Prince's Golf Course

Prince’s Golf Club is part of a trio of magnificent links courses in the southeast of England that have all held the Open Championship, with Royal Cinque Ports and Royal St George’s being the other two.

Gene Sarazen won his only Claret Jug here in 1932, and since then Prince’s hosted the 1956 Curtis Cup and has been a regular Open Qualifying course. Here is a summary of each of the 3-nines which all boast raised greens, rippled fairways, deep bunkers and links rough.

The Shore: A par-36 measuring 3448 yards. As its name would indicate, this loop of nine holes initially follows the shoreline south. The 5th hole is the post-war 18th playing to the same green where Gene Sarazen won the 1932 Open Championship.

The Dunes: A par-36 measuring 3432 yards. This nine forms an anticlockwise loop with five out in a southerly direction to the boundary of Royal St George’s and four back. The Dunes and The Shore tend to make up the ‘championship’ course.

The Himalayas: A par-36 measuring 3201 yards. This is the members favorite nine and has recently undergone a major upgrade by renowned architects Mackenzie & Ebert. The new holes opened in May 2018 and have received rave reviews. Look out for the longest par-5 on the property, number 6 measuring 580 yards, and also the double green which the 4th and 8th share.

Did You Know?

Gene Sarazen captured 37 tour victories including 7 Majors and was the first ‘Grand Slam’ winner. He competed in the Masters from 1935 to 1973 and returned as an honorary started in 1981. He fulfilled that role until 1999 and died of pneumonia aged 97 just after that Masters.