El Dorado Park Golf Course

Course History

El Dorado Park Golf Course opened in 1962 as the golf centerpiece of Long Beach's sprawling El Dorado Regional Park, developed on the city's east side along Studebaker Road. The layout was designed by Ted Robinson Sr. (1923–2008), a Long Beach native who went on to become one of Southern California's most prolific golf course architects, credited with more than 160 courses and famous for weaving water features into his designs. El Dorado Park is one of his early works, and its character — tree-lined parkland corridors, gently rolling greens and strategically placed water — reflects the style he would carry through a long career.

The course has an unusually strong tournament pedigree for a municipal facility. It formerly hosted the Queen Mary Open, a regular stop for touring professionals, and for more than three decades it has been home to the Long Beach Open, an annual professional event widely regarded as one of the best non-PGA Tour tournaments in the country. Day to day it remains a City of Long Beach municipal course, supporting active men's and women's golf clubs and a Trackman-equipped practice facility.

Signature Holes

El Dorado Park's defining challenge is its tight, tree-lined corridors — mature stands of park trees pinch nearly every driving line, putting a premium on accuracy over raw distance. The No. 1 handicap hole is the 8th, a 423-yard par 4 that closes out a demanding stretch on the front nine before the outward half finishes at the 195-yard par-3 9th, one of the longest one-shotters on the card. The back nine opens with the course's longest hole, the 543-yard par-5 10th, and its toughest test comes quickly after at the 392-yard 13th, the No. 2 handicap hole. Robinson's water features come into play on select approach shots, and the small, firm greens reward players who take dead aim at front yardages rather than flying the ball to back pins.

Know Before You Go

• Public course at 2400 N. Studebaker Rd., Long Beach, CA 90815; call (562) 430-5411 for tee times and details.

• More info and booking at https://www.eldoradoparkgc.com.