Powerscourt Golf Club, West Course

The so-called ‘lesser’ course on the Powerscourt estate was designed by David Mclay Kidd. Like the East it offers a variety of challenging holes but they are decidedly less demanding of the players shot-making abilities, allowing for a far more enjoyable experience for the higher handicappers among us.

Kidd said that his intention in designing this course was to create a fun course and with this lay-out he has done just that. The fairways and greens are that bit larger than on the older course meaning that you can really allow yourself to let rip with the driver off the tee and hit many greens in regulation.

One off-shoot of that though is that you could then be left with a few monster putts of around the 80-foot margin. From this distance taking three to get down might not seem like such a disaster after all.

The two courses on offer here make for a magnificent golfing experience, play them both and you’ll be among an elite few who’ve had such a wonderful privilege.