Riviera Country Club Is Surely A Course for The Ages

Riveria Country Club tested the skill of Ben Hogan, Sam Snead, & Kate Hepburn long before Lefty took it on.

Riviera Country Club stands out among current PGA Tour tracks. Current host to the Genesis Open, Riveria’s history is storied.

It includes brushes with actors like James Cagney, Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn, with famous golf professionals like Ben Hogan, Byron Nelson and Sam Snead. It has been a location for instructionals with Bobby Jones and, of course. There is even a spot next to a tree reputed to be Humphrey Bogart’s favorite location for watching tournament golf.

In the beginning, the Riviera CC design by George C. Thomas even got the stamp of approval from Alister Mackenzie who said it was, “As nearly perfect as man could make it.”

Testing Conditions, Magnificent Views

The course is nestled in a canyon between Sunset Boulevard and San Vicente Boulevard, and most of the course is relatively flat except for two holes, the first and the 18^th. On both of those there is perhaps as much as a seven story elevation change. One is down, from the first tee to the first fairway, and the other is up, from the 18^th tee to the 18 fairway. Getting from the practice tee to the clubhouse is a serious hike that those with heart problems should probably avoid.

In addition, there are a few more interesting holes, like the par three sixth with its famous bunker in the middle of the green, giving it the look of a doughnut, and the 10^th, the famous, almost-reachable, par four with its unhittable, unholdable green. But mainly, Riveria runs back and forth in parallel holes through the canyon and is flanked by pesky fragrant eucalyptus trees and sycamores which are leafless in winter.

The location, just over a mile as the crow flies from the Pacific Ocean, means unseen ocean breezes and marine weather conditions can affect ball flight. Often breezes affect play on the 14th, 15^th, 16^thand 17^th holes.

Those lucky enough to live on the San Vicente side of the canyon have magnificent views of the course, particularly along the eighth, 12^th and 13^th holes. One has to hope that the homes are secure enough as some of them appear to be perilously close to the edge.

Riviera has been home to the Los Angeles Open, now the Genesis Open, off and on, since 1929, two years after the club’s opening. Macdonald Smith was the first winner at Riviera although “Lighthorse” Harry Cooper won the first tournament which was played in 1926.

After hosting tournament golf two times, Riviera took a pause until 1941 when Johnny Bulla was the champion.

Bobby Jones Used Riveria for His Instructional Film Shorts

In the 1930s, Bobby Jones and O.B. Keeler created a series of instructionals, at least some of which were shot at Riviera CC. The clubhouse is visible in the distance, and it looks as though the filming was done on the 9^th hole. Years later the films were thought to be lost. However, the late Eli Callaway, founder of Callaway Golf and self-proclaimed distant cousin of Bobby Jones, went on an exhaustive search in 1989 and discovered them.

Callaway dismissed rumors that the footage was found in New York and said it was actually located in a storage vault in Kansas. He had them re-mastered and made them available on VHS and now DVD.

LA Open Comeback Stories & Upsets

Beginning in 1945 with Sam Snead’s win over Byron Nelson and Jug McSpaden, Riviera hosted the Los Angeles Open for nine consecutive years producing winners like Nelson, Ben Hogan, Lloyd Mangrum and Tommy Bolt. It was Hogan’s back-to-back victories in 1947 and 1948 plus his victory in the 1948 U.S. Open, held at Riviera, that gave the course the nickname Hogan’s Alley.

Riviera is also where Hogan made his return to professional golf after the car-meets-bus-in-the-fog accident that nearly cost him his life. In the final round, Hogan birdied the last two holes to tie Sam Snead. While Snead won the playoff, it was Hogan’s comeback that got the headlines.

While golf legends were winning on the fairways, Riveria also attracted filmmakers. Why not? After all, the track is a stone’s throw from Hollywood. Pat and Mike, starring Katharine Hepburn, Spencer Tracey and Babe Zaharias, and Follow The Sun, a movie detailing the life and comeback of Hogan starring Glenn Ford, featured the club.

Legendary Riveria Battles

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From the late 1950s to the early 1970s, the Los Angeles Open was held at Rancho Municipal. That’s where Ken Venturi beat Art Wall and where Arnold Palmer won twice. However, Riviera was about to return as the host for the Los Angeles Open.

Two years after the PGA Tour partnered with celebrity Glen Campbell to gain more attention for the tournament, Riviera once again caught the spotlight and has remained as the venue with one or two exceptions since then. Many golfers with sterling records on the PGA Tour and in major championships have been successful at Riviera. Since 1973, Tom Watson won twice. Lanny Wadkins won twice. Fred Couples won twice and Corey Pavin won back-to-back.

Other important champions have conquered Riviera, some before they won major championships including Nick Faldo, Mark Calcavecchia, Tom Kite, Johnny Miller, Ernie Els, Mike Weir, Adam Scott, Davis Love III, Phil Mickelson and Bubba Watson. Lanny Wadkins shot the course record of 264 in 1985. No one has broken that mark, despite the recent era of longer than long drivers and wedges that hit and drop.

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The design of Riviera holds up to the test of time, and that makes it a magnificent golf course, one that challenges the length of a Bubba Watson and the precision of a Steve Stricker, the power of a Dustin Johnson, and the finesse of a Jordan Spieth. But no matter who is teeing it up, Riviera never disappoints. It is a course for the ages.

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