Queens of the Castle at Killeen

Augusta, Pebble Beach, Pinehurst and Kiawah Island just drip off the tongue when mentioning the great golf courses of the world, but now a local venture can soon leap to the top of the illustrious list. Killeen Castle, near Dunsany on the road to Dunshaughlin, is poised to become one of the finest golf courses in the world. The Meath club isn"t open to the public yet, but on Wednesday of last week the Castle played host to some of the top names in ladies golf to mark the launch of 'The Road to the 2011 Solheim Cup" which the venue will host. Two of the great players, Norway"s Suzann Pettersen and Morgan Pressel (USA), represented the teams that will compete for the prestigious trophy, at the launch. Both were thrilled at the prospect of playing Killeen Castle in such a fast-growing event that will capture the attention of Ireland in much the same way as the Ryder Cup did. World number three, Pettersen, and Pressel, who was the youngest winner of a Ladies Professional Golfers Association major at 18 years old, were joined at the launch by AIB Capital Markets managing director Colm Doherty, Failte Ireland Golf Development Officer Emma Sweeney, Killeen Castle Strategic Marketing Manager Roddy Carr, Ping Golf CEO and founding sponsor of the Solheim Cup, John Solheim. As well as The Solheim Cup in 2011, Killeen Castle will also host the AIB Ladies Irish Open in 2010. Carr believes that the course is already one of the finest in Europe and he says that anything is possible for the venture. 'This is the most exciting project that I have ever been involved with,' he told the Meath Chronicle. 'I was involved with the Old Head, Mount Juliet and Tralee, but this is the most exciting of all because it is the creme de la creme of golf developments anywhere in Europe. 'I"ve never seen anything like what is going on here. The quality of everything that is going into Killeen Castle is amazing. 'It is the best build I"ve seen in 30 years. It is showcasing the philosophies of design of Jack Nicklaus which are countering the advances of technology in the game, so it is really fascinating. 'The owners here, who also own Dundrum Shopping Centre, have an obsession for attention to detail and quality. 'That is the hallmark of Killeen Castle and that will be obvious throughout the whole venture. 'Our pitch isn"t to be the best in Ireland, we aim to be the best in Europe and I quite confidently say that this venue will be the best presented, conditioned and have the highest levels of quality in Europe,' he added. Carr was also keen to stress the level of investment by the developers of the project. 'The main issue is the investment here which has been massive. Anybody that has ever been to Dundrum Shopping Centre can see what the owners have done there and they will be just as attentive to detail here. 'You can see the commitment they"ve made when you just look at the Castle itself. 'There is more drainage and works under the ground here than in any other golf course in Europe. 'No expense has been spared in terms of delivering the level of excellence we want. That gives us a comfortable feeling that the investors are determined to see this project through and when you drive through those gates it will be pure excellence. 'Tens of millions of euros have been spent on this project already. A lot of the developments that I"ve seen over the years have scrimped and saved in different areas and they"ve had to go back in to rebuild and replant, but that wont be happening here. 'It could rain for three weeks here and you could drive a car down the middle of every fairway and you wouldn"t see it. This is probably the biggest investment made in any golf resort in Europe. 'The strategy now is to get world class events for this world class venue. The owners decided that The Solheim Cup would fit the positioning of Killeen Castle. We have to be a trophy golf course and in Ireland we have the links courses like Portmarnock and Ballybunion and then we have the K Club and Mount Juliet. 'Now, immediately, Killeen Castle is seen as a trophy parkland championship course and once we get people through the gate they will see what is here. 'We have set the bar higher than what already exists at the K Club and Mount Juliet. ' I co-staged the Ryder Cup in Valderrama in 1997 and when we made the presentation to hold the event I saw everything that was on offer. Killeen Castle is by far the best staging venue that I have seen. I have promoted over 30 tour events and Ryder Cups, but there is nothing to touch Killeen Castle. 'We have the Dave Peltz Academy here, which is a stand alone project, we have the real estate and we have the membership and I will be involved in all of those areas. I"ve been working in golf for over 30 years so the owners want to gain from what I"ve learned and seen around the world. 'The course will be open next year. Any other promoter would have opened this course this year because you can go out there and play today and ask 'why aren"t you open" but the levels of presentation are just not there yet. 'We are prepared to wait until everything is right,' concluded Carr. The whole project really needs to be seen to be believed. The oppulance and 'wow" factor belies the mindset of a dying Celtic Tiger. Killeen Castle has to be the finest golf complex in Europe, if not the world. Don"t be surprised to see their name in lights, possibily hosting a Ryder Cup in a few years time.