Catherine Martin brought four officials to Ryder Cup showpiece in Italy 

The tab for the minister and her partner’s four-night stay was picked up by Ryder Cup Europe, a private limited company and the joint shareholder and rights holder to the Ryder Cup, with the PGA of America — a business venture worth an estimated €500m. Mr Duffy paid for his own travel arrangements, while those of the delegation were covered by the Department. 

This week Ms Martin ordered the widening of an investigation into RTÉ by forensic accountants Mazars, who are examining spending at the broadcaster, governance, and a range of corporate hospitality issues.

Ms Martin also attended the 2021 Ryder Cup at Whistling Straits, Wisconsin — on that occasion bringing three officials for the trans-Atlantic visit.

A spokesperson for her department confirmed that amongst those in the party travelling to Rome was an assistant secretary general, the principal officer who heads the major sports events division of the department, the minister’s policy adviser, along with her private secretary.

The department told the Irish Examiner that the visit to Italy was “in the context of the important role [the minister’s] department will play in hosting the Ryder Cup in 2027”.

The DP World Tour, which is represented by the European team, confirmed that “Ryder Cup Europe covered the delegation’s rooms and hospitality, but they paid for their own flights”.

The department did not give details on where the delegation stayed, or on the overall costs of the trip, details which it said “have yet to be finalised”.

In a lengthy statement to this newspaper, the department outlined the minister’s itinerary, including the meetings and gatherings attended by Ms Martin and her party throughout their stay in Rome.

It included ministerial attendance at the opening ceremony on Thursday evening, to the victory presentation and handover from Rome to Ryder Cup 2025 host venue, Bethpage Black in New York.

“Ryder Cup 2023 offered an important opportunity, in this context, to fully understand the scale and complexity of hosting the event and to meet with key stakeholders involved with it,” the department said.

“The Minister attended both opening and closing ceremonies, as well as the official handover event.

“She met with Ryder Cup Europe and the European Tour (DP World Tour) to discuss ongoing planning for the 2027 hosting of the event in Ireland.

“At the course, she visited the Tourism Ireland/Limerick promotional stand and met with the respective teams working on the Ryder Cup 2027 project.

“She also met with Golf Ireland and did a tourism promotional interview at the media tent with a US-based golf travel journalist.”

In addition, the minister also attended and addressed a Tourism Ireland marketing and networking ‘Irish night’ event on Thursday evening in Rome, attended a Friday cultural reception at the Irish embassy, and met with the chairperson of Tourism Ireland. 

The department said that officials had meetings with the teams responsible for previous European iterations, including those at Celtic Manor in Wales (2010) and at Gleneagles in Scotland (2014).

“Meetings were also held with Golf Ireland to discuss potential participation legacy post-2027 and with other golf event stakeholders regarding possible other events that could take place in Ireland in the future.”

On the overall and related cost of the trip, excluding the minister’s hotel stay, the department added: “Ryder Cup Europe supplied and covered the cost of the event passes and the hotel accommodation.

“The Department paid for the Minister and the delegation’s flights to and from Rome.

“The costs for the flights of the Minister and four officials, and related costs have yet to be finalised.”

The department finished by saying: “The Minister’s husband attended as her guest. He travelled independently of the delegation to and from Rome at his own expense, with no related costs for the Department.”

Golf is a significant revenue stream for the exchequer, with an estimated value of €300m per annum from inbound visitors, mainly from North America.

While the minister’s presence at certain international golf events sends out a strong message to potential investors, the need to bring such a large entourage, and to accept complimentary corporate hospitality and accommodation may come under focus. 

It is understood the minister was in Paris the previous weekend for an official visit to the city which included attendance at Ireland’s pool win over South Africa at the Rugby World Cup.

- This article was amended following contact from the Department on 4 October to clarify that Catherine Martin and Francis Noel Duffy did not stay at the Marco Simone Golf Resort. The Department has not confirmed where they did stay. The article was amended to say that one adviser and three department officials travelled with the minister. It originally described the party as 'four advisers'.