A taste of Ireland can be found in Rhode Island.

Byline: Jay Gearan

He's bright, funny, a good golfer. And he's Irish. No wonder Will Hanly and I got along so well.

The 20-year-old Hanly was our caddy at Newport Country Club in a recent round. Will is from Limerick, Ireland, and is studying to be a lawyer. Next month, he'll return to University College, Cork, and continue his studies. He told me he's also a rugby player for the university team.

This summer, along with his rugby teammates, Will traveled across the Atlantic to Rhode Island and got a job at this classic layout, one of the oldest, most respected golf courses in the country. Newport's logo is a simple initial design underscored by the year of its birth: 1893.

Newport is a tough, long track, and I didn't want to shoot an 1893. So, I made a few pars along the way thanks to Will's club selections and keen skills reading the greens.

His quips, seasoned with his Irish accent, added to a wonderful day.

"Will," I said, lining up a six-footer for birdie and looking for his help, "I can't leave Newport without a birdie."

"So, it's up to me?" he said kneeling behind the ball and advising a foot break left to right.

On the next green, sizing up my 10-footer for par, Will said, "Cup to the right, hit it firm." I listened and tried to do what he said. A little too far right, however.

"Aim for Jacqueline Bouvier's mansion," said Will as I stepped to the 17th tee and prepared to drive, looking in the distance for Hammersmith Farm.

Will's favorite course in Ireland is Lahinch Golf Club in County Clare. His 80-year-old grandmother is the Ladies Captain at beautiful Lahinch.

I told Will about my Irish roots, including mention of Counties Mayo and Kerry, where my grandparents were born.

I asked, "Will, how did you feel when Padraig Harrington won the British Open?"

"Delighted," Will answered.

I loved the response. "Delighted." It was so Irish, so different. No "awesome" or "great" or "unbelievable" from Will.

"American girls love the accent," said Will smiling before quickly adding, "But, I'm taken. Got a girl back home."

Newport Country Club will always have a special place in my golfing heart. Back in the late 1980s, when the present Champions Tour was called the Senior PGA Tour, the Newport Cup was one of the stops at these old links. I watched and wrote about Newport winners Miller Barber, Walt Zembriski and Jim Dent.

One of the original five founding member clubs of the United States Golf Association, Newport hosted the first U.S. Open in 1895. The course, designed by William Davis, was only nine holes then, and with his gutta-percha ball, Horace Rawlins won the 36-hole first-ever Open with scores of 91-82.

As I was putting on Newport's 10th green, I was reminded that this surface is the oldest continually used green in the U.S.

The majestic, graceful Newport clubhouse, which you can see from just about every hole on the course, although renovated over the years, still looks very much like the shingle and wood structure designed by Whitney Warren, who was very much influenced by the French architecture in the time of Louis XIII.

The famous golf architect A.W. Tillinghast remodeled the course in 1924.

In recent times, golfing fans will remember Tiger Woods winning the 1995 U.S. Amateur at Newport, and Annika Sorenstam beating Pat Hurst at Newport in a playoff in the 2006 U.S. Women's Open.

Since that Open, Newport CC is longer. From the tips, or black tees, the course stretches a challenging 6,866 yards, with several long par-4 holes, including the 449-yard 17th and the 434-yard 18th.

Like at many other courses, each hole at Newport has a name. Brenton Reef is the 15th, and Quarry is the 10th. The first hole is simply called "The First," and the 18th is simply called "Home."

When I got home, to my home course that is, my golfing buddies asked me how I felt after playing Newport.

"Delighted," I said.

ART: PHOTOS

CUTLINE: (1) Will Hanly, caddy at Newport, R.I., Country Club. (2) The Newport clubhouse, built in 1894.

PHOTOG: JAY GEARAN