Prince’s Golf Club

Princes Golf Club is situated on the stunning Sandwich coastline in Kent, England. Here, golf vacationers can look forward to 27 holes split over three courses: Shore, Dunes, and Himalayas nines. Challenging other golfing regions in the UK, a Kent golf vacation at Prince’s allows you to play three incredibly challenging and diverse championship layouts.

Princes was the idea of Sir Harry Mallaby-Deeley, who had a vision to found a new links club that would be equally welcoming to ladies, juniors, and families. This welcoming tradition has been a feature since 1906 and is still evident today. 

Historically, the 18-hole combination of Shore and Dunes was the championship routing. However, this changed when Martin Ebert weaved his magic and brought the Himalayas nine up to the same standard, making any combination satisfactory for all players.

With the consistent improvements made to Princes Golf Club, it now sits in the same league as Royal St George’s and Royal Cinque Ports. Whether you visit on a standalone trip or as part of a wider London golf tour, you’re sure to enjoy your time at Prince’s.

Having adequate finances, unlike many clubs across Britain, the course and especially the greens were maintained during the Great War, so the club was able to quickly reopen before almost being destroyed during WWII when it served as a rifle range. As another patron, Lord Brabazon, colorfully put it, “(It was)… like throwing darts at a Rembrandt.”

The course was revitalized and reconstructed in 1950 when Sir Guy Campbell and John Morrison were able to identify and incorporate 17 of the original green complex layouts into the new 27 holes.

While it only played host venue to one Open Championship in 1932, Prince’s Golf Club produced one of the favorite winners of the Claret Jug, Gene Sarazen, in a then-record-low round of 283.

While it was his only Open victory, he won seven majors including the US Open just two weeks after returning from his historic British Open win.

He became only the second man at that time, after Bobby Jones in 1930, to hold both Open trophies in the same year.

It was a memorable Open for several other non-winners. It marked the passing of time as James Braid, then 62 years old, a former 5-time winner failed to qualify and Henry Cotton, a local favorite, menaced by a high fever and the thought that being fortified by champagne was a good idea, started well early in the first round but quickly fell too far back to contend for the prize. He would hoist the Claret Jug two years later at neighboring St George’s.