Carton House O'Meara vs Montgomerie

Joeyjoejoe43

Hi Lads,

I am bringing 3 friends to play golf at Carton House..

Trying to decide which course to play between O'Meara and Montgomerie...

Any recommendations?

I am leaning towards the Montgomerie, as this is the one the hosted several Irish Opens, so it would be cool to play it..

Handicaps are 8/18/20/20

Thanks,

Joey

charlieIRL

For higher handicappers I'd play the O' Meara, some of the bunkers on the Monty are very tough, rough is a bit harder to play out of.

I've played the Monty loads but only the O' Meara once and I'd take the O' Meara any day.

Webbs

Monty can be a tough test, bunkering is severe and lines off tee boxes are hard to work out first time around. O'Meara is much more playable, wider off the tee box which may suit your 4ball better, its also the more scenic of the 2.

Personally I prefer the Monty as a better test of your all round golf.

spacecoyote

The Monty is a tougher course alright, but to be honest I find it quite bland. You're also likely to be playing off forward tees, so hitting driver probably takes a lot of the fairway bunkers out of play.

The O'Meara, in particular on the back 9, has some really nice holes that stick in the memory

Golfgorfield

These 2 are night and day.

Monty : Wide open Field, huge punishing bunkers, very long, featureless.

O Meara : Mature trees, big greens, fair bunkers, stunning run of holes from 14 to 17 .

Its a no brainer.

Joeyjoejoe43

Thanks a lot guys.. based on the feedback so far it's looking like the O'Meara course.. cheers..

prawnsambo

Golfgorfield wrote: »

These 2 are night and day.

Monty : Wide open Field, huge punishing bunkers, very long, featureless.

O Meara : Mature trees, big greens, fair bunkers, stunning run of holes from 14 to 17 .

Its a no brainer.

You could well be describing Monty there.

Golfgorfield

prawnsambo wrote: »

You could well be describing Monty there.

Monty : Wide open Field, huge punishing bunkers, very long, featureless.


I see what you mean

sector

just to say all the rough is chopped right down at the moment & with no growth you can actually hit it almost anywhere on both courses.

personally, I would go with the Monty as it has the pedigree of the Irish Opens, come back play O'Meara again then. If monty is too much off whites jump onto the greens as you go. PS if it's windy (& you know it will be, avoid Monty, it won't be handy at all!)

Dissenting view: I much prefer the Montgomerie and I am a high enough handicapper. A lot of the O'Meara is VERY humdrum parkland imho. It has a great run of holes towards the end but that's it. The Monty is nicely laid out and much more of a challenge, makes you think about your shots and is only featureless in the sense that the land is open. Bunkers are tough though as noted above.

dan_ep82

My vote is for Monty.

Played both quite close together and found Montgomerie more enjoyable. I must be the only one who likes huge bunkers.

If a good parkland is what your after I'd go with Headfort New or Kileen Castle if its too far away. Much more memorable imo.

davo10

Monty every time, love that course.

Edit; For high handicaps/not played there before, unless they want to experience the monty, o'meara might be more enjoyable for them.

Ollieboy

Monty by a mile, O’Meara is nice but take away the elevate greens ands a not a great course.

But everyone to their own.

thewobbler

Deleted User wrote: »

Dissenting view: I much prefer the Montgomerie and I am a high enough handicapper. A lot of the O'Meara is VERY humdrum parkland imho. It has a great run of holes towards the end but that's it. The Monty is nicely laid out and much more of a challenge, makes you think about your shots and is only featureless in the sense that the land is open. Bunkers are tough though as noted above.

Agree entirely.

Monty is unusual and that makes it a must play.

O’Meata is an okay course that gets undue praise for a handful of holes.

ziggy

This post has been deleted.

Joeyjoejoe43

Thanks everyone for the feedback. It's closer to 50/50 now with the recent comments..

Good recommendation on Killen Castle too, a fine track indeed.. bu t hands are tied as I've bought some deals on golfdeals.ie... great deal to be fair... 2 ball, buggy, range balls and a welcome pack for €119 on either course at Carton... the catch is it's Sunday to Thursday and must be used by 24th August.. but that suits us, so happy days..

Benicetomonty

Would be monty for me but O Meara very pleasant as well, certainly the more picturesque of the 2. I will add that having played the O Meara a couple of weeks ago, you forget how long a walk it is. Getting to the new 1st tee is a hike and there are significant distances between greens and tees. Also some serious hills to conquer at the end of each 9; the walk from the 16th green to the 17th tee in particular is a killer!

Monty gets described as a slog a lot but youl be wrecked after the O meara.

IITYWYBMAD

I played the medal on the O'Meara yesterday. The greens were running at their fastest, the pins were well tucked away and there was a bit more give in the ground, so you weren't getting 40+ yards of run. The course was very challenging, and I think you'll find it difficult to better around the local area. Having said that, the Monty is a different beast.

True, the rough has been cut back, but they are in the process of growing it in and the World Amateur Championship kicks off on the 29th of August, so you can assured that both courses will be at peak level in August.

My choice would be the Monty. It's pretty unique in terms of inland courses, and while it'll be a challenge for the higher handicap golfer, it's one that is quite fair.