The club, established in 1894 on land owned by the distiller John Jameson, saw its original 9-hole course laid out by William Pickeman, with a further nine holes added in 1896 to create the Championship course.

Following the addition of a further nine holes in 1971, today's facility is a 27-hole championship golf complex managed by Gary Johnstone with a team of 10 full-time staff, supplemented by a further six in the summer.

Of the new equipment - purchased from local Ransomes Jacobsen dealer, Kevin Broderick Ltd - Johnstone says: "The Jacobsen GP400 is an excellent triple mower.

"We have three of them, all with the three-wheel drive option and they cope really well with the slopes around the course. We use them for greens surrounds and tees and I believe they cut tighter and collect better than any other mower in this class.

"Our lightweight fairway mower, the Jacobsen SLF 1880, has 18in cutting cylinders.

"This is quite small by fairway standards but allows the units to closely follow the undulations on our links. Its smaller footprint makes it very manoeuvreable and less abrasive to the grass."

The Portmarnock club has hosted all of Ireland's major championships in the past, from the Irish Ladies Close to the Irish Open.