I'm sad to say that after two weeks of golfing in Ireland, with The Island positioned to be the grand finale, I was a little let down by my experience.

Firstly, the good - My caddy was fantastic. Young but proficient and knew the course exceedingly well. He and I were on our own for my round, and the conversation was pleasant. He was patient with my mediocre play and he didn't lead me astray. The course itself was solid. Challenging, interesting, fun. Fairways were a little beat up in areas, but greens and tee boxes were tidy and tight and views were nice. Not as hilly and dramatic as some of the courses on the west coast, but it was scenic. Also, had a great latte in the dining room before going out and was served by a kind and attentive server.

Now for the not-so-great. I was there early and had a relatively early tee time. The signage is near-absent and there was no one outside (despite having to call to be buzzed in through the gate) so I made my way inside through a side door nearest the parking lot and wandered my way to the ladies' locker rooms where there are NO GUEST LOCKERS FOR LADIES. Ugh. Had to wander further along to find the awkward back door to the pro shop asked about a locker. The manager/pro person was wise enough to apologize and acknowledge that "seemed a bit wrong" given that there are men's guest lockers and they kindly offered to hold my stuff at the desk. I'm glad they offered, but I didn't feel great about having to do that. Then, in another let-down, I was informed the driving range is closed on Tuesdays so... no warmup for me and, boy, it showed. But now I had an hour to kill so decided to get a bite, but my breakfast of a fried eggs and toast was greasy with broken yolks and cold toast. Glad I ate something though, because the halfway house was closed. There's no water on the course and no drinking fountain in the clubhouse, so bottled water was the only option. The locker room was still rocking a heavy dose of 1990's yellow maple and tired carpet and while the bathrooms had been updated, the shower floors could have been cleaner. The staff were nice and seemed to be trying to make me feel welcome, but I couldn't help but feel that this was the least impressive experience of my 5 rounds of golf in Ireland, especially considering the price tag. If I had played this course first, I might have not felt as disappointed, but going from Ballybunion (350 Euro) to The Island (295 Euro) was a monumentally different experience that I couldn't reconcile against the relatively similar cost.