Love Letter To: Riviera Country Club

Riviera Country Club would certainly have a star on golf’s Hollywood Walk of Fame. For generations it has held the reigns as Los Angeles’ premiere championship venue. And that’s saying something considering its heavyweight neighbors in Los Angeles Country Club and Bel-Air Country Club.

Ask TOUR pros, staff, and spectators their favorite stops on the PGA TOUR, and Riviera Country Club will always get mentioned near the top. This course is everything the TOUR should and does aim for: prestige, history, and one of the toughest tests for the world’s best golfers.

Riviera has hosted the Genesis Invitational (formerly known as the L.A. Open) 61 times. The U.S. Women's Open will call it home this year and in 2028, Olympic Golf will be played at Riv as well—needless to say this course has earned its spot at the top.

RELATED: On Tap: The Genesis Invitational at Riviera

A George C. Thomas masterpiece that sits in the golden hills of the Pacific Palisades in sunny Los Angeles, California, Riviera Country Club should be on every golf fan’s bucket list to see (and if you’re lucky, to play). Thanks to the PGA TOUR’s annual stop at this historic venue, we all have the opportunity to walk the grounds and experience what makes this place so special.

I’ve had the joy of photographing Riviera Country Club a few times now, and it’s always one of my favorite stops on the PGA TOUR. The golf course is so easily recognizable from its most iconic locations—the first tee tucked up against the walls of the clubhouse, or the famous short par-4 10th that sits bang in the middle of the property like a badge of honor.

But when you get out and walk 1 through 18, you see that every hole has its own character. Add the best golfers on the planet to the picture and you get one of those "pinch me" moments.

Given the nature of the routing and how tightly everything is packed, the golf course is a super easy walk. On almost every hole you can access two or three other holes without going far at all. It’s as much of a joy to walk as a spectator as it is to photograph.

All Hail (Storm) Riv

One of my more memorable walks at Riviera came during a Tuesday practice round ahead of the 2022 Genesis. I’m working in the media center after a long day on the course, when something you don’t usually see in Southern California starts to roll in: storm clouds. Most of the media are too busy to notice as they work through the buzz of a newsworthy Tuesday practice round. And then before you knew it, hail was coming down on Riviera Country Club.

Myself and a few other photographers scrambled for our cameras, batteries, and memory cards, bolting out of the clubhouse as fast as we could. And as much as we were scrambling to get out, there were twice as many people outside scrambling to get in. Not spectators, but TV crew, players, agents, and volunteers all seeking shelter.

The hail was coming down fast and heavy, covering the perfectly manicured course in white. And just 10 minutes later the storm was gone, the course was still, and the sun began to peek through the clouds.

It was as wild an event as, say, Tiger Woods being winless in 16 PGA TOUR starts on this same golf course. Then again, Riviera Country Club is always full of surprises.

This page was first published on February 13, 2025. Last updated June 1, 2026.

This story is part of Skratch Golf’s Love Letter series—an ode to the places that make the game unforgettable.

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Love Letter To: Riviera Country Club

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