Druids Glen move opens up Ryder race

In a spectacular move aimed at landing the Ryder Cup in 2005, Druids Glen are to undertake a major development of their facility, starting next spring. The £51 million project will incorporate a 150-bedroom five-star hotel, a second golf course and detached housing units for permanent and semi-permanent residences.

Effectively, they will be in a position to offer the European Tour the same sort of facilities which had made The K Club clear favourites to land Ireland's first staging of the Ryder Cup. And in terms of current tournament involvement, they are playing host to a fourth Murphy's Irish Open next July.

"Ken Schofield (executive director of the European Tour) has been fully informed about these plans," said Denis Kane, chief executive of Druids Glen at a reception in Dublin last night. "We would like to think that it has enhanced our Ryder Cup prospects significantly."

He went on: "On a general level, we are looking to the challenges and requirements of the new millennium. We feel this is in keeping with the contribution we have already made to Irish golf tourism since our opening in 1995 and the facility would not have been complete without a hotel."

It is planned that the first phase of the development programme, the Druids Glen Hotel, will be completed by the spring of 2000. It will overlook the spectacular 13th hole which, in recent Irish Opens, has left spectators awe -struck while inflicting much grief on the competing professionals.

All of the other ancillary facilities will follow closely behind. Meanwhile, a second, 18-hole course, comparable in quality to the existing, championship layout, is to be located on the south side of the hotel, corporate and private residential areas.

It will be designed by Pat Ruddy and Tom Craddock who were responsible for the original 18, which will remain the facility's premier layout. "This became possible only after we acquired the additional 200 acres two years ago," said Kane. "The overall site now incorporates a total of 380 acres."

Given that the existing facility cost £15 million, the entire investment in the completed complex will run to £66 million making it easily the most expensive undertaking of its kind in Irish golf. According to Kane, the project will be financed through the Druids Glen company and through borrowings.

On a broader level, the management believe that the overall development will open the door for Co Wicklow to compete at the highest level in the Irish golf resort market. They take the view that the strength of the existing venue in terms of spectator movement and viewing enjoyment, has already been established, not least by its capacity for up to 19,000 cars.

As part of the construction work, the practice ground will be reversed, so as to run south-north, adjacent to the 16th fairway and only 600 metres from the new complex. This is by way of an emphatic response to criticism from certain competitors, among them Nick Faldo, about the accessibility and quality of the existing facility.

"We feel this will establish us as serious contenders for the Ryder Cup," concluded Kane. "That view is based on our proximity to Dublin's accommodation pool and the new, airport motorway."

As Ryder Cup contenders, when Ireland's staging of the event was confirmed last year, Druids Glen seemed to fall some way behind The K Club, Portmarnock and Mount Juliet in terms of overall facilities. But last night's news has changed everything. Now, the prospects are that they will be in a position to match, or surpass, anything that rival venues may have to offer.

It is fascinating that the announcement should come only a matter of months after The K Club disclosed plans for the construction of a second 18 on the far side of the Liffey from their existing layout. The anticipated investment in that particular project is £10 million .

From the outset, Druids Glen have not been short on ambition. In giving the design brief for the existing course to Ruddy and Craddock, the owner, Hugo Flinn, said simply: "Build me the best parkland course in Ireland."

Ironically, they became a compromise choice for the staging of the Irish Open in 1996, when negotiations with Portmarnock broke down. But they grabbed the opportunity and successfully overcame initial, teething problems.