Best Golf Courses in San Francisco, California

San Francisco, California · Sam Whiting / Willie Watson (1924) · 18 holes · Par 72 · 6,815 yards

Host of five U.S. Opens, The Olympic Club's Lake Course is one of America's most demanding championship layouts. Set along the Pacific coast in the Daly City fog belt, the tight, tree-lined parkland course has famously produced upset champions and is considered one of the toughest courses in the country.

San Francisco, California · A.W. Tillinghast (1915) · 18 holes · Par 71 · 6,726 yards

An A.W. Tillinghast masterpiece hidden in the residential hills of San Francisco, SFGC is widely considered one of the 20 best courses in America. The compact layout features dramatic cypress-framed views, wildflower-dotted roughs, and some of Tillinghast's most creative green complexes.

San Francisco, California · Willie Watson / Tom Doak (renovation) (1925) · 18 holes · Par 72 · 7,169 yards

Host of the 2020 PGA Championship and Presidents Cup, Harding Park is one of America's finest municipal courses. Set along Lake Merced with eucalyptus and Monterey pine corridors, the renovated layout punches well above its municipal weight class.

San Francisco, California · Alister MacKenzie (1929) · 18 holes · Par 70 · 6,476 yards

Alister MacKenzie's personal favorite among his designs (he built a home on the 6th fairway), Pasatiempo in Santa Cruz is a bucket-list course for architecture aficionados. The rolling layout features MacKenzie's trademark contoured greens, strategic bunkering, and a dramatic barranca crossing.

San Francisco, California · Robert Johnstone (1895) · 18 holes · Par 72 · 6,477 yards

Set within the Presidio National Park with views of the Golden Gate Bridge, this historic course is one of the most scenically located public courses in America. The eucalyptus and cypress-lined fairways offer a peaceful retreat from the city.

San Francisco, California · Alister MacKenzie / Kyle Phillips (restoration) (1926) · 18 holes · Par 72 · 6,789 yards

A recently restored Alister MacKenzie gem in South San Francisco, Cal Club has surged in rankings after Kyle Phillips's meticulous restoration of MacKenzie's original design intent. The rolling coastal terrain and creative green complexes now shine as the master architect intended.

San Francisco, California · Arthur Hills (1997) · 18 holes · Par 72 · 6,732 yards

Perched on bluffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean at the Ritz-Carlton Half Moon Bay, this Arthur Hills design offers some of the most dramatic ocean views in California golf. The closing holes along the cliff edge rival Pebble Beach for sheer visual drama.

San Francisco, California · Robert Trent Jones Jr. / Dye Designs (renovation) (1986) · 18 holes · Par 71 · 7,002 yards

Located on the Monterey Peninsula alongside Pebble Beach and Spyglass Hill, Poppy Hills is the NCGA's home course and part of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am rotation. The 2014 renovation by Dye Designs dramatically improved playability and aesthetics through the Del Monte Forest.

Pacifica, California · Alister MacKenzie (1932) · 18 holes · Par 72 · 6,275 yards

The only Alister MacKenzie-designed municipal course on the West Coast, Sharp Park in Pacifica sits between the Pacific Ocean and a coastal lagoon along the dramatic San Mateo County coast. The affordable layout offers classic MacKenzie strategic bunkering and green complexes in an unforgettable oceanside setting.

San Francisco, California · A.W. Tillinghast (1915) · 18 holes · Par 71 · 6,799 yards

An A.W. Tillinghast masterwork in the Harding Park area of San Francisco, the San Francisco Golf Club is one of the most exclusive and least-photographed top-50 courses in America. The Golden Age layout through coastal cypress and eucalyptus features Tillinghast's boldest bunkering and most dramatic green complexes.

San Francisco, California · Robert Johnstone (1895) · 18 holes · Par 72 · 6,477 yards

Nestled in the Presidio national park lands in San Francisco, this historic municipal course offers golf among towering eucalyptus and Monterey cypress with Golden Gate Bridge views. The Arnold Palmer Management-operated facility provides a unique urban golf experience within a national park at the gateway to one of the world's most beautiful cities.