Hop Brook Golf Course

Course was fun to play. Greens we’re in great shape. Play was a little slower due to walkers.

We played 9 holes here and it was a nice quiet experience early on a Tuesday morning. The grounds are well maintained and the course was challenging enough for a few beginners. I'll definitely be back again.

Hop Brook is a natural, wooded parkland course that presents a solid and reasonable test of golf throughout its nine holes. It is nicely varied, most notably by the contrast of the opening five holes, which feature plenty of elevation changes, to the flatter but mostly dog-legged last four. Its bunkers are not especially deep, the fairways are of decent–but not too generous–width, for the most part. Some of the greens can be very testing when you putt from certain sectors, most notably the second, ninth and (above all) the first. Further still, the course has been much improved since I used to play it, back in the 70s/80s when I lived in western Connecticut. What is most impressively improved since those ancient times are the additions of deeper tees and several fairway bunkers, but above all else the seriously better conditioning–and today it was uniformly excellent.

The Layout:

Holes one through five are all strong and challenging. As the number one index, the par-5 first issues a quick wake-up call, starting with a tee shot to a wood-lined fairway, and beyond that a second that must cross a small pond if you hope to pitch into the green with a wedge. And pitching to this small, deeply undulant green, where three-putting is common, becomes a huge advantage over flying it in with a mid-iron. Two is a beautifully natural hole, especially for its classic, rolling fairway that dips through an extended, sunken section in part of the landing zone. It's also a great hole for a run-up shot onto a green that tilts back to front. At the par-4 third, it’s a tall order to stop the ball on the small, slightly elevated green without the strong backspin of a short iron or a smartly calculated run-up shot. The most memorable hole may well be the fourth, a hole that may bring agony or joy depending, mainly, on how well you hit your tee shot. With its hog’s back fairway (a template style hole not surprising for a course designed in 1910) set upon a large hill, this will demand your best tee shot. I hit a drawn 3-hybrid, then an 8-iron from the left side of the landing zone from a relatively flat lie. The hole is not merciful, however, when you miss this fairway. I also like the fifth for its simplicity: a tee set upon a high hill that plummets to a sizable green, but with no bunkers or other hazards surrounding it, other than a road in front. Who needs more hazards, anyway (?); the tee shot is difficult enough to gauge.

While the last four holes don’t quite live up to the first five, they’re still good, especially the 8th, a classic, dogleg-right par-4 of over 400 yards, and fittingly the second toughest hole. Green eight, surrounded by a large ring in the form of mounding, is well protected. The par-5 sixth contrasts with the opening five-par, mainly because it is dog-legged (right) and only of moderate difficulty. Likewise, the par-3 seventh is quite different than the par-3 fifth: longer and somewhat tougher, its green more of a fortress. This nine concludes with a tight par-4 on which the fairway curves narrowly to the right around the woods, making the tee shot of choice a fade. The final stretch of fairway runs parallel to the clubhouse, set on the other side of the brook.

Other:

The greens ran medium-fast today and were so smooth that I found myself comparing them to those at country clubs. Fringes were also near-perfect.

Excellent service too, was both accommodating and efficient. The gentleman in the pro shop, whom I’ve met several times, was again friendly and knowledgeable. Pace on the course moved quickly.

Conclusion:

It’s fairly simple: A nice layout, a strong value, and top-notch conditioning–remarkable for a public course–make Hop Brook a must-play venue for golfers who appreciate good nine-holers, along with just about everyone else. Strongly recommended.

Greens and fairways are in great shape. Played 18 in just over 4 hours, pace started to slow down towards afternoon. Great overall experience.

I went as a single, got paired up with a duo and another single. They were pretty nice guys. The course was great, a little hilly, but that just makes it a bit more challenging. It’s only a nine hole course, but you can play at twice for the full 18 experience. I will definitely be going back!

I really enjoy the conditions at hop Brook golf course. Everybody was friendly and professional. And the pace of play was moving right along just fine.

I was informed that they were running a few minutes behind, but after the 2nd hole, it was smooth sailing. The course was in great shape.

This is a fantastic 9 hole course and is a great bang for your buck. The scenery is beautiful…. I especially like walking across the bridge to the first tee box as i get to enjoy the sound of the flowing brook it passes over. The staff both in the pro-shop and on the maintenance team are cordial, knowledgeable and helpful…. They’re all good for a joke or in answering your general questions.

The course conditions are professionally kept unlike many other municipal 9 holes in the area and consist of nice lush disease free grass, and generally plays to a thicker cut rough which requires you to really assess your shots. The greens are some of the best in the state consisting of plenty of undulations and grain divergence, making every shot onto the green and putt towards the cup unique. If you want to work on your short game or practice reading greens this is the perfect place to do it.

The course itself offers two very different layouts from the front 5 to the back 4. The first 5 holes utilize more sloping in the fairways to navigate around where the back 4 plays much more flat with differing doglegs. This front back difference is best reflected when comparing the two par 3 holes being the 5th and 7th. The 5th hole plays downhill about 160 yards with the front half of the green being a blind shot, whereas the latter if a straight shot about 180 yards with two mounds and a sand trap directly in front of the green, requiring you to float your ball over trouble. The course also offers a fantastic putting green which is large and consistent with the play style of the greens on the course.

I also appreciate the fact that the course pays its respects to a CT old-timer and Naugatuck local Billy Burke, a pga pro who was the first player to win a major (1931 US Open) using steel shafts in an infamous 72 hole bout followed by an additional 72 playoff holes. Check it out you wont regret it.