Golf Courses at Night

Cian O’Regan Photography Blog

Photographing Ireland’s Golf Courses Under The Stars

I’m currently embarking on an ambitious project to capture some of Ireland’s most famous golf courses under the night sky - from the Old Head of Kinsale to Royal County Down.

Despite COVID-19 travel restrictions, I’m looking forward to being able to travel outside the 20km radius next month to really get this project going!

So far, I’ve been fortunate to be able to photograph the stunning 5th, 6th and 7th holes at my local club, Cork Golf Club, in Little Island. I hope you like the images I’ve taken there so far, and don’t forget that if you’d like to order a print of one of the images, please visit my portfolio where you can order the photos featured here and more!

Fota Island Resort

18th Hole

The famous clubhouse at Fota Island Golf Club under the stars captured in this image from the back of the 18th green on the Deerpark Course on May 28. Order here.

Order this photo here.

Cork Golf Club

Designed by Augusta’s genius Alister MacKenzie and recently enhanced for the modern golfer – Cork Golf Club is sculpted from historic limestone quarries and unfolds magnificently along the banks of the City’s inner harbour.

5th Hole

The image above (available to order here) captures the International Space Station (ISS) with a crew of 3 onboard flying high and fast over the 5th green at Cork Golf Club in this image captured in the early morning hours of May 15, 2020.

What surprises me most about this image is that the Milky Way was also visible to the naked eye - which I certainly was not expecting just 8km from Cork City centre!

The longest hole on the course, this classic Par 5 requires a long and straight drive off the tee to have any chance of coming away with a score on this hole. The fairway undulates and is bounded on the right by the River Lee to a peninsula green which makes for a formidable approach shot.

Order this photo here.

6th Hole

A feature hole where the blind drive should be placed to the right of a prominent limestone promontory known locally as ‘Spion Kop’. Accuracy off the tee is essential as a misdirected drive can easily find the gorse and hawthorn on either side. A fiendishly difficult second is required to the narrow, double-plateau green with sharp falls off on both sides. Any timidity invariably leads to a missed green and a difficult chip. This is the only hole on the course without bunkers. It doesn’t need them!

Order this photo here.

The above image captures the tiered 6th green beneath the North Star, Polaris, in this ‘startrail’ image taken over the course of 30 minutes on a clear night in May 2020.

7th Hole

The 7th is the first Par 3 facing golfers at Little Island with the tee shot usually played into the prevailing south-westerly wind. The green is large with a severe slope in front, bunkers on the left and a deep valley on the right.

A panoramic view from the 7th tee box at night. You can order this photo here.