← All guides
County Antrim, Northern Ireland
Portrush
Open-venue links and the best-poured Guinness on the island.
Overview
A seaside town on the Causeway Coast that hosts The Open at Royal Portrush, with the Giant's Causeway and the Bushmills distillery both a short drive away. The golf is world-class, but the town's real flex is its harbour pubs — people cross oceans for the links and leave talking about the Guinness.
Courses worth playing
- Royal Portrush (Dunluce) £420 The Open venue — Calamity Corner is the scariest par 3 you'll ever love. Founded 1888, and somehow the views keep up with the golf.
- Portstewart (Strand) £235+ Home to what's widely called the finest opening hole in Irish golf — an elevated tee over the beach, the dunes, and the whole Atlantic.
- Castlerock £270 A classic 1901 links twenty minutes down the coast, threading towering dunes and gorse. The value play of the trip.
Where to eat
- Ramore Wine Bar Portrush Always jammed, order at the bar, best value in town. The chilli beef in pitta with garlic fries has a following for a reason.
- Kiwi's Brew Bar Portrush Sits at #1 of 60 Portrush restaurants on Tripadvisor. Burgers built from Ethersons meat — World Butchers Challenge winners — plus the sweet potato fries everyone mentions. Pool, darts, and a stage in the back.
Where to drink
- Harbour Bar Portrush One of the oldest pubs on the north coast, right on the harbour, walls lined with golfing legends. Reviewers have called it the best pub in the world, and they weren't being cute about it. 19th hole pickThe Guinness — regulars swear it pours silkier, darker, and creamier here than anywhere else.
- The Springhill Bar Portrush A proper Irish pub with roaring fires and the best trad nights in town. No food, no WiFi, no problem. 19th hole pickA pint at the Thursday night trad session — get there early for a seat by the fire.
- Harbour Gin Bar Portrush Upstairs from the Harbour Bar — same view, longer gin list, for whoever in your group is "off the stout." 19th hole pickA local Northern Irish gin from the shelf — let the bar steer you.
Getting there
Belfast's two airports are both about an hour away; Dublin is roughly three. Dunluce tee times book out far in advance — plan months ahead — and leave a day for the Giant's Causeway and a Bushmills tour, because you're not coming this far to only play golf.