Golf courses in La Jolla, CA.

La Jolla, CA

The South Course at Torrey Pines is a municipal course owned by the city of San Diego, sitting on cliffs above the Pacific in La Jolla. William F. Bell designed the original 18, which opened in 1957, and Rees Jones rebuilt and lengthened it in 2001 to prepare it for championship golf. The course runs along the bluff edge with canyons cutting inland, and the par-3 third and the par-5 18th, which plays to a green fronted by water, are the best-known holes. Coastal wind and thick kikuyu grass rough are the main difficulties, and the course stretches past 7,600 yards from the back tees, though everyday golfers play it considerably shorter. Torrey Pines South hosts the Farmers Insurance Open each January, and held the U.S. Open in 2008, won by Tiger Woods in a playoff, and again in 2021, won by Jon Rahm. San Diego residents pay a reduced rate, and anyone can book a tee time.

La Jolla, CA

The North Course sits on the La Jolla bluffs beside its longer sibling, the South, on land owned by the City of San Diego overlooking the Pacific. William F. Bell designed it in 1957. In 2016, Tom Weiskopf led a redesign that reshaped bunkers, greens and several holes to give the North its own character rather than serving only as a warm-up round. The course plays to a par of 72 at 7,258 yards from the back tees, with a course rating of 75.8 and a slope of 134. It is the shorter and generally friendlier of the two Torrey Pines layouts, though it shares the same coastal wind and cliffside exposure. Tee times are booked through the City of San Diego, keeping it open to the public.