Golf’s number one team tournament will be played for the first time in Ireland this year, September 22 to 24. The tournament will be hosted at the K Club in Straffan, County Kildare. The course is an Arnold Palmer parkland course, which is located 15 miles west of Dublin City Center.

Europe will be looking to retain the cup with the help of three of Ireland’s finest golfers. These are, Padraig Harrington, Paul McGinley and Darren Clark. They helped defeat the U.S. team on its own turf in 2004.

Europe has been the dominant force in the Ryder Cup for the past twenty years with some famous victories sealed by Irish golfers. This year the U.S. will be out for revenge with players like Woods, Mickelson, and Furzyk.

Ireland is Europe’s number one golf destination, with its famous links courses like Ballybunion, Portmarnock, and Lahinch.

If you have a passion for playing and seeing golf in its truest form why not take a visit to the Emerald Isle? There are some 400 golf courses in Ireland with courses for all levels of play. In fact Ireland is home to 1/3 of all the golf courses worldwide. Surely it must be all those green, green fields! Once the golf day is done, though, there’s still a lovely evening ahead. Only in Ireland, in the summer, when the evenings are light late would you have the opportunity to enjoy your dinner and a few drinks and feel that the evening was still one long delightful stretch ahead of you and your companions.

Whether you’re a native or “Irish by Vacation,” the links of Ireland are some of the best to be had and no matter what your handicap, you can enjoy full and lively games at each stop as you tour the countryside. There are golf vacations for every taste and budget.

Here is a selection of the best golf courses Ireland has to offer, and everything you’ll need to get started on planning that ideal golf holiday, all the way down to the tee times… Golf Courses of Ireland.

For the special golfer in your life, consider this special edition: Ireland and the Ryder Cup Book.