Paul McGinley Golf Course Design has renovated seven holes at Donegal Golf Club, located on the Murvagh Peninsula on Ireland’s Atlantic coast.

Work is being undertaken in five phases, with the remaining 11 holes to be completed within the next three years. The 20-acre practice ground will also be upgraded to become a golf academy.

The design team’s work is focused on greens, bunkers, realignment of the fairways and tees as well as native areas, irrigation and pathways.

“I am advocating for the redesign and expansion of greens,” said McGinley. All greens in the first two phases remain in the same location, with the fifth lifted and re-rootzoned on the recommendation of Ian McClements from iTurf Management. “In the next phases, the sixth green will be moved to a location, originally recommended by Eddie Hackett, which is now possible with modern machinery,” said McGinley. The eighth and fifteenth will be moved to new locations for visibility of the natural dune landscape. These green complexes are being left until later in the project, as they can be redeveloped without interfering with play.

Bunkers will be renovated to a revetted style, with the number of bunkers to be reduced by around 25 per cent to improve playability and reduce maintenance costs. “The top lip of the bunkers will not be particularly high, and the golfers will be able to walk in without the sense of entering holes in the ground, said McGinley.

“My masterplan calls for evolution, not a revolution. The core principle is this links needs to be more playable, allowing for all standards of player. At the same time, it should be seamlessly prepared for major events. I am doing this by creating optionality on tee locations, and greens that allow pins to be tucked when needed.”

The design firm, now in its 20th year, is also working at Dunfanaghy GC and Portsalon GC, both in Donegal. It is also supporting the potential move of Balmoral Golf Club in Belfast to a new site in Ballylesson.