Royal Cinque Ports

Royal Cinque Ports
Kevin Murray
3 Photos

Royal Cinque Ports

  • Course Type

    Semi-Private
  • GOLF Top 100 World Rank (2023-24)

    100
  • Year

    1919
  • Architect

    Henry Hunter/James Braid, 1919; Guy Campbell/Henry Cotton, 1946
  • Par

    72
  • Yardage

    7367

Course Overview

A former Open venue often referred to as Deal, Cinque Ports is on the English Channel, a few miles south of Royal St. George’s. But the properties couldn’t be more different. St. George’s is the bigger, more sprawling of the courses, while Cinque Ports was built on a thinner ribbon of land. While it doesn’t have the vastness of St. George’s, Cinque Ports has micro-contours galore that will delight links golf aficionados. The humpy-bumpy fairways are rivaled by the superlative collection of greens, from the punchbowl 3rd, to the 12th set between two ridges, to the plateau designs at 6 and 16. Bernard Darwin famously deemed the dip before the 16th green to be “the valley of inglorious security.” To his point, you might initially be happy to see your ball at the base of the green in two, but trying to stick the elevated green from a tight lie is no small task.

3 things to know

  • Hole everyone talks about

    No. 16, par-5, 549 yards: It’s lengthy, but its true defense is its elevated green.
  • Best non-golf amenity

    The clubhouse balcony. Grab a pint and grab some fresh air as you review your round.
  • Insider tip

    Save time for the dining at Royal Cinque Ports. The preparation and tastes are world-class.