‘Drive’ to Promote Northern Ireland and 148th Open

Top golf writers from Great Britain and the Netherlands have been visiting Northern Ireland, as guests of Tourism Ireland and Tourism NI

The group – which includes journalists from daily newspapers, popular golf magazines and online publications – has a combined audience of over three million readers, or potential golf holidaymakers for Northern Ireland.

The journalists tested their skills on this year’s venue for The 148th Open, when they played Royal Portrush, and were also able to see at first-hand all the preparations under way for this summer’s championship. They also played Belvoir, Galgorm Castle and Portstewart golf courses.

Promoting golf in Northern Ireland is a major focus for Tourism Ireland – in GB and the Netherlands and in other important golf markets around the world. Tourism Ireland is taking every opportunity to highlight The Open, which provides a superb platform to shine a spotlight on golf in Northern Ireland once again, showcasing what’s on offer here to golfers around the world.

Siobhan McManamy, Tourism Ireland’s Director of Markets, said: “We were delighted to invite these leading golf journalists to Northern Ireland, to experience some of our top courses for themselves and to hear the plans and see the work in progress for The Open.

“Tourism Ireland has an extensive programme of promotions under way, to highlight our world-class golf and encourage more people to consider a golfing holiday in Northern Ireland. Golf is the world’s largest sports-related travel market and we are working hard to drive home the message that a golfing holiday in Northern Ireland is about much more than a round of 18 holes – the combination of our world-class courses and our unique brand of hospitality plays a key role in attracting golfers.”

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