Six decades of design: The late Ron Kirby’s contribution to Irish golf

MAJESTIC: Dromoland Castle’s 18th green. ‘I designed that one from the bar with a glass of whiskey in my hand,’ Kirby told this newspaper in 2003

Last Thursday, the world of golf lost Ron Kirby, who died aged 90. 

Kirby was a popular and highly-regarded golf architect who had a fondness for Ireland… especially the southern counties. His design work here embraces Mount Juliet (1991), Old Head (1997), Dromoland Castle (2002/3, alongside JB Carr), and Castlemartyr (2007). He designed Skellig Bay (now the site of Hog’s Head) in 2005, added some important holes at Corballis, and even ventured to Wicklow where he worked at Greystones Golf Club.