A twelve-month golf season
Los Angeles has one of the easiest golf climates in the country. Winters are mild, summers are dry, and rain mostly shows up in a handful of storms between roughly November and March. Coastal courses run cooler and catch the marine layer in May and June, while Valley and inland courses get the real summer heat, so dawn tee times are the move from July through September. There's no off season to plan around, which is why golf ends up woven into daily life here rather than saved for vacations.
The county's golf map has two layers. On one side are private clubs, many built in the 1910s and 1920s by a small group of architects (George C. Thomas Jr., William P. "Billy" Bell, Max Behr, Willie Watson, Norman Macbeth) whose work still shapes the courses today. On the other is a large public network run by the City of Los Angeles, LA County and individual cities like Pasadena, Burbank and Long Beach. Below is an overview by area.
How public tee times work
The City of LA golf system books all of its courses through one online and phone reservation system. Generally, holders of a city Golf Player Card can book up to nine days ahead and everyone else up to seven, with a non-refundable per-player deposit applied to the green fee at check-in. The city has cracked down on bots and tee-time reselling in recent years (NBC Los Angeles). LA County Parks runs its own separate set of courses with its own booking links, and city-owned courses in Pasadena, Burbank and Long Beach each book through their own systems. Rules and fees change, so check each operator's site before you play.
Westside and Beverly Hills
Private clubs
- Los Angeles Country Club (Wilshire Boulevard, next to Beverly Hills). The club traces its roots to 1897 and moved to this land in 1911; George C. Thomas Jr. reworked the North Course in the late 1920s, Gil Hanse restored it around 2010, and it hosted the 2023 U.S. Open (USGA). See the Wilshire Corridor guide.
- Riviera Country Club (Pacific Palisades). Designed by Thomas with Billy Bell and opened in the mid-1920s, Riviera is the longtime home of the PGA Tour's Genesis Invitational and is set to host golf at the 2028 Olympic Games (USA Golf).
- Bel-Air Country Club (Bel Air). Thomas and Bell routed this course through steep canyons in the late 1920s, famously connecting the nines with a suspension bridge over a gulch at the par-3 10th (The Fried Egg).
- Hillcrest Country Club (Pico Boulevard, across from the Fox lot). Opened around 1920 with a course generally credited to Willie Watson, it was remodeled by architect Kyle Phillips in recent years (Golf Digest).
- Brentwood Country Club (Brentwood, off San Vicente). Its first nine opened in 1916 as the Santa Monica Country Club, laid out around a deep barranca, and Todd Eckenrode renovated it in 2014 (SCGA).
Public and municipal courses
- Rancho Park (next to Cheviot Hills). The City of LA's flagship 18 hosted the Los Angeles Open for much of 1956 to 1972 and again in 1983, and a plaque marks where Arnold Palmer made a 12 in 1961 (Wikipedia). There's also a nine-hole par-3 course on site.
- Penmar (Venice). A nine-hole executive course run by the City of LA, a few blocks from the beach (LA City Golf).
- Westchester Golf Course (Manchester Avenue, Westchester). A public course on airport-owned land just north of LAX (LAWA).
The Valley and Out West
Private clubs
- Lakeside Golf Club (along the LA River by Toluca Lake). Max Behr designed the course, which opened in 1924 on sandy ground near the river, and Todd Eckenrode led a restoration in 2018 (SCGA).
- El Caballero Country Club (Tarzana). Robert Trent Jones Sr. designed the 1957 course on land that was once part of the Edgar Rice Burroughs ranch, and his son Rees Jones led a full renovation in 2021 (USGA).
- Braemar Country Club (Tarzana). Opened as Deauville Country Club around 1959 and renamed Braemar in 1970, it has 27 holes by Ted Robinson Sr. in the hills south of Ventura Boulevard (Braemar Country Club).
- Calabasas Country Club (Calabasas). Robert Trent Jones Sr. and Jr. laid out the course on the former Warner Bros. ranch, and it opened in 1968 (Calabasas Country Club).
Public and municipal courses
- Sepulveda Golf Complex: Balboa and Encino (Encino). Two City of LA 18-hole courses side by side in the Sepulveda Basin on Burbank Boulevard, sharing a lighted range and restaurant (LA City Golf).
- Woodley Lakes (Van Nuys). A flat City of LA 18 on Woodley Avenue, also in the Sepulveda Basin.
- Hansen Dam (Pacoima). A City of LA 18 on Glenoaks Boulevard below the dam in the northeast Valley (LA City Golf).
- DeBell Golf Club (Burbank). Burbank's municipal course sits in the Verdugo foothills on land donated to the city in 1954, and the full 18 opened in 1959; there's a par-3 course too (Burbank in Focus).
- Malibu Golf Club (Encinal Canyon Road, in the mountains above Malibu). Once private, this William F. Bell design is now open for daily-fee play (Golf Advisor).
Pasadena and the San Gabriel Valley
Private clubs
- Annandale Golf Club (Pasadena). Founded in 1906 with a routing by William Watson, it was reworked by Billy Bell in the 1920s, including the canyon holes on the back nine (Golf Course Architecture).
- San Gabriel Country Club (San Gabriel). Begun in 1904 as a nine-hole course and expanded to 18 by Norman Macbeth in the early 1910s, it's described as the oldest 18-hole course in Southern California still on its original site (SCGA).
Public and municipal courses
- Brookside Golf Club (Pasadena). Two 18-hole courses by William P. Bell, the Koiner and the Nay, owned by the City of Pasadena and set in the Arroyo Seco right next to the Rose Bowl. Tee times book online only (Brookside).
- Eaton Canyon and Altadena (east Pasadena and Altadena). Two LA County courses in the foothills (LA County Parks).
- Santa Anita (Arcadia). Another LA County course, near the racetrack.
- Industry Hills Golf Club at Pacific Palms (City of Industry). A resort with two public 18s, the Eisenhower and the Zaharias, on steep hillside terrain (Pacific Palms).
South Bay and Long Beach
Private clubs
- Palos Verdes Golf Club (Palos Verdes Estates). Designed by Thomas and Bell, with Olmsted Brothers landscaping, it opened in 1924; the land is owned by the city and the club runs as a membership club under a city concession, with some outside play, so ask the club about access (City of Palos Verdes Estates).
- Virginia Country Club (Long Beach). Formed in 1909, it moved to its current site around 1920, and the course was later renovated by Billy Bell and A.W. Tillinghast in the late 1930s (SCGA).
Public and municipal courses
- Los Verdes (Rancho Palos Verdes). An LA County course on the hill with ocean views (LA County Parks).
- Recreation Park (Long Beach). The City of Long Beach runs an 18 and a 9 here, on the land where Virginia Country Club first played (City of Long Beach).
- El Dorado, Skylinks and Heartwell (Long Beach). Three more city courses, with Heartwell a par-3 layout (City of Long Beach).
- Harbor Park (Wilmington). A nine-hole regulation course in the City of LA system.
Central and Griffith Park
Private clubs
- Wilshire Country Club (next to Hancock Park). Founded in 1919 on Rancho La Brea land leased from G. Allan Hancock, its Norman Macbeth course crosses a barranca on 13 holes, and Kyle Phillips restored it starting in 2008 (Wilshire Country Club).
Public and municipal courses
- Wilson and Harding (Griffith Park, near Los Feliz). Two City of LA 18s dating to the 1920s, side by side in the park; Harding was part of the LA Open rotation in the late 1930s (LA City Golf).
- Roosevelt (Vermont Avenue, Griffith Park). A nine-hole executive course near the Greek Theatre.
- Los Feliz (Los Feliz Boulevard). A nine-hole par-3, handy for a quick round.
- Scholl Canyon (Glendale). A public 18-hole executive course in the hills off Glenoaks Boulevard, with a driving range.
Downtown and South LA
There are no private clubs and no courses in Downtown itself. The closest options are Griffith Park to the north and two LA County courses in South LA: Chester Washington, a full 18, and Maggie Hathaway, a nine-hole course (LA County Parks).
How this fits into picking a neighborhood
If golf is part of your week, it's worth weighing which courses sit a short drive from home, because crossing town at 6 a.m. is easy and crossing it at 5 p.m. is not. Our guides to Cheviot Hills, Brentwood, Toluca Lake, Encino, Pasadena and Palos Verdes Estates all include homes close to the courses above.
Good to know
Private clubs are open by membership only, and each sets its own process for guests and new members. Course details, tee-time rules and fees change, so check directly with each club or course operator before you plan around them.