Editing Northern Ireland (section)

==Culture==
{{Main|Culture of Northern Ireland}}
Northern Ireland shares both the [[culture of Ulster]] and the [[culture of the United Kingdom]].

[[File:Belfast waterfront.jpg|thumb|[[Odyssey Place|SSE Arena]] with 11,000 capacity on Belfast waterfront]]
Northern Ireland has witnessed rising numbers of tourists. Attractions include concert venues, cultural festivals, musical and artistic traditions, countryside and geographical sites of interest, public houses, welcoming hospitality, and sports (especially golf and fishing).<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attractions-g186469-Activities-Northern_Ireland.html |access-date=26 July 2023 |title=Things to Do in Northern Ireland |archive-date=26 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230726201641/https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attractions-g186469-Activities-Northern_Ireland.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Since 1987 public houses have been allowed to open on Sundays, despite some opposition.

[[Parades in Northern Ireland|Parades are a prominent feature]] of Northern Ireland society,<ref>[http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/issues/parade/summary.htm Parades and Marches – A Summary of the Issue] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150824111620/http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/issues/parade/summary.htm |date=24 August 2015 }}. [[Conflict Archive on the Internet]] (CAIN).</ref> more so than in the rest of Ireland or the United Kingdom. Most are held by Protestant fraternities such as the [[Orange Order]], and Ulster loyalist marching bands. Each summer, during the "marching season", these groups have hundreds of parades, [[Northern Ireland flags issue|deck streets with British flags]], bunting and specially-made arches, and light large towering bonfires in the [[Eleventh Night|"Eleventh Night" celebrations]].<ref name=bryan130>Bryan, Dominic. ''Orange Parades: The Politics of Ritual, Tradition and Control''. Pluto Press, 2000. p. 130</ref> The biggest parades are held on 12 July ([[The Twelfth]]). There is often tension when these activities take place near Catholic neighbourhoods, which sometimes leads to violence.<ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-25429676 "NI talks issues explained: flags, parades, the past and welfare reform"] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210420061257/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-25429676 |date=20 April 2021 }}. BBC News, 12 December 2014.</ref>

The [[Ulster Cycle]] is a large body of prose and verse centring on the traditional heroes of the [[Ulaid]] in what is now eastern Ulster. This is one of the four major cycles of [[Irish mythology]]. The cycle centres on the reign of [[Conchobar mac Nessa]], who is said to have been the king of Ulster around the 1st century. He ruled from [[Emain Macha]] (now Navan Fort near Armagh), and had a fierce rivalry with queen [[Medb]] and king Ailill of Connacht and their ally, [[Fergus mac Róich]], former king of Ulster. The foremost hero of the cycle is Conchobar's nephew [[Cúchulainn]], who features in the [[epic poetry|epic prose/poem]] ''An [[Táin Bó Cúailnge]]'' (The Cattle Raid of Cooley, a ''[[casus belli]]'' between Ulster and [[Connaught]]).

===Symbols===
{{See also|Northern Ireland flags issue}}
[[File:NI Assembly.svg|thumb|right|The logo for the [[Northern Ireland Assembly|Northern Ireland assembly]] is based on the flower of the [[flax]] plant.<ref name="NI logo">{{cite web |author=Northern Ireland Assembly Information Office |url=http://www.niassembly.gov.uk/io/logo.htm |title=Northern Ireland Assembly logo |publisher=Niassembly.gov.uk |access-date=13 November 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101013063735/http://www.niassembly.gov.uk/io/logo.htm |archive-date=13 October 2010}}</ref>]]
[[File:Flag of Northern Ireland (1924–1953).svg|thumb|The [[Ulster Banner]] is used to represent Northern Ireland in [[Northern Ireland national football team|association football]] and at the [[Commonwealth Games]].]]

Northern Ireland comprises a patchwork of communities whose national loyalties are represented in some areas by flags flown from flagpoles or lamp posts. The [[Union Jack]] and the former [[flag of Northern Ireland|Northern Ireland flag]] are flown in many loyalist areas, and the Tricolour, adopted by republicans as the [[flag of Ireland]] in 1916,<ref>{{cite book |title=Reactions To Irish Nationalism, 1865–1914 |editor=Alan O'Day |publisher=Hambledon Press |location=London |year=1987 |quote=With the Rising of 1916 a break took place in national symbolism which was most visibly manifested in the national flag and the anthem which the young Irish nation accepted. The demise of the Parliamentary Party stands in direct parallel to the just as rapidly diminishing power of its symbols. The green flag and 'God save Ireland' began to be discredited as symbols of constitutional nationalism and, instead, the symbols of revolutionary nationalism gained popularity as the majority of the Irish people identified themselves with the political aims of the Easter revolutionaries. The use of symbols made apparent that the occurrences of 1916 initiated a new epoch in Irish history much in the same as the Union of 1801 and the Famine of 1845–8 did. Both the national flag and the national anthem of present-day Ireland drive origins directly from the Rising. At first, it still appeared as if the revolutionaries would take over the old symbols because on the roof of their headquarters, the Dublin General Post Office, a green flag with the harp was hoisted next to the republican tricolour although with the inscription 'Irish Republic'. Even 'Got save Ireland' was sung by the revolutionaries during Easter week. But after the failure of the Rising and the subsequent executions of the leading revolutionaries the tricolour and 'The Soldier's Song' became more and more popular as symbols of the rebellion.}}</ref> is flown in some republican areas. Even kerbstones in some areas are painted red-white-blue or green-white-orange, depending on whether local people express unionist/loyalist or nationalist/republican sympathies.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/7748005.stm Vandals curbed by plastic edging] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170828162145/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/7748005.stm |date=28 August 2017 }} BBC News, 25 November 2008.</ref>

The official flag is that of the state having sovereignty over the territory, i.e. the Union Flag.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.opsi.gov.uk/sr/sr2000/20000347.htm |title=Statutory Rule 2000 No. 347 |publisher=Opsi.gov.uk |access-date=7 August 2013 |archive-date=9 December 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091209115902/http://www.opsi.gov.uk/sr/sr2000/20000347.htm |url-status=live}}</ref> The former Northern Ireland flag, also known as the "[[Ulster Banner]]" or "Red Hand Flag", is a banner derived from the coat of arms of the [[Government of Northern Ireland]] until 1972. Since 1972, it has had no official status. The Union Flag and the Ulster Banner are used exclusively by unionists. The UK flags policy states that in Northern Ireland, "The Ulster flag and the [[Saint Patrick's Saltire|Cross of St Patrick]] have no official status and, under the Flags Regulations, are not permitted to be flown from Government Buildings."<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20090618161731/http://www.parliament.uk/commons/lib/research/briefings/snpc-04474.pdf The Union Flag and Flags of the United Kingdom] House of Commons Library, 3 June 2008.</ref><ref>[http://flags.net/NOIR.htm Northern Irish flags from the World Flag Database] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170913181314/http://www.flags.net/NOIR.htm |date=13 September 2017 }}.</ref>

The [[Irish Rugby Football Union]] and the [[Church of Ireland]] have used the [[Saint Patrick's Saltire]] or "Cross of St&nbsp;Patrick". This red [[saltire]] on a white field was used to represent Ireland in the [[flag of the United Kingdom]]. It is still used by some [[British Army]] regiments. Foreign flags are also found, such as the [[Palestinian territories|Palestinian]] flags in some nationalist areas and [[Israel]]i flags in some unionist areas.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Dowd |first1=Vincent |title=Israel and the Palestinians: The Irish connection |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10294057 |access-date=25 July 2014 |work=[[BBC News]] |date=17 June 2010 |archive-date=3 September 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140903214406/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10294057 |url-status=live}}</ref>

The United Kingdom national anthem of "[[God Save the King]]" is often played at state events in Northern Ireland. At the [[Commonwealth Games]] and some other sporting events, the Northern Ireland team uses the Ulster Banner as its flag—notwithstanding its lack of official status—and the "[[Londonderry Air]]" (usually set to [[lyrics]] as "[[Danny Boy]]"), which also has no official status, as its [[national anthem]].<ref>''Sport, Nationalism and Globalization: European and North American Perspectives'' by Alan Bairner ({{ISBN|978-0791449127}}), p. 38</ref><ref>''Sport, Sectarianism and Society in a Divided Ireland'' by John Sugden and Alan Bairner ({{ISBN|978-0718500184}}), p. 60</ref> The [[Northern Ireland national football team]] also uses the Ulster Banner as its flag but uses "God Save The King" as its anthem.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.fifa.com/en/organisation/confederations/associationdetails/0%2C1483%2CNIR%2C00.html?countrycode=NIR |title=FIFA.com: Northern Ireland, Latest News |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051210203557/http://www.fifa.com/en/organisation/confederations/associationdetails/0%2C1483%2CNIR%2C00.html?countrycode=NIR |archive-date=10 December 2005}}</ref> Major [[Gaelic Athletic Association]] matches are opened by the national anthem of the Republic of Ireland, "{{Lang|ga|[[Amhrán na bhFiann]]|italic=no}} (The Soldier's Song)", which is also used by most other all-Ireland sporting organisations.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/csc/reports/sugdenharvie/sugdenharvie95-3.htm |title=Sport and Community Relations in Northern Ireland 3.2 Flags and Anthems |author1=John Sugden |author2=Scott Harvie |name-list-style=amp |year=1995 |access-date=26 May 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140502190044/http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/csc/reports/sugdenharvie/sugdenharvie95-3.htm |archive-date=2 May 2014}}</ref> Since 1995, the [[Ireland rugby union team]] has used a specially commissioned song, "[[Ireland's Call]]" as the team's anthem. The Irish national anthem is also played at Dublin home matches, being the anthem of the host country.<ref>{{cite news |quote=the band played ''Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika'' and ''Die Stem'' for the Springboks and "Soldier's Song", the national anthem that is otherwise known as ''Amhran na bhFiann'', and "Ireland's Call", the team's official rugby anthem. |url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-103809383.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121104100940/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-103809383.html |archive-date=4 November 2012 |author=Peter Berlin |work=International Herald Tribune |date=29 December 2004 |access-date=26 May 2008 |title=Long Unsung Teams Live up to Anthems: Rugby Union}}</ref>

[[Northern Irish murals]] have become well-known features of Northern Ireland, depicting past and present events and documenting peace and cultural diversity. Almost 2,000 murals have been documented in Northern Ireland since the 1970s.

===Media and communications===
{{Main|Media of Northern Ireland|Mass media in the Republic of Ireland}}
[[File:BBC Broadcasting House, Belfast, October 2010 (01).JPG|thumb|upright|[[Broadcasting House, Belfast]], home of [[BBC Northern Ireland]]]]

The [[BBC]] has a division called [[BBC Northern Ireland]] with headquarters in Belfast and operates [[BBC One Northern Ireland]] and [[BBC Two Northern Ireland]]. As well as broadcasting standard UK-wide programmes, BBC NI produces local content, including a news break-out called [[BBC Newsline]]. The [[ITV (TV network)|ITV]] franchise in Northern Ireland is [[UTV (TV channel)|UTV]]. The state-owned [[Channel 4]] and the privately owned [[Channel 5 (British TV channel)|Channel 5]] also broadcast in Northern Ireland. Access is also available to satellite and cable services.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ukfree.tv/txdetail.php?a=IJ287750 |title=Freeview on Divis TV transmitter &#124; ukfree.tv – independent free digital TV advice |publisher=ukfree.tv |access-date=23 August 2011 |archive-date=14 September 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140914001028/http://www.ukfree.tv/txdetail.php?a=IJ287750 |url-status=live}}</ref> All Northern Ireland viewers must obtain a UK [[Television licensing in the United Kingdom|TV licence]] to watch live television transmissions or use [[BBC iPlayer]].

[[RTÉ]], the national broadcaster of the Republic of Ireland, is available over the air to most parts of Northern Ireland via reception overspill of the Republic's [[Saorview]] service,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.irish-tv.com/ccarn.asp |title=Over forty years of Irish TV History |publisher=Irish TV |access-date=23 August 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927121409/http://www.irish-tv.com/ccarn.asp |archive-date=27 September 2011}}</ref> or via satellite and cable. Since the digital TV switchover, [[RTÉ One]], [[RTÉ2]] and the Irish-language channel [[TG4]], are now available over the air on the UK's [[Freeview (UK)|Freeview]] system from transmitters within Northern Ireland.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.advanced-television.com/index.php/2010/12/21/rte-and-tg4-on-freeview-hd-in-northern-ireland/ |title=RTÉ and TG4 on Freeview HD in Northern Ireland |publisher=Advanced Television |date=21 December 2010 |access-date=23 August 2011 |archive-date=27 September 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927035358/http://www.advanced-television.com/index.php/2010/12/21/rte-and-tg4-on-freeview-hd-in-northern-ireland/ |url-status=live}}</ref> Although they are transmitted in standard definition, a Freeview HD box or television is required for reception.

As well as the standard UK-wide radio stations from the BBC, Northern Ireland is home to many local radio stations, such as [[Cool FM]], [[Q Radio Network|Q Radio]], [[Downtown Radio]] and [[U105]]. The BBC has two regional radio stations which broadcast in Northern Ireland, [[BBC Radio Ulster]] and [[BBC Radio Foyle]].

Besides the UK and Irish national newspapers, there are three main regional newspapers published in Northern Ireland. These are the ''[[Belfast Telegraph]]'', ''[[The Irish News]]'' and ''[[The News Letter]]''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.world-newspapers.com/northern-ireland.html |title=Northern Ireland Newspapers |publisher=World-newspapers.com |access-date=23 August 2011 |archive-date=20 May 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180520010834/http://www.world-newspapers.com/northern-ireland.html |url-status=live}}</ref> According to the [[Audit Bureau of Circulations (UK)]] the average daily circulation for these three titles in 2018 was:
:{| class="sortable wikitable"
! Title !! Market type !! Print time !! Political alignment !! Format !! Circulation Jan–Jun 2018<ref name="ABC Northern Ireland">{{cite web |title=ABC Northern Ireland |url=https://www.abc.org.uk/product?a=abc&search=northern+ireland |access-date=25 October 2018 |archive-date=25 October 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181025190010/https://www.abc.org.uk/product?a=abc&search=northern+ireland |url-status=live}}</ref>!!Circulation Jul–Dec 2018<ref name="ABC Northern Ireland"/>
|-
| ''[[Belfast Telegraph]]'' || Regional || Morning || Non-Sectarianism/British Unionism || Compact || 35,931 || 33,951
|-
| ''[[The Irish News]]'' || Regional || Morning || Irish nationalism || Compact || 33,647 || 32,315
|-
| ''[[News Letter]]'' || Regional || Morning || British unionism || Tabloid || 13,374 || 12,499
|}

Northern Ireland uses the same telecommunications and postal services as the rest of the United Kingdom at standard domestic rates and there are no mobile roaming charges between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www2.royalmail.com/customer-service/service-updates/northern-ireland |title=Royal Mail Customer Service – Offering help and advice |publisher=.royalmail.com |access-date=23 August 2011 |archive-date=2 May 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140502231116/http://www2.royalmail.com/customer-service/service-updates/northern-ireland |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.btnorthernireland.com/ |title=BT in Northern Ireland &#124; At home |publisher=Btnorthernireland.com |access-date=23 August 2011 |archive-date=1 August 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150801051419/http://btnorthernireland.com/ |url-status=live}}</ref> People in Northern Ireland who live close to the border with the Republic of Ireland may inadvertently switch over to the Irish mobile networks, causing international roaming fees to be applied.<ref>{{cite web |author=Southgate Amateur Radio Club |url=http://www.southgatearc.org/news/jan2005/comreg_ofcom.htm |title=Comreg and Ofcom publish first report on cross-border telecoms issues |publisher=Southgatearc.org |access-date=23 August 2011 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120915122648/http://www.southgatearc.org/news/jan2005/comreg_ofcom.htm |archive-date=15 September 2012}}</ref> Calls from landlines in Northern Ireland to numbers in the Republic of Ireland are charged at the same rate as those to numbers in Great Britain, while landline numbers in Northern Ireland can similarly be called from the Republic of Ireland at domestic rates, using the [[Telephone numbers in the Republic of Ireland#Calls to Northern Ireland|048]] prefix.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.askcomreg.ie/tell_us/calling_northern_ireland___use_the_048_code_to_call_fixed_line_numbers.238.LE.asp |title=Calling Northern Ireland – Use the 048 code to call fixed-line numbers |date=1 March 2007 |publisher=[[Commission for Communications Regulation]] |access-date=18 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151108022756/http://www.askcomreg.ie/tell_us/calling_northern_ireland___use_the_048_code_to_call_fixed_line_numbers.238.LE.asp |archive-date=8 November 2015}}</ref>

===Sports===
{{Main|Sport in Northern Ireland}}
[[File:Windsor Park redevelopment .jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.6|[[Windsor Park]], the home stadium of the [[Northern Ireland national football team]]]]
[[File:Rory McIlroy watches drive flight (crowd, landscape orientation).jpg|thumb|Prominent Northern Irish golfer [[Rory McIlroy]]]]

Many sports are organised on an [[all-Ireland]] basis, with a single governing body or team for the whole island.<ref name="theherald1">[http://www.heraldscotland.com/how-do-other-sports-in-the-island-cope-with-the-situation-1.877873 How do other sports in the island cope with the situation?] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150610005104/http://www.heraldscotland.com/how-do-other-sports-in-the-island-cope-with-the-situation-1.877873 |date=10 June 2015 }} The Herald, 3 April 2008</ref> The most notable exception is association football (soccer), which has a separate governing body, league and national team for Northern Ireland.<ref name="theherald1"/><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.sportni.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/1.-List-Of-Recognised-Governing-Bodies.pdf |access-date=22 July 2023 |title=Sporting Activities and Governing Bodies Recognised by the Sports Councils |archive-date=22 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230722181712/http://www.sportni.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/1.-List-Of-Recognised-Governing-Bodies.pdf}}</ref>

The [[Irish Football Association]] (IFA) serves as the organising body for men's domestic and national association football in Northern Ireland, it is a member of the [[International Football Association Board]] which sets the rules for association football.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theifab.com/organisation/ |title=The International Football Association Board |archive-date=8 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230908152411/https://www.theifab.com/organisation/}}</ref> The [[NIWFA]] are responsible for women's domestic and national association football in Northern Ireland.

The [[NIFL Premiership]] is a professional men's football league which operates at the highest division of the [[Northern Ireland Football League]], the current format has been organised with 12 clubs. The winners will enter the first qualifying round of the [[UEFA Champions League|Champions League]], if they do not progress they will enter the [[Europa League]] or [[Europa Conference League]] depending on performance. The two runners-up progress to the Europa Conference League with play-offs for another Europa Conference League position.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sport/football/european/what-does-new-uefa-competition-mean-for-the-irish-league-all-you-need-to-know-about-the-europa-conference-league/39568156.html |title=What does new UEFA competition mean for the Irish League? |newspaper=Belfasttelegraph.co.uk |date=June 2021 |archive-date=8 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230908151614/https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sport/football/european/what-does-new-uefa-competition-mean-for-the-irish-league-all-you-need-to-know-about-the-europa-conference-league/39568156.html}}</ref> The [[Women's Premiership (Northern Ireland)|NLFL Women's Premiership]] is a professional women's football league which operates at the highest division in Northern Ireland with 10 clubs. The winner qualifies for a spot in the [[UEFA Women's Champions League]]. The men's [[Northern Ireland national football team]] qualified for the [[1958 FIFA World Cup]], [[1982 FIFA World Cup]] and [[1986 FIFA World Cup]], making it to the quarter-finals in 1958 and 1982 and made it the first knockout round in the [[UEFA European Championship|European Championships]] in 2016.

The [[Irish Rugby Football Union|IRFU]] is the governing body for the sport of Rugby Union on the island of Ireland (Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland).<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.irishrugby.ie/irfu/about/irfu-committee/ |access-date=15 August 2023 |title=IRFU - About |archive-date=15 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230815102150/https://www.irishrugby.ie/irfu/about/irfu-committee/}}</ref> Rugby in Northern Ireland is run within the historic province of [[Ulster]] which includes Northern Ireland plus 3 counties from the Republic of Ireland - Donegal, Cavan and Monaghan.

The [[Ireland national rugby league team]] has participated in the [[Rugby League Emerging Nations Tournament|Emerging Nations Tournament]] (1995), the Super League World Nines (1996), the World Cup (2000, 2008, 2013, 2017, 2021), European Nations Cup (since 2003) and Victory Cup (2004). The Ireland A rugby league team competes annually in the Amateur Four Nations competition (since 2002) and the St Patrick's Day Challenge (since 1995).

The [[Ireland cricket team]] represents both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. It is a full member of the [[International Cricket Council]], having been granted [[Test cricket|Test status]] and full membership by the ICC in June 2017. The side competes in Test cricket, the highest level of competitive cricket in the international arena, and is one of the 12 full-member countries of the ICC. Ireland men's side has played in the [[Ireland at the Cricket World Cup|Cricket World Cup]] and [[ICC Men's T20 World Cup|T20 World Cup]] and has won the [[ICC Intercontinental Cup]] four times. The [[Ireland women's cricket team|women's side]] has played in the [[Women's Cricket World Cup|Women's World Cup]]. One of the men's side's regular international venues is [[Stormont (cricket ground)|Stormont]] in Belfast.

The governing body for golf on the island of Ireland is [[Golf Ireland]], it is the successor to the Golfing Union of Ireland, governing body for men's and boy's amateur golf, and the oldest golfing union in the world, which was founded in Belfast in 1891, and the Irish Ladies Golf Union. Northern Ireland's golf courses include the [[Royal Belfast Golf Club]] (the earliest, formed in 1881), [[Royal Portrush Golf Club]], which is the only course outside Great Britain to have hosted [[The Open Championship]], and [[Royal County Down Golf Club]] (''[[Golf Digest]]'' magazine's top-rated course outside the United States).<ref>{{cite book |last=Redmond |first=John |title=The Book of Irish Golf |page=10 |publisher=Pelican Publishing Company |year=1997}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.golfdigest.com/golf-courses/golf-courses/2009-05/100greatestinternational_golfcourses?currentPage=2 |access-date=21 June 2010 |title=The Best of the Rest: A World of Great Golf |year=2009 |publisher=Golf Digest |page=2 |archive-date=4 June 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604155048/http://www.golfdigest.com/golf-courses/golf-courses/2009-05/100greatestinternational_golfcourses?currentPage=2 |url-status=live}}</ref> Northern Ireland had three major champions in the space of just 14 months from the [[U.S. Open (golf)|U.S. Open]] in [[2010 U.S. Open (golf)|2010]] to [[The Open Championship]] in [[2011 Open Championship|2011]]. Notable golfers include [[Fred Daly (golfer)|Fred Daly]] (winner of The Open in [[1947 Open Championship|1947]]), [[Ryder Cup]] players [[Ronan Rafferty]] and [[David Feherty]], leading [[European Tour]] professionals [[David Jones (golfer)|David Jones]], [[Michael Hoey (golfer)|Michael Hoey]] (a five-time winner on the tour) and [[Gareth Maybin]], as well as three recent major winners [[Graeme McDowell]] (winner of the U.S. Open in 2010, the first European to do so since 1970), [[Rory McIlroy]] (winner of five [[Men's major golf championships|majors]]) and [[Darren Clarke]] (winner of The Open in 2011).<ref>{{cite news |work=Daily News |location=New York |title=Northern Ireland's Graeme McDowell wins U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, ends European losing streak |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/more_sports/2010/06/20/2010-06-20_northern_irelands_graeme_mcdowell_wins_us_open_at_pebble_beach_ends_european_los.html#ixzz0sG74YZKd |last=Gagne |first=Matt |access-date=29 June 2010 |date=20 June 2010 |archive-date=24 August 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100824044014/http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/more_sports/2010/06/20/2010-06-20_northern_irelands_graeme_mcdowell_wins_us_open_at_pebble_beach_ends_european_los.html#ixzz0sG74YZKd}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |author=Lawrence Donegan at Congressional |url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2011/jun/20/rory-mcilroy-us-open |title=US Open 2011: Remarkable Rory McIlroy wins by eight shots &#124; Sport |work=The Guardian |location=UK |access-date=23 August 2011 |date=20 June 2011 |archive-date=28 May 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130528134011/http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2011/jun/20/rory-mcilroy-us-open |url-status=live}}</ref> Northern Ireland has also contributed several players to the Great Britain and Ireland [[Walker Cup]] team, including [[Alan Dunbar]] and Paul Cutler who played on the victorious 2011 team in Scotland. Dunbar also won [[The Amateur Championship]] in 2012, at Royal Troon.