tournament history
A STORIED PAST
The Genesis Invitational continues a longstanding tradition of professional golf in Southern California. Debuting in 1926 at Los Angeles Country Club as the Los Angeles Open, the tournament was staged at various courses throughout the Los Angeles area before permanently settling at The Riviera Country Club in 1973. Known as the site of Jack Nicklaus’ professional debut, Tiger Woods’ first PGA TOUR tournament and with 25 champions in the World Golf Hall of Fame, the tournament and Riviera have seen many major moments in golf history.
2020-present
- 2023: A return to World No. 1 was in store for Jon Rahm as he held off 2021 champion Max Homa on the back nine to earn his first victory at Riviera. For Rahm, the win was the third of the 2022-23 PGA TOUR season. Rahm defeated a stacked field featuring tournament host Tiger Woods and 19 of the top 20 players in the world.
- 2022: Joaquin Niemann sets a tournament record for lowest 36 and 54 hole score on route to a wire-to-wire victory. The tournament featured its best field ever with the top 11 players in the Official World Golf Ranking competing at Riviera.
- 2021: Valencia, CA native Max Homa wins The Genesis Invitational on the second playoff hole. Homa, who grew up attending the tournament as a kid, played 24 holes on Sunday completing his third and fourth rounds prior to the playoff. Homa did not card a bogey on Sunday at Riviera.
- 2020: Joseph Bramlett became the first person to receive the Charlie Sifford Memorial Exemption for a second time. Bramlett also received the exemption in 2011.
- 2020: Adam Scott earned an official tournament victory with his two-shot win. In 2005, Scott won a rain-shortened tournament in a playoff, an unofficial PGA TOUR win.
Pictured: 2021 champion Max Homa
2010-2019
- 2018 Cameron Champ awarded the Charlie Sifford Memorial Exemption. Later that year, Champ becomes the first Sifford Exemption recipient to win on the PGA TOUR.
- 2017: Dustin Johnson’s victory following weather delays forced 36 holes to be played on Sunday. The win ascended Johnson to No. 1 in the Official World Golf Ranking.
- 2015: The tournament held the first Collegiate Showcase, providing the opportunity for a college golfer to earn an exemption into the full field tournament. Will Zalatoris of Wake Forest earned the first showcase exemption into the field.
- 2013: John Merrick became the first champion from Los Angeles County by defeating Charlie Beljan on the second playoff hole. Merrick was born and raised in Long Beach.
- 2012: Bill Haas made a 40-foot putt to defeat Phil Mickelson and Keegan Bradley on the second playoff hole.
Pictured: Inaugural Collegiate Showcase winner Will Zalatoris
2000-2009
- 2009: Vincent Johnson was awarded the first Charlie Sifford Memorial exemption, awarded annually to a golfer of a minority background who otherwise wouldn’t be eligible to complete.
- 2009: Phil Mickelson became the seventh player in tournament history to win back-to-back tournaments.
- 2007: Charles Howell III defeated Phil Mickelson on the third playoff hole.
- 2005: Adam Scott won a playoff in a rain-shortened tournament. Only 36 holes were completed.
- 2004: Mike Weir became the sixth player in tournament history to win back-to-back tournaments.
Charlie Sifford Memorial Exemption
Pictured: Vincent Johnson in 2009
1990-1999
- 1995: Corey Pavin became the fifth player in tournament history to win back-to-back tournaments.
- 1993: Tom Kite won in a rain-shorted tournament. Only 54 holes were completed.
- 1992: Tiger Woods played in his first PGA TOUR event as an amateur at the age of 16.
Pictured: Tiger Woods in his PGA TOUR debut in 1992
1980-1989
- 1985: Lanny Wadkins won his second LA Open with a tournament-record score of 20-under, 264.
- 1983: PGA Championship held at Riviera.
- 1982: Tom Watson defeated Johnny Miller in one of the greatest comeback victories in tournament history. Watson made a 40-foot putt on the third playoff hole to defeat defending champion Johnny Miller. The win was Watson’s second LA Open victory in three years.
Pictured: the 1983 PGA Championship at Riviera
1970-1979
- 1973: The LA Open returned to Riviera. The tournament remained at Riviera every year since with the exception of the 1983 and 1998 tournaments.
Pictured: Jack Nicklaus at Riviera in 1973
1960-1969
- 1969: Charlie Sifford, the first African American member of the PGA TOUR, won the LA Open.
- 1967: Arnold Palmer became the third player in tournament history to win back-to-back tournaments. The victory was Palmer’s third time in a five-year span, having also won in 1963 and 1966.
- 1962: Jack Nicklaus won his first professional paycheck, earning $33.33.
Pictured: Charlie Sifford collecting the winner’s check in 1969
1950-1959
- 1956: Lloyd Mangrum won the tournament for the fourth time, something only Macdonald Smith had previously accomplished.
Pictured: Lloyd Mangrum on the first tee in 1956
1940-1949
- 1948: Ben Hogan became the second player in tournament history to win back-to-back tournaments. Hogan would also win the US Open at Riviera, causing many to begin calling the club Hogan’s Alley.
- 1948: Bill Spiller and Ted Rhodes became the first African Americans to play in a non-USGA, PGA TOUR event, the 1948 Los Angeles Open. They both made the cut, Rhodes tying for 22nd and Spiller tying for 29th.
- 1946: Babe Didrikson Zaharias made her final start in the LA Open. In her career, she would compete in seven men’s tournaments, three of which were the LA Open.
- 1945: A birdie on the final hole gave Sam Snead a one-shot victory over Byron Nelson.
- 1945: Babe Didrikson Zaharias made her second start in the LA Open.
- 1943: Due to World War II, the tournament was not held.
- 1942: Ben Hogan won his first LA Open.
Pictured: Ben Hogan on the 18th green during the 1948 US Open
1930-1939
- 1938: Babe Didrikson Zaharias became the first woman to play in the LA Open. It would be the first of her three starts in the tournament.
- 1934: Macdonald Smith became the first player to win the LA Open four times (1928-29, 1932, 1934).
Pictured: Babe Didrikson Zaharia preparing for a tournament
1926-1929
- 1929: The LA Open became the first tournament to be broadcast on radio.
- 1929: Macdonald Smith became the first player in tournament history to win back-to-back tournaments.
- 1926: The Los Angeles Junior Chamber of Commerce put up a $10,000 purse for the first LA Open, the richest prize at the time in professional golf.
Pictured: The 18th green and Riviera clubhouse during the 1929 tournament
Tournament records
| Recored | Player | |
|---|---|---|
| 18-hole score | 61 | George Archer (R3/1983), Ted Tryba (R3/1999) |
| 36-hole score | 126 | Joaquin Niemann (2022) |
| 54-hole score | 194 | Joaquin Niemann (2022) |
| 72-hole score | 264 | Lanny Wadkins (1985) |
| Largest margin of victory | 9 | Phil Rodgers (1962) |
| Best come-from-behind win | 8 | Ken Venturi (1959) |
| Playoffs | 18 | Most recent: 2021 (Max Homa def. Tony Finau) |
| Holes-in-one since 1983 | 42 | Most recent: Scott Harrington (R4/2021) |
host courses
| times hosted | Course | Years |
|---|---|---|
| 60 | The Riviera Country Club | 1929–30, 1941, 1945–53, 1973–82, 1984–97, 1999–2023 |
| 17 | Rancho Park Golf Course | 1956–67, 1969–72, 1983 |
| 5 | Los Angeles Country Club | 1926, 1934–36, 1940 |
| 4 | Wilshire Country Club | 1928, 1931, 1933, 1944 |
| 3 | Griffith Park (Wilson course) | 1937–39 |
| 2 | Hillcrest Country Club | 1932, 1942 |
| 1 | Valencia Country Club | 1998 |
| 1 | Brookside Golf Course | 1968 |
| 1 | Inglewood Country Club | 1955 |
| 1 | Fox Hills Country Club | 1954 |
| 1 | El Caballero Country Club | 1927 |
champions
| YEAR | WINNER | SCORE |
| 1926 | Harry Cooper | 279 |
| 1927 | Bobby Cruickshank | 282 |
| 1928 | Macdonald Smith | 284 |
| 1929 | Macdonald Smith | 285 |
| 1930 | Denny Shute | 296 |
| 1931 | Ed Dudley | 285 |
| 1932 | Macdonald Smith | 281 |
| 1933 | Craig Wood | 281 |
| 1934 | Macdonald Smith | 280 |
| 1935 | Victor Ghezzi | 285 |
| 1936 | Jimmy Hines | 280 |
| 1937 | Harry Cooper | 274 |
| 1938 | Jimmy Thomson | 273 |
| 1939 | Jimmy Demaret | 274 |
| 1940 | Lawson Little | 282 |
| 1941 | Johnny Bulla | 281 |
| 1942 | Ben Hogan | 282 |
| 1944 | Harold McSpaden | 278 |
| 1945 | Sam Snead | 283 |
| 1946 | Byron Nelson | 284 |
| 1947 | Ben Hogan | 280 |
| 1948 | Ben Hogan | 275 |
| 1949 | Lloyd Mangrum | 284 |
| 1950 | Sam Snead | 280 |
| 1951 | Lloyd Mangrum | 280 |
| 1952 | Tommy Bolt | 289 |
| 1953 | Lloyd Mangrum | 280 |
| 1954 | Fred Wampler | 281 |
| 1955 | Gene Littler | 276 |
| 1956 | Lloyd Mangrum | 272 |
| 1957 | Doug Ford | 280 |
| 1958 | Frank Stranahan | 275 |
| 1959 | Ken Venturi | 278 |
| 1960 | Dow Finsterwald | 280 |
| 1961 | Bob Goalby | 275 |
| 1962 | Phil Rodgers | 268 |
| 1963 | Arnold Palmer | 274 |
| 1964 | Paul Harney | 280 |
| 1965 | Paul Harney | 276 |
| 1966 | Arnold Palmer | 273 |
| 1967 | Arnold Palmer | 269 |
| 1968 | Billy Casper | 274 |
| 1969 | Charles Sifford | 276 |
| 1970 | Billy Casper | 276 |
| 1971 | Bob Lunn | 274 |
| 1972 | George Archer | 270 |
| 1973 | Rod Funseth | 276 |
| 1974 | Dave Stockton | 276 |
| 1975 | Pat Fitzsimons | 275 |
| 1976 | Hale Irwin | 272 |
| 1977 | Tom Purtzer | 273 |
| 1978 | Gil Morgan | 278 |
| 1979 | Lanny Wadkins | 276 |
| 1980 | Tom Watson | 276 |
| 1981 | Johnny Miller | 270 |
| 1982 | Tom Watson | 271 |
| 1983 | Gil Morgan | 270 |
| 1984 | David Edwards | 279 |
| 1985 | Lanny Wadkins | 264 |
| 1986 | Doug Tewell | 270 |
| 1987 | T.C. Chen | 275 |
| 1988 | Chip Beck | 267 |
| 1989 | Mark Calcavecchia | 272 |
| 1990 | Fred Couples | 266 |
| 1991 | Ted Schulz | 272 |
| 1992 | Fred Couples | 269 |
| 1993 | Tom Kite | 206 |
| 1994 | Corey Pavin | 271 |
| 1995 | Corey Pavin | 268 |
| 1996 | Craig Stadler | 278 |
| 1997 | Nick Faldo | 272 |
| 1998 | Billy Mayfair | 272 |
| 1999 | Ernie Els | 270 |
| 2000 | Kirk Triplett | 272 |
| 2001 | Robert Allenby | 276 |
| 2002 | Len Mattiace | 269 |
| 2003 | Mike Weir | 275 |
| 2004 | Mike Weir | 267 |
| 2005 | Adam Scott | 133 |
| 2006 | Rory Sabbatini | 271 |
| 2007 | Charles Howell III | 268 |
| 2008 | Phil Mickelson | 272 |
| 2009 | Phil Mickelson | 269 |
| 2010 | Steve Stricker | 268 |
| 2011 | Aaron Baddeley | 272 |
| 2012 | Bill Haas | 277 |
| 2013 | John Merrick | 273 |
| 2014 | Bubba Watson | 269 |
| 2015 | James Hahn | 278 |
| 2016 | Bubba Watson | 269 |
| 2017 | Dustin Johnson | 267 |
| 2018 | Bubba Watson | 272 |
| 2019 | J.B. Holmes | 270 |
| 2020 | Adam Scott | 273 |
| 2021 | Max Homa | 272 |
| 2022 | Joaquin Niemann | 265 |
| 2023 | Jon Rahm | 267 |