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Golf courses in Ireland can reopen on a restricted basis May 18, part of Taoiseach Leo Varadkar’s plans for a controlled reopening of social and economic life in the island nation in the wake of stricter coronavirus lockdowns than were implemented in much of the United States.
But don’t plan on jumping on an airplane and heading over from the United States just yet – it will be months before hotels open.
“The golf community in Ireland welcomes the Taoiseach’s confirmation that our clubs can reopen on a restricted basis in the first phase of the government’s plan to ease the COVID-19 restrictions,” said Mark Kennelly, CEO of ruling body Golf Ireland, as reported by golfnet.ie. “This means that golf will be one of the first sports to resume and will give golf club members the opportunity to return to play on a limited but safe basis.
“Golf offers the potential to play a significant role in the recovery from this crisis in public health terms. Our sport provides a valuable outlet for healthy outdoor activity which can be enjoyed with the appropriate safety measures in place. … We wish to acknowledge the tremendous efforts being made by frontline workers across Ireland whose commitment and dedication to caring for those inflicted with COVID-19 has led us to a point where we can begin to consider a return to activities such as golf.”
The combined ruling bodies of golf in Ireland – Golf Ireland, the Irish Ladies Golf Union and the Golfing Union of Ireland – are working with the government to establish safety protocols as the sport reopens. They expect to make announcements on those protocols in the coming week.
The easing of restrictions, which have been in place since March, is dependent on continued progress in fighting the pandemic. If all goes well, total reopening will occur in five stages, each three weeks apart. Hotels will not be permitted to open until phase 4, possibly in July, according to a Reuters report.
“Our plan is to re-open the country in a slow, staged, phased way,” Varadkar said, as reported by the Irish Times.
In the meantime, if you need a fix of Irish golf, check out this dream tour of Irish courses from Dublin to Belmullet last year.
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