Step Inside Riviera Country Club: A Glimpse Inside Golf’s Most Exclusive Venue

Riviera’s Golden Age design radiates a classic Hollywood glow. Legends such as Walt Disney, Gregory Peck and Humphrey Bogart once called it home, and today members include Larry David, Owen Wilson and Mark Wahlberg.

Despite the many public figures and prestigious tournaments that have graced its grounds, the club remains fiercely private.

Beyond the gated entrance in Pacific Palisades, a circular drive leads to an expansive Spanish‑Revival clubhouse that the owners regard as sacred. Cameras are generally prohibited, with only rare exceptions.

One such exception came ahead of this week’s U.S. Women’s Open, when the club granted GOLF.com permission to film inside.

The guided tour—led by longtime member Michael Robin, with insight from director of golf Todd Yoshitake and other veteran staff—offered an intimate look at a stately space most golfers never see. Arched doorways open onto a grand hall with soaring ceilings and windows framing views of the historic course. Adjacent, a glass‑walled exhibition celebrates Riviera’s centennial. From the patio, the vista sweeps over the 18th‑hole amphitheater green and out toward the distant Pacific, where ocean breezes constantly ripple the palms and influence play.

Downstairs, on the sloping grounds, the terrace dining room leads to a corridor that accesses the locker room, its walls adorned with portraits of champions—from Hal Sutton and Fred Couples to Phil Mickelson and Sam Snead. Yet no name looms larger than Ben Hogan, who captured three titles (two L.A. Opens and the 1948 U.S. Open) within 18 months, earning the course the nickname “Hogan’s Alley” from Los Angeles Times columnist and member Jim Murray.

“If you listen carefully and dream a little, you can feel the big galas of the Roaring Twenties and the monumental events of the last century here,” Robin told us.

The stories come alive in person. Watch the video below for a first‑hand experience.

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