I had the unbelievalbe pinch myself pleasure of playing Riviera CC and Los Angeles CC (North) last Wednesday. Riv in the morning, followed by LA North in the afternoon. What a treat!!
I'll set the stage... The weather was good but not great, especially when we're talking about California. 50 and clear in the morning and got up to about 60 and the clouds rolled in the afternoon. Not much wind at Riv but it got a little blustery at times at LA. But no rain and 60 degrees and sun feels pretty good for this Ohio boy in February!
1st up, Riviera. 10 days after the dramatic fiinish to the Northern Trust Open, the golf course was in terrific shape. They said that they slowed down the greens a touch, but I didn't notice. Great surfaces with ample runout. I have read a lot about Riviera and seen it on TV for many years so I was excited to see it in person. It was safe to say, the Riv did not disappoint. The 1st 10 holes were so good. I could not find a weak one in the bunch!! #11 was probably the weakest hole on the course in my opinion, but the barranca that cut across the fairway did add some strategy to it. #16 was the biggest surpise hole of the day. I loved 3,4,5,6,9,10 but I kind of knew what was coming there. 16 was such a need little par 3 tucked into the sycamores with beautiful Thomas bunkering around it.
As I was walking up 17 & 18 I was sad that my round was coming to an end, because the Riv is a special place, but at the same time I was very pumped for LACC...