Midlands Top Four

St. Patrick's College Chapel at Maynooth is one of the most beautiful chapels in Ireland. Further west is the Kilbeggan Distillery, one of the few and most authentic distilleries still working in Ireland.

There are three hotels to choose from, all located in the centre of Tullamore town.

Tullamore Golf Club moved to the current site in 1926 to a course designed by James Braid (who also designed Mullingar). The site at Brookfield was once part of the Charleville estate, the site of Ireland's most ancient primordial oak forests. Mature trees, many planted as famine relief projects in the mid 19th century, dominate the landscape. Several months after the course opened, members queried the lack of fairway bunkers by letter to Braid who replied by letter instructing that bunkers be placed in the fairway at the sopot where most divots were to be found. Patrick Merrigan upgraded the course in 1996 with new several new tees and greens, three new lakes and complentary plantatiions of trees - resulting in a course combining the best of Braid's design with enhanced design features. Several memorable holes on the stronger second nine are the highlights with the 16th, a dogleg to a green protected by a stream, being the signtaure hole at Tullamore.

Esker Hills is a Christy O'Connor Jnr. design that many would consider one oif his best. Eskers are narrow, long, winding hills that were deposited by streams flowing underneath glaciers and Junior sculpted a golf course that flows up, down and across these ridges to present a golfing challenge that is very different, exhilarating and very memorable. The approach to the 4th green plays directly up to the top of a ridge while the next is a memorable par-3 straight back down to a green flanked by a pond. The first nine finish with two terrific holes playing along the side of the hill. The second nine continues with a driveable par-4, two more memorable par-3's across chasms (all of the par 3's are over 170 yards) and a challenging final 3 holes including two of the four severe doglegs taht are another feature of the design. Shane Lowry played his amateur golf as a member here and in 2006 won the Irish Open as an amateur (at County Louth).