Emirates Flies into Irish Open Action

Photo: Jorg Dichmann

Emirates, the Official Airline of the Irish Open, is making final preparations for its newest Irish sponsorship, with the finishing touches being put to the international carrier’s two marquees and course branding, which have already been spotted on the grounds of Royal Portrush Golf Club.

The Irish Open, the final three days of which have sold out, is being held for the fourth time at Royal Portrush, and the first since 1947.

“Since we launched the Emirates service in Ireland in January, we’ve been connecting thousands of people direct from Dublin to Dubai and onwards to over 120 destinations,” said Margaret Shannon, Country Manager for Ireland. 

“For four days, we’ll be making some new connections as the Emirates team meets with and welcomes the thousands of golf fans at Royal Portrush, and we are looking forward to a spectacular tournament.

“This sponsorship affirms Emirates’ commitment to the Irish market and further extends our support of a sport that brings people together from all over the world – players and spectators alike.”

It has come as no surprise that this tournament has caught the imagination of the golfing public, with local favourites Rory McIlroy, Darren Clarke and Graeme McDowell attracting many of the 100,000 spectators expected to flock through the gates at Royal Portrush. 

The stellar line-up of world-class players also includes Colin Montgomerie, Shane Lowry, Padraig Harrington, Francesco Molinari, Paul Lawrie and Keegan Bradley.

In the public area, Emirates will give golf fans a taste of the ‘Emirates Experience’ with its new club house, a 25m lounge area which will provide fans the same warm welcome passengers receive on their Emirates flights, with cabin crew offering cooling face towels, among other customised service features.

In addition, spectators will be able to keep track of the action on the course from the comfortable seating area which features a plasma screen with a live broadcast feed, in addition to accessing unique golf applications on specially-designated iPads.

The pre-tournament Pro-Am will take place on Wednesday June 27, in which a number of celebrities – including actors Bill Murray and Aidan Quinn, and singer Ronan Keating – are expected to play. Emirates will host three teams in the Pro-Am, all of whom will get the unique chance to play with internationally-renowned golfers. 

As a leading supporter of golf tournaments across the globe, Emirates is the Official Airline of 16 events in 2012, as well as the Official Partner of the European Ryder Cup Team. Nine of the tournaments it sponsors are on the European Tour International Schedule, including the Lyoness Open powered by Greenfinity, Alstom Open de France, Avantha Masters, Malaysian Open, BMW International Open, WGC-HSBC Champions, Barclays Singapore Open and Ballantine’s Championship.

It also supports the Emirates Airline Invitational, Thailand Open, Australian PGA Championship and the Emirates Australian Open, as well as the Japan Open Golf Championship (Men’s, Ladies and Seniors).

Emirates extends its support of golf by allowing passengers to check in a set of golf clubs free of charge – in addition to their normal checked baggage allowance – in any class of service on all of its flights.

Emirates flies daily from Dublin to Dubai with one of the most modern aircrafts in the world, the Boeing 777-300ER, which was introduced to the route last month, increasing capacity by over 50 per cent, because of strong demand. 

Customers departing Dublin can take advantage of the airline’s 123 destination network, travelling to places such as Australia, India, the Seychelles, Thailand and South Africa, with just one stop at Emirates’ exclusive Terminal 3 in Dubai.