Club information | |
---|---|
Location in the United States Location in Massachusetts | |
Location | Brookline, Massachusetts |
Established | 1882, 142 years ago |
Type | Private |
Total holes | 27 |
Designed by | Willie Campbell (1895) Alex Campbell (1902) William S. Flynn (1927) |
Par | 71 |
Length | 7,033 yards (6,431 m) |
Course record | 64 |
The Country Club, located in Brookline, Massachusetts, is the oldest golf-oriented country club in the United States. [1] (The Philadelphia Cricket Club, founded in 1854, was the first country club for any sport.) It holds an important place in golf history, as it is one of the five charter clubs that founded the United States Golf Association and has hosted numerous USGA tournaments, including the 1913 U.S. Open won by then-unknown Francis Ouimet. Although the club has 1300 members, it is known for its exclusivity.
On January 14, 1882, a group of men from Boston met to form the club. [2] The club is listed on the USGA's list of the first 100 clubs in America. [3] The original club was focused on horseback-riding and other outdoor activities; the golf course was not built until 1893. For several years there were conflicts between golfers and other club members over land use; in fact the original golf course overlapped with the pre-existing race track. [4]
The golf course itself grew in several stages, and so is not the result of any one architect. The first six holes were laid out by three club members in March 1893, and the following year the Scot, Willie Campbell, was brought in as club professional. He oversaw the expansion to nine holes that summer, and to a full 18 holes by 1899 following some land acquisition. Around 1902 the Haskell golf ball became widely used, necessitating a further lengthening of the course. After an additional land purchase, two club members designed three new holes which opened in 1908. Rees Jones renovated the course further in preparation for the 1988 U.S. Open. [5]
In 1894 The Country Club was one of the five charter clubs which founded the United States Golf Association. The original purpose was to sponsor an undisputed national amateur championship, which was first held in 1895. The first U.S. Open (almost an afterthought) was held the following day. The first USGA championship held at the club was the 1902 U.S. Women's Amateur.
In 1896 the Club hired Scottish professional Alex Campbell, who would go on to serve as the head professional from 1896 to 1916. Campbell was in large part responsible for the development of caddie Francis Ouimet into a championship caliber player. [6]
The 1913 U.S. Open was held at The Country Club. The heavy favorites were English legends Harry Vardon (1900 U.S. Open winner; four-time British Open winner) and Ted Ray (reigning British Open champion). After 72 holes the pair found themselves tied with 20-year-old amateur Francis Ouimet—who had grown up across the street from the course and was a former caddy at the club—forcing an 18-hole playoff the next day. In a shocking upset, Ouimet soundly defeated the two professional golfers in front of a large gallery, and the resulting newspaper stories captured the imagination of the American public. The number of golfers in the country at least tripled in the subsequent ten years, with a corresponding increase in golf courses (including many public courses, opening up the game to a larger segment of the population). The 1963 and 1988 U.S. Opens were also held at The Country Club, the 50th and 75th anniversaries of the Ouimet victory. However, the 2013 U.S. Open, marking the 100th anniversary of Ouimet's improbable win, was contested at Merion Golf Club near Philadelphia. The Country Club instead hosted the 2013 U.S. Amateur.
The story of Francis Ouimet's triumph at the 1913 US Open was commercialized by Mark Frost’s 2002 book, The Greatest Game Ever Played: Harry Vardon, Francis Ouimet, and the Birth of Modern Golf, which Frost then adapted for a 2005 film.
The club hosted the Ryder Cup in 1999. This intense match exploded into controversy following a competition-turning 45-foot putt on the 17th green by Justin Leonard (the same green where Ouimet effectively clinched his victory), as the other American players stormed the green in celebration before José María Olazábal had a chance to attempt his own difficult putt. Olazábal was forced to regain his focus after order was restored, and missed the putt. The contest has been referred to as the "Battle of Brookline". [7]
The Country Club has long been considered the best course in Massachusetts and has hosted a record 10 Massachusetts State Amateur Championships.
The golf facilities have a total of 27 holes, divided between two courses.
The Main Course is composed of the Clyde and Squirrel nines, essentially the original 18 holes. This was the course used for the 1913 U.S. Open, and is the course played by members today.
The other nine holes are the Primrose Course, an executive course built in 1927. This was designed by William S. Flynn, who also (re)designed Shinnecock Hills, Cherry Hills Country Club near Denver, and the Cascades Course at The Homestead, and the Kittansett Club also in Massachusetts.
The Championship, Composite, Anniversary, or Open Course is used for major competitions today, when a longer layout is required. In this configuration, three and a half holes from the Primrose Course are used to replace three holes of the Clyde. Specifically, one hole from the Main Course is replaced by a composite hole that uses the teeing ground of the 1st Primrose hole and the putting surface of the 2nd Primrose hole, while two other Main holes are replaced in their entirety by the 8th and 9th Primrose holes. Today, this results in a length of over 7,300 yards. This layout was first used in the 1957 U.S. Amateur, but its routing significantly changed for the 1963 U.S. Open. The 1963 routing was used for all major events at the club through the 2013 U.S. Amateur. The Championship Course was altered again for the 2022 U.S. Open, with the par-4 4th hole of the Main Course removed and the par-3 12th hole of the Main Course added, resulting in a 7,312-yard par-70 layout. [8] [9] [10]
Year | Major | Winner | Winning score | Margin of victory | Runner(s) up | Winner's share ($) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2022 | U.S. Open (4) | Matt Fitzpatrick | 274 (–6) | 1 stroke | Scottie Scheffler Will Zalatoris | 3,150,000 |
2013 | U.S. Amateur (6) | Matt Fitzpatrick | 4 & 3 | Oliver Goss | N/A | |
1999 | Ryder Cup (1) | United States | 141⁄2 to 131⁄2 | Europe | N/A | |
1995 | U.S. Women's Amateur (3) | Kelli Kuehne | 4 & 3 | Anne-Marie Knight | N/A | |
1988 | U.S. Open (3) | Curtis Strange | 278 (–6) | Playoff | Nick Faldo | 180,000 |
1982 | U.S. Amateur (5) | Jay Sigel | 8 & 7 | David Tolley | N/A | |
1963 | U.S. Open (2) | Julius Boros | 293 (+9) | Playoff | Jacky Cupit | 17,500 |
1957 | U.S. Amateur (4) | Hillman Robbins | 5 & 4 | Dr. Frank M. Taylor | N/A | |
1941 | U.S. Women's Amateur (2) | Betty Hicks Newell | 5 & 4 | Helen Sigel | N/A | |
1934 | U.S. Amateur (3) | Lawson Little | 8 & 7 | David Goldman | N/A | |
1922 | U.S. Amateur (2) | Jess Sweetser | 3 & 2 | Chick Evans | N/A | |
1913 | U.S. Open (1) | Francis Ouimet | 304 (+12) | Playoff | Ted Ray | 300 |
1910 | U.S. Amateur (1) | William C. Fownes Jr. | 4 & 3 | Warren Wood | N/A | |
1902 | U.S. Women's Amateur (1) | Genevieve Hecker | 4 & 3 | Louisa A. Wells | N/A |
In addition, the club has five indoor tennis courts, four outdoor tennis courts including grass courts, paddle & squash courts, an Olympic-sized swimming pool with a cafe, curling, skeet shooting, skating & hockey rink. [13]
Henry William Vardon was a professional golfer from Jersey. He was a member of the Great Triumvirate with John Henry Taylor and James Braid. Vardon won The Open Championship six times, and also won the 1900 U.S. Open.
Francis DeSales Ouimet was an American amateur golfer who is frequently referred to as the "father of amateur golf" in the United States. He won the U.S. Open in 1913 and was the first non-Briton elected Captain of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1974.
Sankaty Head Golf Club is one of the easternmost golf courses in Massachusetts, perched on the edge of Nantucket Island in Siasconset, Massachusetts. The course was designed by Emerson Armstrong and opened in 1923. It is an 18-hole course. It is one of the few examples of world-class links-style golf outside of the UK. The Atlantic wraps around 270 degrees of the layout and the Sankaty Head Lighthouse looms over the front nine.
The following is a partial timeline of the history of golf.
The Greatest Game Ever Played is a 2005 American biographical sports film based on the early life of amateur golf champion Francis Ouimet and his surprise winning of the 1913 U.S. Open. The film was directed by Bill Paxton, and was his last film as a director. Shia LaBeouf plays the role of Ouimet. The film's screenplay was adapted by Mark Frost from his 2002 book, The Greatest Game Ever Played: Harry Vardon, Francis Ouimet, and the Birth of Modern Golf. It was shot in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, with the Kanawaki Golf Club, in Kahnawake, Quebec, the site of the golf sequences.
Chicago Golf Club is a private golf club in the central United States, located in Wheaton, Illinois, a suburb west of Chicago. The oldest 18-hole course in North America, it was one of the five founding clubs of the United States Golf Association (USGA) in 1894. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2020.
Edward Edgar Lowery was an American caddie, amateur golfer and multi-millionaire businessman.
Edward Rivers John Ray was a British professional golfer, one of the leading players of the first quarter of the 20th century. He won two major championships, the Open Championship in 1912 and the U.S. Open in 1920, and contended in many others. He was captain of the British team in the inaugural Ryder Cup, in 1927.
The 33rd Ryder Cup, also known as the "Battle of Brookline", was held September 24–26, 1999, in the United States at The Country Club in Brookline, Massachusetts, a suburb southwest of Boston.
Brae Burn Country Club is a country club located in Newton, Massachusetts. Brae Burn was originally a six-hole golf course but quickly evolved into a nine-hole course and then a full 18-hole course. In 1912 and 1928, Donald Ross re-designed the course, convincing the USGA to host the 1919 U.S. Open and 1928 U.S. Amateur at the club. The course has been largely stable since then other than some modifications by Geoffrey Cornish in the 1960s. In the early 21st century, however, Brae Burn has been the source of some controversies regarding the existence of a chain-link fence the club has constructed as well as "generous tax breaks" Brae Burn has received from the State of Massachusetts.
The 1988 U.S. Open was the 88th U.S. Open, held June 16–20 at The Country Club in Brookline, Massachusetts, a suburb southwest of Boston. Curtis Strange defeated Nick Faldo in an 18-hole playoff for the first of two consecutive U.S. Open titles.
The 1963 U.S. Open was the 63rd U.S. Open, held June 20–23 at The Country Club in Brookline, Massachusetts, a suburb southwest of Boston. Julius Boros won his second U.S. Open title in an 18-hole Sunday playoff with Jacky Cupit and Arnold Palmer. The U.S. Open returned to The Country Club for the first time in fifty years to celebrate the golden anniversary of Francis Ouimet's playoff victory in 1913. Boros won eleven years earlier in 1952, and won a third major at age 48 at the PGA Championship in 1968.
The 1920 U.S. Open was the 24th U.S. Open, held August 12–13 at the Inverness Club in Toledo, Ohio.
The 1900 U.S. Open was the sixth U.S. Open, held October 4–5 at Chicago Golf Club in Wheaton, Illinois, a suburb west of Chicago. On a tour of the United States from Britain, Harry Vardon won his only U.S. Open title, two strokes ahead of his great rival, J.H. Taylor.
The 1913 U.S. Open was the 19th U.S. Open, held September 18–20 at The Country Club in Brookline, Massachusetts, a suburb southwest of Boston. Amateur Francis Ouimet, age 20, won his only U.S. Open title in an 18-hole playoff, five strokes ahead of Britons Harry Vardon and Ted Ray.
Vesper Country Club is a private club in Tyngsborough, Massachusetts. The club derives from two late 19th century institutions, Vesper Boat Club and Lowell Country Club, which merged in 1894. The following year, members started creating a golf course originally consisting of six "links." In the late 1910s, the course commissioned Donald Ross to create a full 18-hole course. Though the course met with praise the ensuing decades were hard for Vesper. In the 1920s the clubhouse burnt down and in the 1930s a flood nearly destroyed the course. Since then, however, the club's history has been largely stable and the course has hosted several notable events, including the Massachusetts Open and Massachusetts Amateur several times.
Herbert Bertram Strong was an English professional golfer. He was an organizer and founding member of the PGA of America and later became a successful golf course architect. As a player, Strong's best finish in a major championship was ninth place in the 1913 U.S. Open.
The Apawamis Club is a private country club located in Rye, New York, Westchester County, long known for its 18-hole golf course and prominence in the sport of squash. The 1911 U.S. Amateur was contested here, resulting in a playoff between the reigning British Amateur champion, Harold Hilton, and his lesser-known American opponent, Fred Herreshoff. Apawamis is also the home base of a nationally recognized junior squash program and hosts the world renowned Briggs Cup tournament.
Brooklawn Country Club is a private country club in Fairfield, Connecticut. Founded in 1895, Brooklawn became one of the earliest members of the United States Golf Association (USGA) when it was admitted on January 22, 1896. Sited on the property's highest point, the club's 57,667-square-foot clubhouse was opened in 1916.
The 2022 United States Open Championship was the 122nd U.S. Open, the national open golf championship of the United States. It was a 72-hole stroke play tournament that was played between June 16–19 at The Country Club in Brookline, Massachusetts, a suburb west of Boston. It was the club's fourth U.S. Open, having been held there in 1913, 1963, and 1988.
Miss Anne Nason won the prize for the best gross in the handicap medal play for women and also the Clyde Park Challenge Cup at the Country Club yesterday with a 95, five strokes better than her nearest competitor.