The Country Club (Clyde & Squirrel)

The name may sound a little arrogant and for golfers in the know, there’s no need to explain that The Country Club was the first of its type in the USA. It’s set in the charming heart of New England but to be precise it’s located in the suburbs of Brookline, Boston, Massachusetts.

Named as The Country Club, it is better known by the uninitiated as Brookline. The explanation is The Country Club was put on the golfing public map in 1999 at the 33rd Ryder Cup Matches when the catchphrase 'Battle of Brookline' was coined.

The Country Club Golf Course History

There was talk of forming The Country Club way back in 1860, but the Civil War (in part) interrupted proceedings – the club was eventually formed in 1882. Soon afterwards, golf arrived in the shape of a simple 6-hole layout, which was soon extended to 9 holes by Willie Campbell. By 1899, he had laid out an 18-hole golf course.

The Country Club purchased additional land and two members laid out three new holes by 1908 with another six ready for play by 1927. The courses were updated by Rees Jones for the 1988 US Open before Gil Hanse led a restoration of the course in 2019.

The 27 holes in play today at The Country Club were constructed at different times with input from numerous architects. Francis Ouimet won the US Open on the main course (Clyde & Squirrel), but the modern-day championship layout consists of fifteen holes of the Main Course, with three holes from the Primrose.

The Country Club - History

In December 1894, the Country Club became one of the five founder members of the American Golf Association, which was subsequently renamed the United States Golf Association. The other four charter members were: Newport Country Club, Shinnecock Hills Golf Club, St. Andrew's Golf Club (Yonkers, N.Y.), and Chicago Golf Club.

Little did they know that three years later, a defining moment in American golf would take place in the shape of the 1913 US Open, which saw amateur Francis Ouimet – a young, unknown twenty-year-old and a former caddy at the Country Club – defeat the legendary professionals, Harry Vardon and Ted Ray in an exciting 18-hole play-off. Ouimet’s victory injected huge interest in golf in the United States and it gave hope to ordinary Americans by proving that normal people could achieve success alongside those who were more financially fortunate.

The Country Club has played host to 17 USGA national championships, which ranks second behind only Merion Golf Club in Ardmore, Pennsylvania, with 19.

The Ryder Cup at Brookline

The Country Club in Brookline played host to the 1999 Ryder Cup matches between the USA and Europe. Team Captains were Ben Crenshaw (US) and Mark James (Europe).

For the third successive time, a single point decided the Ryder Cup, which was dubbed the “Battle of Brookline”. Europe hoped for a third successive win and required only four points from the 12 singles matches on Sunday, but the Americans rallied and easily won the first six matches to take the lead. Europe’s chances rested on Jose-Maria Olazabal, who was battling with Justin Leonard. On the 17th, Leonard holed an unlikely long birdie putt that resulted in a premature US Team celebration, which deeply upset the Europeans.

Unfortunately, Olazabal missed his shorter putt for a half on 17 but went on to a birdie the last to halve the match. USA 14 ½ - Europe 13 ½.