While there may be more historic
venues, there may be no more fascinating 127 acres in American golf than
L.A.’s Riviera
Country Club. Rich tournament lore, compelling architecture and a celebrity
heritage make it an authentic national treasure.
For one, Riviera is home to
Ben Hogan’s first national championship (1948 U.S. Open), his
back-to-back Los Angeles Open wins (1947–48), and his incredible
post-automobile accident comeback—the epic 1950 L.A. Open loss to Sam Snead when
rains forced the two legends to return a week after the final round for a
playoff.
But the Riviera story isn’t just
about Hogan. The L.A. Open is one of the PGA Tour’s showcase events, a favorite
among players. Just about every great American player has won at Riviera—the notable
exception is Tiger Woods.
What has attracted the greatest
names in golf to Riviera since the course opened on June 24,
1927? Contrary to conventional wisdom, the rocky, dry riverbed chosen for the
Riviera course
was not ideal for golf. Wealthy amateur architect George Thomas toured it at the
behest of Los Angeles Athletic Club founder Frank Garbutt, who had asked Thomas
to build the prominent downtown club a first-rate course for its new
“countryside” development.
Thomas was underwhelmed by the
site, but he eventually agreed after receiving assurances that his cohort
and construction supervisor, Billy Bell, would have access to all resources
required to solve any soil and drainage problems. A year of arduous construction
with a massive crew, soil trucked in from miles away, Bell’s engineering
instincts, and Thomas’ love of heroic holes combined to create what Ben Crenshaw
calls the greatest “made” course in the world.
The strategy required by Thomas
and Bell’s massive bunkering survives today to
create a still-fascinating, albeit different, test, emphasizing the aerial game
more than Thomas and Bell probably planned.
