Originally scheduled to take place at Mount Juliet in County Kilkenny in May, the tournament had to be postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic and will now be held at Galgorm Spa & Golf Resort in County Antrim from 24–27 September.
It will be the first time the prestigious venue has hosted the island of Ireland’s national open, the fourth time the Irish Open has been played in Northern Ireland since 2012, and follows hot on the heels of the Northern Ireland Open, a European Challenge Tour event supported by the R&A played at Galgorm from 3–6 September.
Set within a 163-acre estate with the spectacular River Maine flowing through it, the lush Galgorm resort is home to the Galgorm Castle championship course, the venue for the Northern Ireland Open since 2013 and host of last year’s innovative ISPS Handa World Invitational, which featured both men and women competing for equal prize money.
With the five-star hotel close to the course, the venue can provide the ‘bubble’ necessary for tour players to fulfil the protocols essential to professional golf at the moment, while the tournament will be subject to guidelines similar to the current ‘UK Swing’ events, including being played behind closed doors.
The staging of the tournament in Northern Ireland follows the massive success of The 148th Open Championship held at Royal Portrush last year, as well as recent epic Irish Opens in Portstewart, Royal County Down and Royal Portrush.