Curracloe Links: Saving Private Ryan beach to get ‘world class’ links course

Ground is about to break on the world’s latest great seaside links.

Curracloe Links, located adjacent to the award-winning white sands of Curracloe Beach in County Wexford, Ireland, is the brainchild of course designers Dana Fry and Jason Straka and is being developed by the Neville Hotel Group.

Construction work on the new links is expected to begin in February, with a planned opening pencilled in for sometime in 2026.

The golf course will be part of the new Ravenport Resort, a €20million project designed to increase tourism footfall to southeast Ireland.

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Named the “best beach in Ireland” by readers of the Irish Independent, Curracloe Beach was used in the filming of Steven Spielberg’s Oscar-winning World War II epic Saving Private Ryan.

Fry and Straka, whose previous works include Erin Hills in Wisconsin, host site of the 2017 US Open, and Calusa Pines in Florida, have a bold design for Curracloe Links unlike any other in the country.

“The ancient linksland of Curracloe Links, with its rolling hills, long sea views and rugged natural bunkers, will offer a quintessential Irish golf experience and lure people from all over the world to its fairways,” said Straka.

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A spokesperson for Neville Hotel Group added: “With this, their first opportunity to work in Ireland, we’re confident Jason and Dana will create a golf course that’s as special as the site upon which its built.

“We looked at many golf design firms all over the world, and are certain Fry/Straka will build something truly unforgettable.”

Curracloe Links at Ravenport Resort is the second golf-oriented property owned by the Neville Group.

In 2019, the company took ownership of the five-star Druids Glen Hotel and Golf Resort. A €10m restoration of the Pat Ruddy and Tom Craddock designed course was completed last year and earned the property the “Golf Resort of the Year” accolade from the Irish Golf Tour Operator Association.