Riviera Country Club

The Riviera Country Club is a country club with a championship golf course. It is located in Pacific Palisades, California, within the city limits of Los Angeles, California. The country club opened in 1926, with George C. Thomas, Jr. as the course architect. The course has been the primary host for the PGA TOUR's Nissan Open (better known as the Los Angeles Open). Riviera has also hosted the U.S. Open in 1948, the PGA Championship in 1983 and 1995, and the U.S. Senior Open in 1998. The course is located in the Santa Monica Canyon, just below the Santa Monica Mountains and a block south of Sunset Boulevard.

History

When the country club and course opened in 1926, it was known as the Los Angeles Athletic Club Golf Course. Dr. Alister MacKenzie and Billy Bell helped Thomas in the design and planning of the course. They were in charge of assembling a labor force to build the course from scratch in the Santa Monica Canyon. In 1927 dollars, the entire country club and golf course cost $243,827.63 to build. The course has been redesigned a few times, most notably in 1992 when Ben Crenshaw and Bill Coore redesigned the bunkers to look like they did when the course opened.

Related Topics:
Alister MacKenzie - 1927 - 1992 - Ben Crenshaw

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The country club prospered in the 1930s and 1940s. In its prime, the Riviera Polo Club was the most popular and extensive in Southern California, hosting the polo events in the 1932 Summer Olympic Games. The Riviera Equestrian Center was where prominent riders like Egan Merz trained younger people like Elizabeth Taylor how to ride.

Related Topics:
1930s - 1940s - Polo - 1932 Summer Olympic Games - Egan Merz - Elizabeth Taylor

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The movie Pat and Mike, starring Katharine Hepburn and Babe Zaharias, was filmed at Riviera. The club has had many famous members. Some of those include Glen Campbell, Vic Damone, Peter Falk, Jack Ging, Dean Martin, and Gregory Peck.

Related Topics:
Pat and Mike - Katharine Hepburn - Babe Zaharias - Glen Campbell - Vic Damone - Peter Falk - Jack Ging - Dean Martin - Gregory Peck

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The course is well-known for Ben Hogan, and the course has been called "Hogan's Alley". In the 1940s, Hogan won the Los Angeles Open three times and finished second once. Other notable winners at Riviera include Sam Snead, Byron Nelson, Hale Irwin, Tom Watson, Johnny Miller, Ben Crenshaw, Mark Calcavecchia, Fred Couples, Davis Love III, Corey Pavin, Craig Stadler, Nick Faldo, Ernie Els, and Mike Weir. Hogan also won the 1948 U.S. Open at Riviera, and Irwin also won the 1998 U.S. Senior Open. Hal Sutton won the 1983 PGA, and Steve Elkington won the 1995 PGA.

Related Topics:
Ben Hogan - Sam Snead - Byron Nelson - Hale Irwin - Tom Watson - Johnny Miller - Mark Calcavecchia - Fred Couples - Davis Love III - Corey Pavin - Craig Stadler - Nick Faldo - Ernie Els - Mike Weir - Hal Sutton - Steve Elkington

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