Burning Tree Country Club

Burning Tree Country Club has one of the more eye-catching names among American golf courses. Alas, no Moses bush exists on the property, but its signature tree will be evident from the first tee box, standing atop a natural rock formation off to the right. That rock formation will be more in play on the way back to the clubhouse, pinching the fairway in from the right as the hole slides to the right.

Burning Tree was designed by former Robert Trent Jones construction chief Hal Purdy as a “shotmaker’s” course, which was appropriate both for the founding era of this Greenwich club (the course opened during 1963) and because it sits in a tight piece of property. The front nine take a more open routing across the north side of the site, interacting with ponds near the clubhouse, while the back nine travels south along Rockwood Lake Brook for more than a mile before turning and coming back.

When players get to the final hole, they may be surprised to find a 195-yard par three serving as the decider for their match. Some complain that this is no way to end a round of golf...but those are usually the people who carelessly put their final tee shot into the water on the right.