What are the best golf courses in Santa Clarita, California?

Introduction

In this blog post we’ll explore some of the best golf courses in the city of Santa Clarita in California. 

The city is nestled in the scenic landscapes of Southern California, in Los Angeles County. From central Los Angeles, it is a leisurely hour’s drive north on Interstate 5, past Hollywood and up through San Fernando. 

The area is known for its stunning natural beauty, including picturesque canyons, rolling hills and ample outdoor spaces for all variety of activities.

Although let’s not kid ourselves. Many people know of Santa Clarita due to the infamous Six Flags Magic Mountain amusement park. Littered with roller coasters and other rides for all ages, this is a destination in itself.

When it comes to the golf in Santa Clarita, there isn’t much choice. There are just four courses in the city and one nine-hole called the Friendly Valley Golf Course.

So I’ve included a couple of additional courses, which are due south but easily reachable in under twenty minutes. Let’s dive in.

See also: What are the best public golf courses in Los Angeles, California?

1. Valencia Country Club

One of two private golf courses in Santa Clarita, Valencia Country Club is top class on a number of levels.

But let’s kick off with the golf course, a championship layout designed by the world-famous Robert Trent Jones Sr. 

It has been here since the mid-60s, opening in 1965 and for many years being open to the public. This was back when the ambitions were to incorporate the course into a much larger master-planned community.

However, plans changed and the club was subsequently purchased in the 1980s, being transformed into an exclusive private club. And to this day, it has remained one of the finest private golf courses north of Los Angeles.

So much so, it has hosted some prestigious events, none more so than the Northern Trust Open. What had previously been recognized as the Los Angeles Open (and the Nissan Open), was held here at Valencia Country Club, and featured some of the world’s elite golfers.

The likes of Tiger Woods, Fred Couples, Nick Faldo, Phil Mickelson all graced the fairways, with Woods eventually losing a playoff to the unheralded Billy Mayfair. 

It’s fair to say, the course is on another level. It’s received high praise from various golf publications, with Golf Digest going as far as to place it in the Top 25 golf courses in Southern California.

The routing blends seamlessly with the natural environment, with fairways framed by mature and stately trees. The green complexes are immaculate, whilst the greens are PGA Tour standard. They can be brutal depending on the pin positions of the day.

Members get to enjoy a state-of-the-art fitness center as well as a remarkable clubhouse featuring the Champions Grille. 

Sensational venue where you’d happily lose the hours.

2. The Oaks Club at Valencia

The second private club in Santa Clarita, is The Oaks Club at Valencia. 

The course opened in 2003 and was designed by the PGA Tour Design Services alongside the supervising guidance of Mark O’Meara. 

O’Meara, as we all know, has enjoyed a ridiculously successful tour career, having spent around 200 weeks in the World Golf Ranking top 10 and winning two majors. 

More recently, he’s enjoyed a lot of success designing golf courses. And here at The Oaks Club, is a great example of this career change.

The course occupies a wonderful plot, perched on an elevated hillside with wondrous views across to the Valencia / Santa Clarita valley. 

Routing a golf course across a hillside is tough at the best of times. But O’Meara and the design team have integrated it seamlessly, not just to benefit from the natural topography, but also enjoy the best views.

Let’s not beat around the bush though, this is a challenging layout. Sweeping fairways pulling tee shots one way or the other. Severe run-offs from greens and strong winds will all come into play.

Yet to be expected at a private club, the conditioning is on another level. Likewise, you can’t help but be blown away by the 32,000 square-foot clubhouse, built in an old-California ranch style. 

One of Santa Clarita’s best golf courses, you just need to work on the invite.

See also: What are the best public golf courses in Thousand Oaks, California?

3. Sand Canyon Golf Club

This time we look at one I ranked as one of the best public golf course in Greater Los Angeles, Sand Canyon Country Club.

Positioned out to the eastside of the city, in the mountainous foothills, it is without doubt one of Southern California’s premier public golf courses.

Although it is nestled in the Angeles National Forest, this is not your traditional dense canopy of trees. Instead the scenery is characterized by scrubland, jagged elevations, palms and wild grasses. 

You will also find stunning views and vistas across to the imposing mountain range.

There are three loops of nine, called the Valley, Desert and Mountain courses. All three are great and I would recommend playing any combination. 

In former days the club was known as Robinson Ranch Golf Course. Most likely because the layout was designed by the father and son duo of Ted Robinson Sr. and Ted Robinson Jr. The course opened in 2000, but has since been under new ownership since 2016.

Part of the new owner’s ambitions are to transform this into a resort with a spa which would inevitably put this part of Santa Clarita firmly on the golfing map. 

As for the layout itself, it is great fun but challenging. There are very few fairways which run parallel to one another, meaning stray balls could be hidden in the undergrowth. With signs warning of rattlesnakes, I would suggest you drop one and carry on. 

Numerous elevated tees and greens keep things interesting, as does constant movement in the topography stretching across this 200-acre site.

Do yourself a favor and tick off Sand Canyon before it gets too expensive to play.  

4. Vista Valencia Golf Course

The second of the two public golf courses in Santa Clarita proper, is the popular Vista Valencia Golf Course. 

Now I don’t normally include Executive golf courses, primarily because there is always plenty of full-size championship courses to include. But with the limited number of golf courses on offer in Santa Clarita, and also the fact it is so popular with the locals, it gets listed here.

So yes, first things first, this is not a championship length layout. There are 27 holes of golf onsite, the par-61 Executive being the main appeal measuring 4,376 yards. There is also a 9-hole par-3 course which is plenty of fun.

When people think of Executive courses, they may think they’ll breeze through in no time. Which in today’s world of everyone being short on time, is in itself driving a resurgence in popularity for Executive courses.

But underestimate Vista Valencia at your peril. There are around 50 bunkers dotted around the site, as well as water in play on ten holes. 

The most impressive manifestation of this, is the signature seventeenth hole, which features an island green surrounded by another three bunkers! 

Alongside an impressive practice facility, this is both super-convenient from a location standpoint. And great value with rates around the $30 mark. 

What is the best golf course in Santa Clarita, California?

The best golf course in the city of Santa Clarita, is the superb Valencia Country Club. This private member’s course is located close to downtown and was designed by the emblematic Robert Trent Jones Sr. It has in the past hosted the Northern Trust Open, formerly the Los Angeles Open.