At its March 2015 planning committee meeting, Coleraine Borough Council agreed DoE Planning’s recommendation to approve our application for full planning permission for changes to the golf course layouts and related infrastructure at Royal Portrush Golf Club.

That is a key milestone in moving towards formal confirmation from the R&A on when the biggest professional golf tournament in the world, the Open Championship, will return to Royal Portrush.

The changes involve two new holes on the world renowned Dunluce links taking in land currently in play on its sister Valley links and three further new holes in its revised layout.  They also include a new green keeper’s compound and new internal access routes to update the site to a world class major championship standard and enable the massive infrastructural logistics associated with the Open to be catered for.
Working closely with the R&A’s design team significant work has been prepared to assess the ecological status of the site and ensure that the on-course works will be sensitively undertaken.

We have worked in partnership with DoE Planning, NIEA Natural Heritage and Transport NI to secure planning permission within four months of submission after a detailed pre-application information exchange.  That follows a very responsive approach from all key decision makers in reviewing an extremely high quality and comprehensive planning application.

On foot of Minister Foster’s recent announcement to achieve a £50million golf tourism boost by 2020 this permission paves the way for the hard work to now commence and make the Open return a reality.