For the first time in 75 years, the U.S. Open is being played in Los Angeles. The 2023 event is taking place at the famed Los Angeles Country Club.
Known for its exclusivity and urban backdrop, the L.A.C.C. was founded in 1897 and opened at its current location in 1911 after several moves. The U.S. Open will be the club's first time hosting a major; previous Los Angeles events were at Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades.
L.A.C.C. is in Los Angeles proper, and the downtown area is visible from the course. It is challenging, uneven and unknown to most of this year's U.S. Open field. That could lead to aggravating moments for the players but entertaining ones for the spectators.
As the players learn the terrain at L.A.C.C., fans will get acquainted with the famously sunny Southern California backdrop. It has been 28 years since the 1995 PGA Championship was played at Riviera.
Why did it take so long for major golf to return to an area in which sporting organizations are generally champing at the bit to host major events? It comes down to how locations are selected.
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Has Los Angeles Country club hosted the U.S. Open before?
Los Angeles Country Club has never hosted the U.S. Open, or any major, for that matter, until this weekend.
The club is historically reclusive, as Brody Miller wrote for The Athletic. Miller reported the closest the L.A.C.C. got to hosting a major was the 1986 U.S. Open; the course was voted down 5-4.
The last U.S. Open played in Los Angeles County was in 1948, when Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades hosted. Ben Hogan won that event, shooting 8-under 276 for the weekend.
The last major to be hosted at Riviera was the 1995 PGA Championship. Steve Elkington defeated Colin Montgomerie in a playoff by one stroke.
Between those events was the 1983 PGA Championship, which was won by Hal Sutton.
How are courses selected for golf majors?
It's notable that L.A.C.C. is hosting a major for the first time. But why was the Los Angeles area kept out of the majors rotation for so long?
Each major is governed by a different body. The Open Championship is run by the Royal & Ancient Golf Club; the PGA Championship by the PGA of America; the Masters Tournament by Augusta National Golf Club; and the U.S. Open by the United States Golf Association (USGA).
In the case of The Open, PGA and U.S. Open, the organizers look for courses with lore and, of course, excellent conditions.
"It all starts with the golf course," John Bodenhamer, USGA senior managing director for championships, said, per Stick and Hack. “We really want to go to the places where the players want to win their U.S. Open. We have a lot of great venues in our country, but we like to think of ours as the most iconic and revered for the players. The course is always the foundational piece.”
It isn't all romance, however. The logistics have to work, as well.
"We look at staging areas, parking, the shuttle drops," Bodenhamer added. "There are certain things you need to have to have a major sporting event with tens of thousands of people . . . and there’s also how the course works as far as weather patterns go."
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The process is, in that sense, similar to other major sporting events. The decision comes down to what works best.
Which course has hosted the most U.S. Opens?
Oakmont Country Club near Pittsburgh has hosted the most U.S. Opens with nine. Baltusrol Golf Club in New Jersey has hosted seven. Oakland Hills Country Club outside Detroit, Pebble Beach Golf Links south of the Bay Area, and Winged Foot Golf Club north of New York City have hosted six each.
The U.S. Open also has an agreement with Pinehurst Country Club in North Carolina, with dates in 2024, 2029, 2035, 2041 and 2047.
More future sites can be found here.
Why did it take so long for the U.S. Open to return to Los Angeles?
There are myriad reasons it took 75 years for the USGA to revisit Los Angeles.
For starters, there was the matter of scheduling. Southern California doesn't have many courses that fit the criteria Bodenhamer mentioned above. Los Angeles Country Club wasn't interested in hosting majors, and the last PGA Tour event it hosted was the L.A. Open in 1940.
According to Bodenhamer, part of the answer to "why now" with regard to L.A.C.C. is that it's what the players wanted.
"The model today is based largely on where the players want to contest a U.S. Open," Bodehamer said, per Golf Digest. "We’ve asked the men and women, 'Where do you want to win? What places do you want to go?'"
Because the USGA listened to player feedback instead of following the tried-and-true model of looking for clubs with deep historical roots, generous spots for TV equipment and room for fans, it took a road less traveled and wound up at the L.A.C.C.
Los Angeles Country Club information
L.A.C.C. is known to be a difficult course, but it also has some quirks that make it somewhat player-friendly. It has wide fairways, sloping sections and interesting angles.
L.A.C.C. also has thick Bermuda grass in its rough that can create issues on approach shots.
It is a par-70 course that will play at 7,423 yards this weekend.
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| Hole | Par | Distance (yards) |
| 1 | 5 | 590 |
| 2 | 4 | 497 |
| 3 | 4 | 419 |
| 4 | 3 | 228 |
| 5 | 4 | 480 |
| 6 | 4 | 330 |
| 7 | 3 | 284 |
| 8 | 5 | 537 |
| 9 | 3 | 171 |
| 10 | 4 | 409 |
| 11 | 3 | 290 |
| 12 | 4 | 380 |
| 13 | 4 | 507 |
| 14 | 5 | 623 |
| 15 | 3 | 124 |
| 16 | 4 | 542 |
| 17 | 4 | 520 |
| 18 | 4 | 492 |
| OUT | 35 | 3,536 |
| IN | 35 | 3,887 |
| Total | 70 | 7,423 |
