A familiar stop on the PGA Tour will host the world’s best in 2028.
The International Golf Federation, alongside LA28, announced Friday that Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, California, would host the men’s and women’s golf competitions at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic games. Riviera is the site of the Tour’s Genesis Invitational, hosted by Tiger Woods.
“We are honored to work alongside LA28 and the world-renowned Riviera Country Club to host the golf competitions during the 2028 Los Angeles Games,” said Antony Scanlon, executive director of the International Golf Federation. “The Riviera Country Club will offer a prestigious and continuously challenging backdrop for golf’s most elite players, and we look forward to sharing one of the finest courses with our fans around the world.”
Los Angeles will host the Summer Games for a third time (1932, 1984, 2028) and it will mark the fourth straight year of the Olympic golf competition returning to the calendar. The Opening Ceremony will be held on July 14, 2028.
These putting green heat maps are among the hottest on Tour. Check out the slopes.
Riviera Country Club – one of the highest-ranked courses on the PGA Tour schedule each season – was designed by George C. Thomas and William P. Bell and opened in 1927 in Pacific Palisades, California. It hosts the 2024 Genesis Invitational this week.
Riviera will play to 7,322 yards with a par of 71 for the Genesis Invitational.
Thanks to yardage books provided by StrackaLine – the maker of detailed yardage books for thousands of courses around the world – we can see exactly the challenges the pros face this week at Riviera.
The U.S. Women’s Open is reaching parity with men’s majors when it comes to host courses.
This is a special year as elite women golfers have the chance to experience two great courses for major championships in the United States: Baltusrol’s Lower Course for the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship and Pebble Beach Golf Links for the U.S. Women’s Open.
That’s back-to-back majors on two major-worthy layouts over the span of three weeks in June and July, with the Women’s Open slated this week.
It wasn’t always this way. Women’s major championships have a checkered history of course selections.
The U.S. Women’s Open, for example, for decades was played for the most part on a slate of courses that in no way measured up to the layouts on which men’s majors were contested. In most years, with only a sprinkling of exceptions, the greatest women players in the game played less-than-stellar courses – many host sites were solid regional or local tracks, but world-beaters they were not.
Things began to change in the mid-1980s, as the Women’s Open moved with greater frequency to courses ranked among the top 200 in Golfweek’s Best rankings of either classic (built before 1960) or modern (built in or after 1960) layouts. Women’s Open course selection peaked in 1992 at Oakmont Country Club in Pennsylvania, which hosted the event again in 2010.
As measured by average rating, course selection has continued to improve over the past 20 years. Golfweek’s Best utilizes more than 800 raters who evaluate courses according to 10 criteria and then offer an overall rating of 1 to 10. Their votes are averaged to compile various course rankings lists, including the modern and classic lists. In general, any course rated above 6 would be considered by most players to be a nice local or regional course, and in most cases a course rated above 7 would be worth traveling some distance to play. A layout scoring higher than 8 is among the top 60 or so courses in the world, and only seven courses in the world rank above 9 points – Oakmont is among those seven.
The average rating of the host courses for the U.S. Women’s Open has improved in each of the past three decades. For the period of 1993-2002, the average (using the 2022 Golfweek’s Best ratings for data) was 6.924. It improved to 7.100 in 2003-2012, and it climbed a bit more to 7.195 for the 10 Women’s Opens of 2013-2022. Compare that to the average of 6.277 from 1973-1982.
And course selection only continues to improve. Starting this year with Pebble Beach (using the 2023 Golfweek’s Best ratings for data), the lineup of announced sites for the U.S. Women’s Open scores an average rating of 8.36 among Golfweek’s Best raters. That’s in line with men’s championships and a far cry from the days when the Women’s Open might be played on a course that hardly anyone in the next state over had ever heard of.
Each of the sites announced to host future Women’s Opens is ranked inside the top 100 Golfweek’s Best modern or classic courses in the U.S. Three of the sites – Oakmont (No. 6 in the 2023 ranking of classic courses), Merion’s East Course (No. 7) and Pebble Beach Golf Links (No. 10) – rank among the top 10 classic courses in the United States. Another four – Los Angeles Country Club’s North Course (No. 14 in the 2023 rankings), Pinehurst No. 2 (No. 17), Riviera (No. 18) and Oakland Hills’ South Course (tied for No. 22) – rank among the top 25.
It’s been a long wait for course selection for the premium women’s golf event to catch up with that of the men, but things are certainly headed in the right direction.
Golfweek’s experts have ranked the Top 200 courses built before 1960, such as Augusta National, Pebble Beach and more.
Are you a big fan of Golden Age golf architecture? You’re in the right spot. Welcome to the Golfweek’s Best 2023 list of the Top 200 Classic Courses opened before 1960 in the United States.
The hundreds of members of our course-ratings panel continually evaluate courses and rate them based on 10 criteria on a points basis of 1 through 10. They also file a single, overall rating on each course. Those overall ratings are averaged to produce these rankings. The top handful of courses in the world have an average rating of above 9, while many excellent layouts fall into the high-6 to the 8 range.
To ensure these lists are up-to-date, Golfweek’s Best in recent years has altered how the individual ratings are compiled into the rankings. Only ratings from rounds played in the past 10 years are included in the compilations. This helps ensure that any course in the rankings still measures up.
Courses also must have a minimum of 25 votes to qualify for the Top 200 Modern or the Top 200 Classic. Other Golfweek’s Best lists, such as Best Courses You Can Play or Best Private, do not require as many votes. This makes it possible that a course can show up on other lists but not on the premium Top 200 lists.
Each course is listed with its average rating next to the name, the location, the year it opened and the designers. The list notes in parenthesis next to the name of each course where that course ranked in 2022.
After the designers are several designations that note what type of facility it is:
Analyzing the best fantasy golf options for the 2020 Genesis Invitational at Riviera Country Club.
Riviera Country Club hosts the PGA Tour’s best event of the season thus far in this week’s Genesis Invitational. Eight of the top-10 golfers from the Official World Golf Ranking are part of the 120-man field. Below, we rank the best fantasy golf options for the 2020 Genesis Invitational.
Genesis Invitational: Fantasy Golf Top 30
(Photo Credit: Orlando Ramirez – USA TODAY Sports)
Here are my top-30 fantasy golf rankings for the 2020 Genesis Invitational at Riviera Country Club.
30. Marc Leishman
The Farmers Insurance Open champion has had mixed results over his last five appearances at Riviera CC, with three missed cuts and two top-5 results. He has been erratic with the driver of late and won’t have much room for error here.
29. Jordan Spieth
Typically reliant on his putter, Spieth gained 7.8 strokes from tee-to-green at last week’s AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am en route to a ninth-place finish. He’ll need to stay in control of his driver.
28. Jason Kokrak
Still looking for his first PGA Tour victory, Kokrak was a co-runner-up here in 2016, and he hasn’t missed the cut in any of his last five appearances. He’s coming off a week of rest, as he returns to one of his favorite courses.
27. Joaquin Niemann
Niemann opened the 2019-20 season with a victory at A Military Tribute at The Greenbrier. His only top-10 result since was a T-5 at the 30-man Sentry Tournament of Champions, but the expert ball striker is a strong fit for his second attempt at Riviera.
(Photo Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel – USA TODAY Sports)
26. Matthew Fitzpatrick
Fitzpatrick will play on the PGA Tour for the second week in a row after a T-60 finish at Pebble Beach. The five-time winner on the European Tour makes his debut at this event.
25. Kevin Na
Na was a co-runner-up in 2018 following a T-4 in 2017. He tied for 14th last week for his best finish since winning the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open. He’s one of the best in the field in Strokes Gained: Around the Green.
24. J.B. Holmes
The defending champ has ramped up his play coming into the week with three straight top-20 finishes. He has been excellent off the tee and with the driver, and he has been starting strong before fading over the weekend.
Im missed the cut in his debut at this event last year, but he won the Korean Tour’s Genesis Championship in mid-October for his third pro victory.
22. Abraham Ancer
The little-known 29th-ranked golfer in the OWGR is coming off a T-6 finish at the Saudi International following his runner-up result at The American Express. He finished T-44 here last year and T-68 in 2018.
21. Matt Kuchar
Kuchar isn’t a great course fit as a shorter hitter, but he’s strong around the greens and on par 4s. His best result at this event in the last five years was a T-8 in 2016.
(Photo Credit: Kyle Terada – USA TODAY Sports)
20. Phil Mickelson
Lefty made a great run at defending his title at Pebble Beach, before ultimately falling behind eventual winner Nick Taylor. He won this event back-to-back in 2008 and 2009, and more recently finished T-6 in 2018.
19. Patrick Reed
Reed makes his first appearance here since a T-59 result in 2017. He’s one of the best on Tour around the greens, but he’ll need to improve off the tee this week.
18. Collin Morikawa
The star sophomore will compete in one of the strongest fields of his pro career. He enters the week ranked 53rd by the OWGR. He just needs to be average around the greens and with his putter in order to compete.
17. Paul Casey
Casey was a co-runner-up in 2015, but while he made the cut each of the last four years, he hasn’t finished better than last year’s T-25. He can score low at these longer venues and there are eagle opportunities on this course.
16. Jason Day
Day finished T-64 in his only trip to Riviera in the last five years (2017). He finished fourth last week and seemed to recapture his expert play around the greens.
(Photo Credit: Joe Camporeale – USA TODAY Sports)
15. Bryson DeChambeau
DeChambeau tied for 15th last year for his best result in three appearances. He finished just 52nd at the Waste Management Phoenix Open, but he excelled off the tee, and it will shine through much more at Riviera.
14. Sergio Garcia
Sergio tied for sixth at the Saudi International and will participate in a PGA Tour event for the first time since the WGC-HSBC Champions. He ranks eighth in the field in Strokes Gained: Ball Striking over everyone’s last 50 rounds on courses measuring 7,200 to 7,400 yards, per my stat model at Fantasy National.
13. Tony Finau
Finau has the ability to overpower the long par 4s (450-500 yards), which are a common theme at Riviera. He’ll need to overcome another Sunday collapse at the Waste Management Phoenix Open.
12. Hideki Matsuyama
Matsuyama tied for ninth last year after skipping the 2018 event following a missed cut in 2017. He was previously T-4 in 2015 and T-11 in 2016 and clearly a fan of the course.
11. Xander Schauffele
Schauffele debuted with a T-9 result in 2018 and followed it up with a T-15 last year. He missed the cut at the Farmers Insurance Open but bounced back with a T-16 at the Waste Management Open before taking last week off.
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10. Justin Rose
Rose enters the week 10th in the OWGR after a missed cut at the Farmers. He skipped this event the last two years following a T-4 in 2017 and T-16 in 2016.
(Photo Credit: Orlando Ramirez – USA TODAY Sports)
9. Tiger Woods
Tiger will take his second try at his record-breaking 83rd career PGA Tour victory. He hasn’t done particularly well at this event since back-to-back runner-up finishes in 1998 (at Valencia Country Club) and 1999, but he can score low and is in top form with his irons.
8. Bubba Watson
Watson has three wins here since 2014. He’s coming off a T-3 in Phoenix following his T-6 at the Farmers to open his 2020 season. He has the driving distance, and he has been putting very well through those two events.
7. Adam Scott
Scott has gained more strokes per round at Riviera than all but two others in this field among those with at least 10 rounds played, according to Data Golf. He’ll tee it up for the first time since his win at the Australian PGA Championship.
6. Patrick Cantlay
Cantlay tied for fourth in his debut at Riviera in 2018 and followed it up with a T-15 last year. He’s one of the top ball strikers in the field and he excels on the long par 4s.
(Photo Credit: Butch Dill – USA TODAY Sports)
5. Brooks Koepka
Koepka will participate in his first event ranked something other than first in the OWGR since the 2019 PGA Championship, after he gave way to Rory McIlroy Monday morning. He missed the cut in his lone appearance here over the last five years (2015), but he certainly has the motivation this time around.
4. Dustin Johnson
Johnson won this event by five strokes at 17-under par in 2017. He has two other top 5s, another top 10 and a T-16 in his other four visits to Riviera in the last five years. No one in the field has averaged more strokes gained per round at this venue.
3. Rory McIlroy
McIlroy, the new world No. 1, ranks second to Johnson in strokes gained at Riviera over his 12 rounds played. He tied for fourth last year after finishing T-20 in 2018 and 2016.
2. Jon Rahm
Rahm hasn’t missed the cut in a PGA Tour event since last year’s Charles Schwab Challenge, and he hasn’t finished worse than T-13 in that time, either. He has been as steady as they come, and he shines in these fields.
1. Justin Thomas
Thomas gave this tournament away to Holmes last year with a Sunday round of 75 in poor weather. He has finished in the top 10 each of the last two years and has already won twice in the 2019-20 season.
Analyzing the golf betting odds to win the 2020 Genesis Invitational, with PGA Tour betting odds, picks, predictions and best bets.
The 2020 Genesis Invitational hosts a field of 120 golfers this week in Pacific Palisades Calif. Eight of the top-10 golfers from the Official World Golf Ranking are among them, making this the top PGA Tour event of the season thus far. Below, we’ll analyze the golf betting odds, while making our picks to win the 2020 Genesis Invitational.
The key stats for the 7,322-yard, par-71 Riviera Country Club are:
Strokes Gained: Ball Striking
Strokes Gained: Around the Green
Birdies Gained
Par 4 Scoring: 450-500 Yards
Driving Distance Gained
My model at Fantasy National looks at the most recent 50 rounds on courses between 7,200 and 7,400 yards.
Genesis Invitational – Tier 1
Aug 25, 2019; Atlanta, GA, USA; Rory McIlroy and Brooks Koepka hug after the final round of the Tour Championship golf tournament at East Lake Golf Club. (Photo Credit: Butch Dill – USA TODAY Sports)
There isn’t likely to be anyone in the field this week more motivated than Koepka, who gave up the No. 1 spot in the OWGR to Rory McIlroy Monday morning. With the bump in the rankings, Koepka’s outright odds to win a tournament plummeted. By contrast, Koepka is +900 to win the Masters, +1000 to win the Open Championship, +800 for the US Open and +800 for the PGA Championship.
While he missed the cut in 2017 (his only appearance in the last five years), this is nearly a major-caliber field. Koepka remains second in the OWGR but he’s seventh by the odds this week.
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Adam Scott (+3000)
Scott ranks third in this field in Strokes Gained at Riviera among those with a minimum of 10 rounds played on the course. Ranked 14th in the world, he’s coming off a win at the Australian PGA Championship in late December and is well rested. He looks to become the third Aussie to win on the PGA Tour in 2020 behind Marc Leishman and Cameron Smith.
Genesis Invitational – Tier 2
Jan 24, 2020; San Diego, California, USA; Collin Morikawa watches his shot from the fifth tee during the second round of the Farmers Insurance Open golf tournament at Torrey Pines Municipal Golf Course – South Course. (Photo Credit: Orlando Ramirez – USA TODAY Sports)
Collin Morikawa (+4500)
Morikawa has never participated in this event, but he offers adequate value after routinely being priced among the favorites in the weaker early-season events. He still hasn’t missed a cut as a professional, and he ranks 18th by the overall stat model as a great ball striker.
Kevin Na (+6600)
Na tied for 33rd last year following a co-runner-up finish in 2018 and a T-4 in 2017. He rebounded from a missed cut at the Waste Management Phoenix Open to tie for 14th last week at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. He’s one of the best in the elite field in SG: Around the Green.
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Genesis Invitational – Longshots
Jan 16, 2020; La Quinta, California, USA; Francesco Molinari (R) and caddie Mark Fulcher look on from the fourth tee box during the first round of The American Express golf tournament at La Quinta Country Club. (Photo Credit: Orlando Ramirez – USA TODAY Sports)
Jason Kokrak (+10000)
Though he lacks the winning pedigree of many of those in the field, Kokrak has done well at Riviera. He has made the cut each of the last five years at this event and was a co-runner-up in 2016. He ranks sixth in the field in total strokes gained over that those five appearances.
Francesco Molinari (+12500)
Yes, this is the same Francesco Molinari as the 2018 Open Champion. He enters the week ranked 24th by the OWGR, but he was inside the top 10 as recently as September. He’s coming off missed cuts at the Farmers Insurance Open and The American Express, but these odds are laughable for one of the best iron players in the world.
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