Woodland Hills Country Club

Bell parkland layout tucked into the west San Fernando Valley, this compact par-70 private club rewards precision over power on tree-lined fairways.

Course History

Woodland Hills Country Club opened in 1925 as the Girard Golf & Country Club, the centerpiece of the ambitious townsite of Girard. Developer Victor Girard Kleinberger had purchased 2,886 acres at the west end of the San Fernando Valley in 1922 and planted some 120,000 trees to draw buyers to his new community — plantings that still define the club's tree-lined character a century later. To lay out the golf course, Girard turned to William P. "Billy" Bell, one of Southern California's most prolific Golden Age architects.

When the surrounding community was renamed Woodland Hills in 1945, the club took its current name. For most of its existence it operated as a member-owned club; in 2020 the membership sold the roughly 93-acre property to a group led by longtime members Phil Wilson and Ryan Ogulnick, who brought in Troon Privé to manage day-to-day operations while keeping the club private.

The Design & Architecture

Bell's routing is a study in Golden Age economy: a compact, walkable par 70 that leans on angles and green complexes rather than raw length. Mature trees frame nearly every corridor, so the layout rewards placement and awareness more than power — the front nine plays generally gentler, while the back nine is slightly hillier and more deliberate. The putting surfaces are predominantly Poa annua with a small bentgrass component, maintained at 10–12 on the Stimpmeter for daily play, and the fairways are grabby, resilient kikuyu — a quintessentially Southern California combination.

Signature Holes

The par-4 17th is the club's signature hole, defined by the barranca that runs the entire length of the right side; it forces a real decision off the tee and finishes with an uphill approach. The 14th, another strong par 4, is regarded as one of the most difficult holes on the course, particularly in firm summer conditions. The round closes with a dramatic par-5 18th that doglegs back toward the clubhouse, while on the front, the short par-3 7th proves the green complex alone can defend a hole — it is the shortest on the card yet still demands precision to earn a birdie look.

Playing the Course

At 6,429 yards and par 70, Woodland Hills is short by modern standards, but the 72.0 rating and 130 slope — a full two strokes above par — tell the real story. Kikuyu rough kept around an inch and a half grabs anything offline, the Poa greens run quick, and several two-shotters ask for position rather than driver. Six sets of tees scale the course down to roughly 4,500 yards, and the club emphasizes a walkable, four-hour round.

Know Before You Go

• Private club at 21150 Dumetz Rd, Woodland Hills, CA 91364; call (818) 347-1511 for tee times and details.

• More info and booking at https://www.woodlandhillscc.org.

• Tip: leave driver in the bag on the tighter par 4s — kikuyu rough and small, quick Poa greens make angles worth more than distance.