Born in Lambeth, London, Courtney Browne returned at a young age to his parents' home in Barbados and a career as a national cricketer. He was a successful captain of the Barbados team, but entered the West Indies side in April 1995 on the strength of his wicketkeeping. Although he made some good scores for the regional A team (like the fastest fifty in a drawn match against the Indian Youth team in November 1997), Browne could not maintain his maroon cap as a keeper. After 13 Tests, he was left out for three years, until recalled for the ICC Knockout tournament in Kenya in October 2000. He was then replaced again - this time, it appeared, for good - by Ridley Jacobs, whom he understudied on the 2000-01 tour of Australia without playing in a Test. But nearly four years later, Browne was recalled out of the blue for the 2004 ICC Champions Trophy and starred in their unexpected final victory over England in the gloom at The Oval. But a year later he was again out of the side, and he retired citing personal reasons. In July 2008, he was named in the national selection selection panel headed by Clyde Butts.