Portmarnock Golf Club in move to finally admit women

Portmarnock Golf Club is set to admit women as members

March 11 2021 02:30 AM

Portmarnock Golf Club will take a giant step towards changing its rules and admitting women as members at a special general meeting to be held at the end of this month.

The online meeting on March 31 is designed to lay the groundwork that would allow the members of the men-only north Dublin club to remove the gender clause from in its rules.

Founded in 1894, the club cannot host publicly-funded events such as the Irish Open or R&A events such as the Walker Cup or the Amateur Championship as it remains men only.

The meeting will first vote to temporarily make an amendment to club rules to allow an online or postal ballot and then decide on what majority will be required to pass a motion on the gender issue.

Once that has been done, the club will set a date to vote on amending Rule 3 of the Rules of Portmarnock Golf Club, which states that “the club shall consist of members and associate members who shall be gentlemen properly elected and who shall conform with the rules of amateur status”.

It is understood there is an appetite in the club to introduce women members, so it again becomes available for top class international competition.

The club only got to host the Amateur Championship in 2019 because it was awarded the event several years before the R&A introduced its ban on men-only clubs hosting its championships.