The hardest golf courses in Los Angeles, California
The hardest 18-hole golf courses within about 25 miles of Los Angeles, California, ranked by USGA slope rating from each course's longest men's tees, with course rating as the tiebreaker. 39 courses have complete, verified tee data.
Also covers Rancho Palos Verdes, Simi Valley, Santa Clarita, Pacific Palisades, Pasadena and 13 more nearby towns.
Trump National Los Angeles
Trump National Golf Club Los Angeles
Rancho Palos Verdes, CA, USASlope rating 146, 75.0 course rating, Black tees, 7,240 yds
PublicPerry Dye & Pete Dye
- 5.0Conditions
- 3.0Layout
- 2.0Value
- 4.8Scenery
- 3.2Facilities
Great course, amazing quality, but anything left or right of the fairway is typically OOB since you can’t navigate to the fairways over. Not rushing to come back here.
Written by
@moodiebanks
- Views
- Driving range
- Restaurant
Angeles National Golf Club
Sunland, CA, USASlope rating 143, 74.7 course rating, Black tees, 7,141 yds
PublicJack Nicklaus
- 4.0Conditions
- 3.3Layout
- 2.0Value
- 3.7Scenery
- 2.6Facilities
Not a bad course-greens are kept well, but the rest of the course is a bit worn. Firm fairways and hard kicks make tee shots go far but also could give bad breaks. Layout is mostly good but a few greens complexes are badly turtle shelled and play frustrating
Written by
@Slamminsam
- Driving range
- Challenging
- Pristine
North
The Los Angeles Country Club
Los Angeles, CA, USASlope rating 139, 74.6 course rating, Black tees, 7,010 yds
PrivateGeorge C. Thomas
- 4.9Conditions
- 4.7Layout
- 4.4Scenery
- 4.6Facilities
The North at LACC made for a controversial US Open venue in 2023. I’m of the opinion that George Thomas’s 1927 design is one of the best in the West. The North’s front nine is undoubtedly one of my favorite nines I have played, with an equally as compelling back nine.
Written by
@Jwguy
- Must play
- Pristine
- Fast greens
Sand Canyon Country Club
Santa Clarita, CA, USASlope rating 139, 73.3 course rating, Black tees, 6,585 yds
PublicTed Robinson Sr. & Ted Robinson Jr.
- 3.0Conditions
- 3.8Layout
- 4.0Value
- 3.8Scenery
- 2.7Facilities
- Driving range
MountainGate Country Club
Los Angeles, CA, USASlope rating 137, 73.9 course rating, Championship tees, 6,765 yds
PrivateTed Robinson
- 4.5Conditions
- 3.5Layout
- 5.0Scenery
- 4.3Facilities
For a course trapped in the rolling mountain landscape, I think Mountain Gate does a decent job of making fairly enjoyable routing out of a somewhat limited area  architecturally speaking.
Written by
@AleksJ98
- Driving range
- Restaurant
- Bar
Riviera Country Club
Pacific Palisades, CA, USA
Slope rating 135, 74.6 course rating, Blue tees, 7,040 yds
Rolling Hills Country Club
Rolling Hills Estates, CA, USA
Slope rating 135, 73.8 course rating, Platinum tees, 7,155 yds
Brentwood Country Club
Los Angeles, CA, USA
Slope rating 135, 73.4 course rating, Championship tees, 6,948 yds
(C. W. Koiner) Brookside Golf & Country Club
Pasadena, CA, USA
Slope rating 134, 74.8 course rating, Gold tees, 7,228 yds
Hillcrest Country Club
Los Angeles, CA, USA
Slope rating 133, 73.7 course rating, Tee I, 6,850 yds
Bel Air Country Club
Los Angeles, CA, USA
Slope rating 133, 72.0 course rating, Blue tees, 6,482 yds
Wilshire Country Club
Los Angeles, CA, USA
Slope rating 132, 71.8 course rating, Green tees, 6,506 yds
El Dorado Park Golf Club
Long Beach, CA, USA
Slope rating 130, 72.8 course rating, Pros tees, 6,904 yds
Skylinks Golf Course
Long Beach, CA, USA
Slope rating 130, 72.6 course rating, Championship tees, 6,909 yds
Virginia Country Club
Long Beach, CA, USA
Slope rating 130, 72.3 course rating, Virginia tees, 6,655 yds
Woodland Hills Country Club
Woodland Hills, CA, USA
Slope rating 130, 72.0 course rating, Black tees, 6,429 yds
Palos Verdes Golf Club
Palos Verdes Estates, CA, USA
Slope rating 130, 71.3 course rating, Black tees, 6,313 yds
Rancho Park Golf Club
Los Angeles, CA, USA
Slope rating 129, 72.5 course rating, Black tees, 6,839 yds
Annandale Golf Club
Pasadena, CA, USA
Slope rating 129, 72.3 course rating, Orange tees, 6,612 yds
(South) The Los Angeles Country Club
Los Angeles, CA, USA
Slope rating 129, 71.1 course rating, Black tees, 6,420 yds
Lakewood Country Club
Lakewood, CA, USA
Slope rating 128, 73.0 course rating, Championship tees, 7,033 yds
Lakeside Golf Club
Burbank, CA, USA
Slope rating 127, 72.4 course rating, Blue tees, 6,539 yds
Simi Hills Golf Course
Simi Valley, CA, USA
Slope rating 127, 71.2 course rating, Black tees, 6,636 yds
Los Verdes Golf Course
Rancho Palos Verdes, CA, USA
Slope rating 126, 72.2 course rating, Back tees, 6,617 yds
(Wilson) Griffith Park Golf Complex
Los Angeles, CA, USA
Slope rating 125, 73.0 course rating, Black tees, 7,002 yds
How we rank
This ranking uses published scorecard data from each course’s longest men’s tees, the same tee set for every course. Only 18-hole courses with a yardage for every hole, a total that matches the hole-by-hole sum, and a par between 54 and 80 are included, and the tees must carry a single slope rating (55–155) and course rating. Courses whose scorecard duplicates another course’s are left out until the data is fixed. Courses are ordered by slope rating, then course rating, then Course Vaults score. Only open courses with a published Course Vaults score (at least 5 explicit ratings) are eligible, and a page is published only when at least 5 courses qualify. City pages include courses within about 25 miles of Los Angeles, so nearby suburbs can appear. Rankings refresh about hourly.
FAQ
Trump National Los Angeles at Trump National Golf Club Los Angeles is #1 on Course Vaults in and around Los Angeles, California at Slope 146 (75.0 course rating · Black tees · 7,240 yds). 39 courses qualify for this list.
This ranking uses published scorecard data from each course’s longest men’s tees, the same tee set for every course. Only 18-hole courses with a yardage for every hole, a total that matches the hole-by-hole sum, and a par between 54 and 80 are included, and the tees must carry a single slope rating (55–155) and course rating. Courses whose scorecard duplicates another course’s are left out until the data is fixed. Courses are ordered by slope rating, then course rating, then Course Vaults score. Only open courses with a published Course Vaults score (at least 5 explicit ratings) are eligible, and a page is published only when at least 5 courses qualify. City pages include courses within about 25 miles of Los Angeles, so nearby suburbs can appear. Rankings refresh about hourly.
Slope rating is the USGA measure of how much harder a course plays for a bogey golfer than for a scratch golfer, from 55 to 155 (113 is average). Course rating is the expected score for a scratch golfer from the same tees.
Yes. It includes qualifying courses within about 25 miles of Los Angeles, not only courses whose address is in the city.
This page was last generated Nov 12, 2026, 4:00 AM EST. Scores and eligibility are recomputed about every hour.
