“I found it amazing” – Irish Open winner on playing famous Irish golf course

For the second year in a row, Seapoint Golf Links in Louth will host the OFX Irish Legends event, which will feature some of the biggest names in the sport. Ryder Cup captains, players, and major championship winners will compete for the mightily impressive €400,000 prize.

The event takes place from Wednesday 19th to Saturday 22nd of June and is the perfect few days for lovers of golf, as well as newbies with an interest in watching some of the best players in the world display their love for the game – not to mention it also makes for a tremendous family summertime trip.

In the run-up to this year’s event, we chatted with Patrik Sjöland, a two-time winner on the European Tour and a winner last year on the Legends Tour where he was named the Barry Lane Rookie of the Year for 2023 after winning his first over 50s tournament. He began with a glowing review of the Seapoint Golf Links:

“I played it last year for the first time. I found it amazing, it is a great golf course. I thought it was a good mixture of slightly easy and quite difficult holes. I really enjoyed it, and I think I played well, I finished fourth so I was very happy with that.”

Playing in Ireland and against Irish players

One of Sjöland’s wins on the European Tour was in 2000 when he was crowned champion of the Irish Open at Ballybunion. He has spent a lot of time playing in Ireland, as well as alongside Irish players, over the years. We asked him for his thoughts on Irish golf courses and players:

“I find it really nice to play golf in Ireland. I’ve been playing the Irish Open and at the K Club for many, many years. I’ve always had a good experience while playing golf in Ireland.

“I find the Irish people really friendly, even when playing against the Irish players, I always got along very well with them. The ones I’ve played with the most: me and Pádraig Harrington came through the tour school in 1995, and have competed against each other ever since; David Higgins and I have played with quite a bit as well. Of course, when we’re on the course, we are competing, but off the course we’re good friends. It’s nice, very friendly.”

The pros (and pros) of watching the event in person

As well as Sjöland, this year’s line-up of players also includes 1999 Open Champion and two-time Ryder Cup player Paul Lawrie, as well as 29-time European Tour winner, eight-time Ryder Cup player and winning captain from the K-Club in 2006 Ian Woosnam, and there is also the defending champion the Peter Baker, who won the 2023 Irish Legends event by seven shots and will be returning the Seapoint Golf Links.

With plenty more big names still to be announced, those in attendance at the OFX Irish Legends will get the double-whammy of watching sports legends in person, while travelling across the picturesque Louth golf course. Sjöland tells us about the fans who came to watch the event last year at Seapoint Golf Links, as well as the primary appeal to younger golf fans:

“From my time there last year, there were quite a lot of people out there watching us. There were a lot of people that grew up watching us play on the main tour. I think one good thing about coming out to watch us play is that you get a little bit closer to us than you would get to the guys who are playing the Irish Open.

“It is a lot easier to approach us, I think, than approaching the guys who are playing on the regular tours. I think we’ve been there, we’ve been focused – of course, everybody still plays to win – but it is a slightly more relaxed atmosphere around us when we are playing this event. I think, for younger people who want to come out and ask us any questions or anything like that, it is easier to do that when you come out to watch us.”

Click here to secure your tickets today and see Ryder Cup Captains and Major Winners at the OFX Irish Legends, taking place at the stunning Seapoint Golf Links, Co Louth, Ireland 19th to 22nd June, 2024.