County Louth Golf Club is known to almost everyone as Baltray, after the fishing village beside it at the mouth of the River Boyne. It is about 6 km from Drogheda and well under an hour from Dublin Airport, which makes it an easy add-on to a Dublin links trip. Tom Simpson and Molly Gourlay shaped the course in 1938, and it has kept a reputation as a players’ links: no gimmicks, holes running in every direction, and greens that reward a shot played along the ground. It hosted the Irish Open in 2004 and 2009.
County Louth Golf Club (Baltray) green fees and tee times.
Baltray takes visitor bookings on its BRS page, or by phoning +353 41 988 1530 or emailing reservations@countylouthgolfclub.com. The online system shows the visitor fee per player and totals it for groups of up to four. Golf Ireland members can ask for a member rate from April to October, but only by contacting the office, and it depends on availability. The club also hosts the East of Ireland Championship each summer and other championship events, so check the fixtures before fixing your dates. The visitor pages do not publish a handicap limit; the course page lists WHS ratings and slopes for every tee.
INDICATIVE GREEN FEE · CHECKED NOVEMBER 2026From €365
Visitor green fee per player per round, as shown on the club’s visitor page. Golf Ireland member rates, April to October, on request. Prices change by season and booking route, so confirm the current rate with the operator. Official rates ↗
The round, in perspective.
The club was formed in 1892 and the present links dates from the 1938 redesign by Simpson, one of the great inter-war architects, working with Gourlay, a leading amateur. From the blue tees it is 7,031 yards, par 72; the white tees give 6,716 yards and the green 6,338. The club points out that the holes keep changing direction, so the wind off the Irish Sea is rarely at your back for long. The 11th, 470 yards from the back, is stroke index one. There are four short holes, the 5th, 7th, 15th and 17th, the last of them 207 yards. Four par fives break up the round, with two of them back to back at the 2nd and 3rd, and the 559-yard 18th takes you home to the clubhouse. In 2009 Shane Lowry won the Irish Open here as an amateur.
Know before you go.
Booking
Online through BRS, or reservations@countylouthgolfclub.com
Slope (white tees)
Course rating 72.9, slope 128
Practice
Practice area before the first tee
Make the trip work.
Baltray suits a day out from Dublin rather than a long stay of its own. A morning tee time leaves the afternoon free for the Boyne Valley. The practice facilities are beside the first tee, so arrive in time to use them. The clubhouse has a restaurant for lunch after the round. If you plan on Portmarnock or The Island in the same trip, compare tee-time availability for all three before you fix the order, because weekends at the Dublin clubs fill earliest.
Dublin Airport is about 45 km south; allow 40 to 45 minutes on the M1 and then the R167 out of Drogheda along the north bank of the Boyne. Drogheda station is on the Dublin to Belfast line, with frequent trains from Dublin Connolly, and a taxi to the club takes about ten minutes. Belfast is roughly 90 minutes north.
The club lists hotels and guest houses close by. In Drogheda there are Scholars Townhouse, the Marcy, the Glenside and Orley House, all within about ten minutes, and the Boyne Valley Hotel & Country Club on the Dublin side of town. Flynns of Termonfeckin is a few minutes up the coast, and the Village Hotel in Bettystown is across the estuary. The club advises booking early on championship weekends and in high summer.
Make a trip of it.
Seapoint’s links is next door at Termonfeckin. Heading south, The Island at Donabate and Portmarnock are both within about 40 minutes, and Royal Dublin is on Bull Island beyond them, so Baltray fits naturally into a four-course Dublin week. Off the course, the passage tombs at Brú na Bóinne, including Newgrange, are about 15 km inland, and Monasterboice’s high crosses are a short drive north-west.
Find your season.
The main visitor season runs April to October, which is also when Golf Ireland member rates apply. The East of Ireland Championship is held here in the summer and takes the course for several days, so check the fixture list. The east coast sees less rain than Kerry or Clare, which helps on a spring or autumn trip.
The club’s visitor page shows €365 per player per round, totalled at €1,460 for a four-ball. Golf Ireland members can ask the office for a member rate between April and October, subject to availability.
Has County Louth Golf Club hosted the Irish Open?
Yes, twice: in 2004 and in 2009, when Shane Lowry won as an amateur. The club also stages the East of Ireland Championship.
How far is Baltray from Dublin Airport?
About 45 km, or 40 to 45 minutes by car up the M1. Drogheda, the nearest town and railway station, is about 6 km away.
Last checked 11 November 2026. This is an independent planning guide, not a first-hand review or a booking service. Check live availability, access, fees and travel details with the operator before booking. Airport suggestions are starting points for route planning.
