The Maidstone Club is a private

country club A country club is a privately-owned Club (organization), club, often with a membership quota and admittance by invitation or sponsorship, that generally offers both a variety of recreational sports and facilities for dining and entertaining. Ty ...

on the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...

in the village of

East Hampton, New York East Hampton is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in southeastern Suffolk County, New York United States. It is located at the eastern end of the South Shore (Long Island), South Shore of Long Island. It is the easternmost town i ...

. Maidstone has both an 18-hole and nine-hole private golf course. The architect of the

golf course A golf course is the grounds on which the sport of golf is played. It consists of a series of holes, each consisting of a teeing ground, tee box, a #Fairway and rough, fairway, the #Fairway and rough, rough and other hazard (golf), hazards, and ...

's club house was Roger Bullard.

History

The club derives its name from the original name for East Hampton, which was ''Maidstone'', named after

Maidstone Maidstone is the largest Town status in the United Kingdom, town in Kent, England, of which it is the county town. Maidstone is historically important and lies east-south-east of London. The River Medway runs through the centre of the town, l ...

in England. It was founded as a 7-hole course in 1894 and expanded to 18 holes in 1899. The club was the summer retreat of New York City’s most wealthy and socially connected families. Maidstone is considered to be the most elite, prestigious and difficult to get into of all the clubs in the Hamptons. Jews were not admitted as members until the late 1970s. Through the 1990s and early 2000s, journalists reported that there were no Black members. Several notable people have inquired about membership over the years and were summarily prevented from joining the club. In the 1950s,

Groucho Marx Julius Henry "Groucho" Marx (; October 2, 1890 – August 19, 1977) was an American comedian, actor, writer, and singer who performed in films and vaudeville on television, radio, and the stage. He is considered one of America's greatest comed ...

was able to play as a member guest but was turned down as a potential member.

George Plimpton George Ames Plimpton (March 18, 1927 – September 25, 2003) was an American writer. He is known for his sports writing and for helping to found ''The Paris Review'', as well as his patrician demeanor and accent. He was known for " participat ...

and

Diana Ross Diana Ross (born Diane Ernestine Earle Ross March 26, 1944) is an American singer and actress. Known as the "Queen of Motown Records", she was the lead singer of the vocal group the Supremes, who became Motown#Major divisions, Motown's most suc ...

were also shunned. Ross was married to billionaire Norwegian shipping magnate Arne Næss, Jr., a member at Maidstone, however he resigned when his wife was denied membership.

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

was a temporary member in the early 1980s, but was turned down as a permanent member. Willie Dunn laid out the first course in 1894; it was but a rudimentary seven-hole layout. Seth Raynor drew up re-design plans in 1921. Then in 1924

Willie Park, Jr. William Park Jr. (4 February 1864 – 22 May 1925) was a Scottish professional golfer. He won The Open Championship twice. Park was also a successful golf equipment maker and golf writer. In his later years, Park built a significant career as on ...

and his brother Jack designed the Gardiner Peninsula addition. The expansion resulted in the club having two 18-hole courses, but this was reduced to the current 27-hole layout by the

hurricane of 1938 The 1938 New England Hurricane (also referred to as the Great Long Island - New England Hurricane and the Long Island Express) was one of the deadliest and most destructive tropical cyclones to strike the United States. The storm formed near th ...

Ben Crenshaw Ben Daniel Crenshaw (born January 11, 1952) is a retired American professional golfer who has won 19 events on the PGA Tour, including two major championships: the Masters Tournament in 1984 and 1995. He is nicknamed '' Gentle Ben''. Early lif ...

performed extensive renovations in 2012. The Parks' routing on the 80 acres on Gardiner’s Peninsula and the remaining 50 acres introduces multiple hazards at various angles, including a

marsh In ecology, a marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous plants rather than by woody plants.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p More in genera ...

, Hook Pond,

sand dunes A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, flat ...

, beach grass, reeds, well-placed bunkers, out of bounds and the ever-present wind. In 2014, Maidstone was ranked #37 in ''

Golf Magazine ''Golf Magazine'' is a monthly golf magazine. One of the first "special interest" magazines of its kind, it was started in April 1959 by Arnold Abramson and Robert Abramson, the owners of Universal Publishing and Distributing Corporation, who sol ...

''s "Top 100 Courses in the U.S." list, and #67 in their "Top 100 Courses in the World" list.

West Course scorecard

Facilities

The Maidstone Club features a private beach, pool, tennis house, and club house in addition to the golf course.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Golf Club Atlas Description of Course

Maidstone Club - LongIslandGolfNews.com
1891 establishments in New York (state) East Hampton (town), New York Golf clubs and courses in New York (state) Sports venues in Long Island Sports venues in Suffolk County, New York