Lee Valley

Clashanure, Ovens, County Cork

Rankings

AddressMullaghroe, Clashanure, Ovens, Co. Cork, Ireland

The Lee Valley covers over one thousand square miles and runs from the Derrynasaggert Mountains all the way to Cork. One of the valley sweet spots lies just west of Cork, outside Ovens, and it happens to be called Lee Valley Golf and Country Club.

The golf facility is run by the Keohane family who take great pride in the service they offer members and visitors, in particular. They have a proud claim of going the extra mile for all their guests which sees many return year after year for more of the same hospitality. There are no fewer than twenty holiday cottages on site so visiting golfers can set up a base here from where they can explore the courses in the area.

The parkland course of Lee Valley Golf & Country Club is an 18-hole, 6,725 yard layout of championship quality which was designed by Irish golfing legend Christy O'Connor Jnr and he, along with Fred Couples, opened the course for play in 1993.

Course maintenance is treated very seriously here and holes are kept in immaculate order from tee box to putting surface on every single one. There are ponds to be negotiated on five of the holes, one of them being the 12th a 179-yard par three where a full 150-yard carry over water must be made to reach the green.

Many of the holes are dog legged, none more so than the 416-yard par four 14th hole. The temptation is to cut the corner on the right from the tee but this may result in finding an impossible lie in one of the two ring fort sites on the course. A line of trees on the left make this a very tough scoring hole, despite its generous stroke index.