I played at Wee Burn in May 2024. What a fantastic golf course.
Located in Darien Connecticut, this Club has a storied history going back to its foundation in 1896. It was designed by Devereaux Emmett and named by Andrew Carnegie, no doubt reflecting his Scottish background picking up on the stream that winds its way throughout the course. In recent years there has been some significant renovation led by Tom Fazio.
I played with some golfing buddies from WFGC :
Big Papi, The General, me and The Krusher
The Club’s website is geared to Members, so not terribly useful for visitors or other interested parties. This is a review by golf digest: https://www.golfdigest.com/courses/ct/wee-burn-country-club
Wee Burn Country Club got its name from Andrew Carnegie, of all people, who suggested that the stony brook that weaves throughout the course should merit the name Wee Burn, as it would've been called in Scotland. The name stuck, and Devereux Emmet routed the course artfully around that burn. Wee Burn has removed a significant amount of trees in recenet years, amplifying its already pristine conditioning and allowing the course to play closer to its original intent. Wee Burn presents the golfer with plenty of scoring opportunities if they execute their shots correctly, providing for a difficult, yet enjoyable challenge.
I cannot disagree!
Here’s some more history and views:
Wee Burn Country Club dates back to 1896 when George Strath from St Andrews set out a 6-hole course on forty-eight acres of leased farmland. A further three holes were soon added to the layout, once members had settled into their surroundings.
The club found it had no room to expand the number of holes in play to a full 18-hole course so, in 1923, a nearby 230-acre site was acquired and Devereux Emmet engaged to design a new layout. Two years later, the architect unveiled the course to expectant members, all of whom were no doubt thrilled to find that the Stony Brook (a.k.a. “the wee burn”) wound its way through the new property, just as it did at the club’s old location.
Gene Sarazen officially opened the course and, such was the favour it found with the USGA, it went on to stage three Women’s Amateur Championships, won by Betty Jameson in 1939, Ann Quast in 1958 and Martha Wilkinson in 1970.
Tom Fazio has carried out significant modifications at Wee Burn in recent years, with more than three thousand yards of stream and lake banks being renovated in the scope of this work.
The Club has tennis, paddle, skeet shooting and a really nice Clubhouse. The practice area is right next to the first tee. A very friendly pro-shop. Our caddie was excellent too.
We played green-white tees, and at 6200 yards is not the longest course, but with a 71.6 slope and a 140 rating, it’s a real test. The back tees play around 7200 yards.
The course plays over some lovely countryside, with tree lines fairways, and narrow approaches to greens which are well protected with bunkers. Some holes are better played with 3 wood not driver to avoid landing in fairway bunkers which I did on a number of occasions. There is one entirely island green and a couple of other holes where the wee burn can come into play. Holes 9, 10 and 18 play toward, away from and back to the Club house on quite a slope.
I played the last hole horribly, capping off a very poor back nine. I did manage to be even par after 6. Small consolation.
Overall, I am very happy to have played the course, and I hope I have the opportunity to play the course again.
