With the KPMG Women’s Irish Open at Dromoland Castle just four weeks away, preparations are well underway and after the success of last year’s event, the success of female Irish golfers on the global stage, and the Irish tendency to turn up in large numbers to get behind an Irish cause, heavy crowds are expected on each of the four tournament days and indeed the practice rounds and Pro-Am.
“There’s a serious appetite for women’s sport and women’s golf in Ireland,” says Eamonn O’Donnell, Director of Golf at Dromoland Castle, “the Irish fans are incredibly supportive of their own and I’ve no doubt that we’ll see those numbers reflected in the crowds that come to the Women’s Irish Open.”
Last year’s event proved to be a big hit with families and with under-16s gaining free admittance once again this year, a day out for entire families is expected once again and Dromoland are taking additional steps to ensure that the needs of all age groups are catered for.
“Last year was a bit of a learning curve for us as well,” said O’Donnell, with Dromoland Castle not only hosting their first Women’s Irish Open, but the tournament itself returning to the Ladies European Tour schedule after a decade-long absence. “We saw so many families attending the event and that was one of the goals that we’d set ourselves when we started looking at the event and thinking how we could best promote it.
“To see the family interaction – so many young kids out there watching the girls play – it was super. This year, we’ve moved the tented vilage closer to the Castle and closer to the 18th green which will allow for a far better spectator experience. We’re going to have music, face painting, virtual reality golf, all of this in the tented village along with all the other traditional amenities that you’d have that will be showcasing the best of Clare.
“We’re very excited and we’re looking to encourage as many families as possible to come down, experience it, and see first hand the talent that these ladies have and there’ll be so many offerings at hand besides the golf as well. We want to create a fun atmosphere, for people to go away thinking that that’s been a great event and one that we need to add to our calendars every year.”
Although the event will move to a new venue in 2024, O’Donnell expressed his interest in having it return to Dromoland Castle once again in a few years and feels that the event could become a juggernaut with each year’s success as important as the previous.
“We want to see the event grow,” he explained, “when it moves on from Dromoland next year, we still want it to grow and get bigger and bigger every year.”
Tickets to see the stars of the Ladies European Tour at the KPMG Women’s Irish Open are now on sale HERE with under-16s gaining free entry.
Leave a comment