FIANNA Fáil TD Willie O’Dea is calling on Limerick City and County Council to examine the possibilities of establishing an international golf visitor centre and museum as a tourist attraction in the city.
“With the Ryder Cup coming to Limerick in 2026, we have to look at ways of capitalising on this event and creating long term tourist revenue from this event,” Deputy O’Dea told the Limerick Post this week.
He said that the idea of the golf visitor centre and museum would be to recognise and celebrate the sport of golf throughout the world, with a strong focus on Ireland’s greatest golfers.
“It would possibly have futuristic and interactive presentations and would improve the visitor experience in Limerick. The golf visitor centre and the museum would complement the international rugby experience, being constructed on O’Connell Street and enhance Limerick’s reputation as a great sporting city.
“It is estimated that the new rugby visitor centre being built on O’Connell Street has the potential to generate €17 million in tourism revenue for the city. A new golf visitor centre and museum would also add significantly to the city’s regeneration, creating employment and business,” he added.
Last year’s Ryder Cup at Le Golf National in France attracted more than 270,000 fans on course across the week and it boosted the country’s economic activity by €235.7 million.
“A golf visitor centre and museum is one way we could capitalise on this prestigious event coming to Adare.
“Already more than 500,000 international visitors are coming to Limerick every year, with around 100,000 of them visiting King John’s Castle.
“The new golf visitor centre and museum would build on, expand and enhance the tourism offering in Limerick,” Deputy O’Dea declared.
There was no response from Limerick City and County Council at the time of going to print.
