irish Open? Golf is one of Ireland’s greatest tourist attractions — welcoming an estimated 155,000 visitors in 2010 and contributing approximately €110 million to the economy.

As a country, we were already world-renowned for the high quality and wide choice of our golf courses but, thanks to the great performances in recent years of the likes of Pádraig Harrington, Graeme McDowell, Rory McIlroy and Darren Clarke, our players are now amongst the best known in the world. In fact, when you think about it, despite our size and population, the island of Ireland can easily hold its own competitively with the best from all over the world.