
Dooks Course
Dooks Golf Club


About this course
Dooks Golf Club occupies a dramatic stretch of linksland on the Iveragh Peninsula in County Kerry, looking out across Dingle Bay toward the mountains of the Dingle Peninsula. The course sits on a narrow strip of duneland between Castlemaine Harbour and the main Ring of Kerry road, with the Macgillycuddy's Reeks rising inland. Eddie Hackett laid out the original routing in the 1970s on this traditional links terrain, and Martin Hawtree completed a significant redesign in the early 2000s that refined the holes and brought more of the natural dune features into play. The layout moves through rumpled, tumbling ground with fairways that follow the contours of the dunes rather than fighting them. Several holes play along elevated plateaus with views across the water, while others drop into valleys where the wind behaves differently and club selection becomes less certain. The greens are typically small and closely guarded, demanding accurate approach play. The back nine in particular features a memorable stretch through the tallest dunes on the property. Dooks remains a members' club with a welcoming, unpretentious atmosphere typical of smaller Irish links clubs. It attracts golfers seeking a quieter, less commercial links experience away from the more famous courses on Ireland's southwest coast. The setting and the quality of the duneland give it a character that feels both remote and authentic to traditional Irish links golf.
Rankings
Ranked by CV ratings from golfers who've played this course. Positions are shown worldwide, by country, and by state; the Public column compares courses anyone can play.
Best in World
Best in Ireland
Best in Kerry
Quick facts
- Location
- Glenbeigh, Kerry, IE
- Access
- Public
- Year built
- 1889
- Holes
- 18
- Designer(s)
- Eddie Hackett, Martin Hawtree
- Par
- 71
- Length
- 6,511 yards
- Difficulty
- 72.4/133
- Course Vaults score
- 8.4
Getting there
Most visitors to Dooks Golf Club arrive through Kerry Airport, a compact regional gateway roughly forty minutes west by car, though Shannon International - an hour and a half northeast - serves those connecting from farther afield. The drive from either direction follows the Wild Atlantic Way as it curves along the Iveragh Peninsula, the road narrowing and softening as Dingle Bay opens to the left and the Macgillycuddy's Reeks rise inland. The final approach into Glenbeigh delivers you through a village of painted shopfronts and stone walls before the links reveal themselves on a slender spit of duneland, framed by water on three sides and backed by mountains - arrival here feels less like reaching a golf course than stumbling upon a secret written into the coast itself.

FAQ
Common questions about Dooks
Ratings, design, and course details pulled from Course Vaults.
Dooks has a Course Vaults score of 8.4 out of 10 based on 63 logged golfers.
Dooks was designed by Eddie Hackett and Martin Hawtree.
Yes. Dooks is listed as welcoming public or guest play on Course Vaults.
Par at Dooks is 71.
Dooks plays 6,511 yards from the back tees on Course Vaults.
The slope rating at Dooks is 133.




