Portstewart Golf Club 1894-1994

The fortunes of Portstewart were very much hampered by the founder’s puritan views and his son’s, Mr John Cromie, decision not to allow the Ballymena and Northern Counties Railway (B&NCR) access to the town (the trains ran on the sabbath which was against their beliefs) and what once had been a vibrant seaside town began to stagnant in favour of more liberal and accessible tourist spots. A change of heart resulted in the Portstewart Tramway Company coming into existence in 1880. This tramway stopped outside the clubhouse and connected Portstewart with the last station of the B&NCR which also owned the tramway.

Portstewart Golf Club is a historic and prestigious golf club located in Northern Ireland, founded in 1894. Golf was played over the course at Portstewart in 1889 but didn’t get any traction for another five years. The club initially featured a 9-hole course on 26 acres of land on the Cromer Estate, as further land was added in 1904 the holes were extended. In 1907 it was agreed that, together with maintaining the existing course, a new eighteen holes should be built over at Strand Head and a lease was signed for land East Crossreagh. The new 18-hole course was designed by Mr. A. G. Gow, a greenkeeper from Portrush but formerly of North Berwick, and completed in 1909 and it would be the mid-sixties before there would be any major alterations even though Willie Park was consulted in 1913. The old course was extended to 12 holes in 1918 and finally to 18 by 1934 and this was laid out by Mr. R.C. Davison having declined the services of one H.S. Colt. On the Strand course the bunkers were remodeled and some holes extended in preparation for the 1931 Irish PGA Championship and this was carried out by Hughie O’Neill, the Portrush professional.

The Open Championship was being played at Royal Portrush and the Strand course was chosen as a qualifying venue so improvements were needed and a further four holes were added to ‘ Thistly Hollow’ and re-route some holes closer to the dune scape and this was done by J. McAlister of Malahide. Unfortunately the course was in such bad condition that every resource had to be focused on the existing holes to be ready in time for the Open Championship. Around this time both the sale of liquor and Sunday play were both finally accepted by the members. All competitors in the Open Championship had to play a round on both the Portrush and Strand course for qualification purposes. It would be 1986 before they tried to tame the wilderness that was ‘ Thistly Hollow’ only with the advances in machinery they were going to be a little more ambitious and produce 27 holes (Strand Course and the Riverside Nine) and the principal person in charge of the design would be Des Giffin. The construction work required the reinstatement of Marram Grass on the dunes which they managed effectively and would later be used as a model for Ballyliffin’s Glashedy’s course to leverage off. Additional land purchased in 1999 allowed for the Riverside to be extended to eighteen holes.

The three founding members were J.A. Lyle (Secretary of the Portstewart Tramway), W.H. Mann (Barrister) and Daniel McLaughlin (Solicitor). The original course was designed by Willie Park Jr. in the early 1920s. The Strand Course, which is the most famous of the three courses at Portstewart, was redesigned by club member Des Giffin in 1986.
Portstewart has hosted a number of high profile events including the qualifier for the 1951 Open Championship, 2017 Irish Open Professional Golf Championship (Winner – Jon Rahm), Irish Amateur Close Championship, Irish PGA Championship and will also host the 2025 Northern Ireland Championship as Royal Portrush again hosts the Open Championship. The most notable players from the club are Paul Cutler and Maureen Madill.

The club has three eighteen-hole courses, the Strand, Riverdale and Old Course. The Strand Course is known for its challenging layout and stunning scenery. It is a par 72 course and is particularly difficult due to its natural dunes and coastal winds.