Exciting upgrades to the Himalayas nine at Prince's in Kent

Jeremy Ellwood pays a visit to Prince's Golf Club in Kent to find out more about Martin Ebert's exciting changes to the Himalayas nine

The new par-3 5th on the Himalayas nine will be Prince's first sea-facing hole

Jeremy Ellwood pays a visit to Prince's Golf Club in Kent to find out more about Martin Ebert's exciting changes to the Himalayas nine

Upgrades to the Himalayas nine at Prince's Golf Club

Prince’s, on the Kent coast near Sandwich, gave me my first taste of links golf some 30 years ago, and was probably responsible for sparking my lifelong love affair with the seaside game.

On my recent August visit, it was in as good a condition as I’ve ever seen it, something I celebrated in style by finally hitting two good shots into the 1st on the Dunes nine, a dogleg left to a hog’s back fairway and green that provides the sternest of the three opening tests

The Shore nine was resplendent too, but the Himalayas nine was my main focus following news that renowned course architect, Martin Ebert, had been commissioned to upgrade this third loop.

Upgrade work is well underway, with the new par-3 5th hole nearing completion

The many eye-catching changes include new holes, new features and the reinstatement of the three long-lost Himalayas bunkers set in the dune ridge between the 8th and 9th holes, over which golfers played on the pre-World War II layout.

The new par-3 5th on the Himalayas nine will be Prince's first sea-facing hole

Work is well-advanced on the most striking change of all – the new par-3 5th that will finally give Prince’s a sea-facing hole. With turfing imminent, I went down to take a look, and it was great to see the green complex, with its solitary revetted bunker short left, awaiting its top coat.

A solitary revetted bunker will guard the new 5th green front left

This new hole, which will play from 120 to 160 yards, has paved the way for the 2nd and 3rd to merge into a long par 5 with less of a dogleg than the existing 2nd, while other changes will see the 8th become a potentially drivable par 4.

The existing 2nd and 3rd holes will merge into a new par 5 with less of a dogleg than the current 2nd

There will be new or more expansive wetlands alongside the 2nd, 6th and 8th holes plus several open sandy areas. Other tees are being moved to the highest dune ridges to afford better sea views. Despite the scale of the operation, everything should be finished by spring 2018, with all 27 holes remaining in play until then.

Wetlands will be added or expanded on the 2nd, 6th (picture) and 8th holes

The club was founded in 1906, and its proudest moment came in 1932 when Gene Sarazen won The Open Championship here, after introducing his revolutionary new sand iron to the world. It worked a treat! Yet despite its rich heritage, Prince’s has never been afraid to invest in improvements.

Playing 27 holes here in one day is one of links golf’s finest experiences, bettered only by staying in the Lodge and doing it all again the next day.

Perhaps best of all though is staying a couple of nights and taking advantage of a rare opportunity within these shores to play three Open Championship links within such close proximity of each other, for Royal St George's lies next door and Royal Cinque Ports, which hosted the 1909 and 1920 Opens,  just three miles to the south

Design thoughts with Martin Ebert... "At a proprietary club rather than a members’ club, when you’ve got someone who wants to do something, they’re the only people who need to make the decision, so that’s been refreshing. The brief has been to get the best out of the Himalayas that we can.

"When you add something new to something that was already good, people sometimes see it with a different set of eyes, and I think that will be the case with the new 5th hole, where the change of direction will bring a great backdrop of the sea. The idea to get tees up on to the ridges for the sea views on other holes is a great one too, but one very much generated by the guys at Prince’s.

"We'll end up with two pretty long par 5s, with the 2nd and 3rd merging into one hole, but whichever way the wind’s blowing there will be one that’s reachable and one that definitely isn’t."

Jeremy Ellwood
Contributing Editor

Jeremy Ellwood has worked in the golf industry since 1993 and for Golf Monthly since 2002 when he started out as equipment editor. He is now a freelance journalist writing mainly for Golf Monthly. He is an expert on the Rules of Golf having qualified through an R&A course to become a golf referee. He is a senior panelist for Golf Monthly's Top 100 UK & Ireland Course Rankings and has played all of the Top 100 plus 91 of the Next 100, making him well-qualified when it comes to assessing and comparing our premier golf courses. He has now played 1,000 golf courses worldwide in 35 countries, from the humblest of nine-holers in the Scottish Highlands to the very grandest of international golf resorts. He reached the 1,000 mark on his 60th birthday in October 2023 on Vale do Lobo's Ocean course. Put him on a links course anywhere and he will be blissfully content.

Jezz can be contacted via Twitter - @JezzEllwoodGolf


Jeremy is currently playing...

Driver: Ping G425 LST 10.5˚ (draw setting), Mitsubishi Tensei AV Orange 55 S shaft

3 wood: Ping G425 Max 15˚ (set to flat +1), Mitsubishi Tensei AV Orange 65 S shaft

Hybrid: Ping G425 17˚, Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro Orange 80 S shaft

Irons 3-PW: Ping i525, True Temper Dynamic Gold 105 R300 shafts

Wedges: Ping Glide 4.0 50˚ and 54˚, 12˚ bounce, True Temper Dynamic Gold 105 R300 shafts

Putter: Ping Fetch 2021 model, 33in shaft (set flat 2)

Ball: Varies but mostly now TaylorMade Tour Response