I grew up in Connecticut, a smallish state caught between two bigger ones with more fame and cosmopolitan cachet. Compared to New York and Boston, capital city of Hartford has not historically been much to write home about. But we Connecticut natives can claim Katharine Hepburn, a 20th century American icon known mainly for her storied acting career.
When she wasn't being one of Hollywood's leading ladies, Hepburn was often found on the golf course, particularly the charming nine-hole Fenwick Golf Club, a pre-1900 gem in the eponymous village within the town Old Saybrook. The home where Hepburn spent summers growing up and lived for the last several of her life sits off to the right of the par-3 second green. Locals tell of Howard Hughes coming to visit Hepburn and landing his plane on the par-5 9th fairway.
After Hepburn passed away in 2003, she was buried in Hartford's Cedar Hill cemetery. She remains close to the game she loved; the city's modest but popular muni Goodwin Golf Course is directly across the street. My parents were in the neighborhood recently and wandered by Hepburn's grave site. Her tombstone was adorned by knickknacks left by friends and fans. Among them: flowers, a few coins, some sea shells, a tube of lipstick and, finally, three golf tees.
