The Olympic Club (Lake)

San Francisco's tree-lined Lake Course, where favorites keep losing: five U.S. Opens, the 2021 U.S. Women's Open, and a PGA Championship and Ryder Cup ahead.

The Lake Course opened in 1924, designed by Willie Watson and built by Sam Whiting, who stayed on as superintendent until 1954. It replaced an earlier layout from the Lakeside Golf Club, and the club also runs the Ocean Course next door. It sits on steep, tree-covered hillsides near the Pacific, where sidehill lies, fairways that cant away from the ideal line and tight tree corridors do most of the defending.

It has hosted five U.S. Opens, in 1955, 1966, 1987, 1998 and 2012, and the 2012 edition played at 7,170 yards as a par 70. The club has also hosted the 2021 U.S. Women's Open, four U.S. Amateurs including 2025, and the Tour Championship in 1993 and 1994. Gil Hanse and Jim Wagner renovated the course in 2023. Next come the 2028 PGA Championship and the 2033 Ryder Cup.

Holes to know

18

Par 4 · 347 yd

A short finishing par 4 often cited among the best sub-350-yard par 4s in America; placement matters more than power.

3

Par 3 · 223 yd

A long par 3 that asks for a fairway wood or long iron early in the round.

Championships

• U.S. Open 1955, 1966, 1987, 1998, 2012
• U.S. Women's Open 2021
• U.S. Amateur 1958, 1981, 2007, 2025
• U.S. Junior Amateur 2004
• U.S. Amateur Four-Ball 2015
• Tour Championship 1993, 1994
• PGA Championship (scheduled) 2028
• Ryder Cup (scheduled) 2033

Design history

• 1927: Sam Whiting remodel after storm damage
• 1953: Robert Trent Jones Sr. changes for the 1955 U.S. Open
• 2009: Bill Love upgrades, including rebuilt 7th and 8th holes and new tees
• 2023: Gil Hanse and Jim Wagner renovation