The one area where these two English clubs differ is in hosting a competition. Swinley Forest has no interest in such a thing where as Rye Golf Club on the south east coast of England is the home to the finest kind of an amateur tournament – The President’s Putter, contested every January since 1920 except for the War years.

A who’s-who has played in Putter over the years – Roger Wethered, Bernard Darwin, G.H. Micklem, Donald Steele, L.G. Crawley, Sandy Tatum, A. Croome, Patric Dickinson, the list goes on and on. As Dickinson once remarked, it may be 'perhaps the last remaining competition which is played by the vast majority of the entrants for the fun of the game.'

The January date of the President’s Putter indicates one sure thing about Rye – it is a winter course. Indeed, it is a better winter course than a summer one as the two authors can personally attest.

One author played the course in August. The fairways were bone dry with little grass and a 'fresh' breeze (ie 40mph) meant the ball would roll and roll until it either went into a bunker, or scrub, or bush, or simply disappeared. Breaking 100 was almost beyond reach on this par 68 course.

The other author played it in December on a typically empty day and could not have had a more enjoyable time. The ever present breeze was still about but the fairways had just the right amount of run - shots got what they deserved. In the end, he left the course having hit every shot, some downwind, some into the wind, most across wind and generally from every sloping lie imaginable. In short, the best characteristics of a true links course were on display that cold winter’s day.

Holes to Note:

4^th hole, 410 yards; It is impossible to make a hole harder than to route it along the top of a sand dune with evil falling on any shot less than straight. A tee ball missed right or left falls off the dune into God only knows. The green itself remains on top of the same dune line and any approach missed right falls away as well. The green is pitched sharply toward the golfer, so putting is no solace.

Looking down the 6th fairway, after having cleared the
dune on the left with your tee ball

6^th hole, 470 yards; An unconventional hole in that the tee shot plays at a 45 degree angle over the central ridge with a guide post as a directional marker. Once in the fairway, the golfer may draw a level stance but the green is still a long way away. Four bunkers come out fifty yards from the front of the green and help determine just how well you did place the tee shot.

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