Burlington Country Club

Overview: Burlington Country Club is a private Donald Ross course on a hilltop site in Vermont’s largest city. The 18-hole parkland layout uses rolling ground, mature trees and Ross-style green complexes to create a strategic test that is more about angles and short-game recovery than raw length. At par 71 and roughly 6,471 yards, it remains approachable in scale while asking players to think carefully about where to leave the ball. Its city setting and long view across Burlington give the course a character that is both established and distinctly Vermont.

History: The club was established in 1924, but the Vermont Division for Historic Preservation records the 18-hole course opening for play in 1926 on the 150-acre Fairholt estate. Donald J. Ross designed the course, and Burlington Country Club remains the only Vermont course identified by the club and state history sources as a Ross design. The club has since hosted Vermont men’s and women’s amateur tournaments while maintaining the original architectural emphasis on strategy and walkability.

Did You Know? Burlington Country Club provides six sets of tees on the same Ross routing. That detail helps explain how a course with a century of history can serve different playing lengths without losing the distinctive green contours and shot values associated with its original design.