Located in the foothills of the Santa Monica Mountains, Woodland Hills Country Club is a private equity club that offers an unmatched golfing experience to its members. This pristine course offers an impressive view of the surrounding area, and features a state-of-the-art fitness center, golf simulator room and kids club. The club is a home away from home, and membership is available in a variety of packages.
The Course:
The 18-hole championship golf course at Woodland Hills Country Club is a challenging and enjoyable layout for all skill levels. The gently contoured bentgrass greens and moderately hilly bermudagrass fairways combine to create an unforgettable round of golf.
One of the top-rated courses in the west, this semiprivate layout is a great challenge for golfers of all skill levels. With a wide variety of water hazards to challenge every player, including two large ponds on the front nine and a lake on the back nine, this course requires accuracy and a high degree of strategy to navigate.
Aside from its spectacular views and historical importance, this course is also renowned for its fun and exciting routing. This is especially true on the par-3s, where a number of oddly placed tee boxes and cart paths create an interesting and challenging test for the discerning golfer.
I think the best example of this is on the 13th, which has a walking bridge that leads to the 14th tee box across a ravine. From there, the hole is a straight uphill par-4 that plays 401 yards from the blues and 201 yards from the blacks. It is quite difficult, but if you get the shot in, it should be a good birdie chance.
Another quirky design feature at Woodland Hills is the fact that many of the holes play straight uphill from tee to green. This is often a handicapper’s nightmare, and it’s a shame that the club doesn’t do more to address this concern by making the tees more gradual and the rough more lush.
Besides the tees, there are some very odd putting surfaces as well, particularly on the par-3s where you’ll have to play from a tee box that is actually perched right next to a brook that feeds directly to the green.
The first tee is a bit short, but there’s a big tree along the left that makes your tee shot even harder. The second tee is uphill, but there is a fence along the left that kind of works like a kids’ bumper at the bowling alley. You’ll need to be careful with your tee shot on this hole, as the green is very small and perched atop a steep anthill, which means that anything short will end up collecting about 15-20 feet below the surface.
The course is also home to a wide variety of beautiful and unique gardens, which is a testament to the dedication of its members. Whether it’s a member working on the grounds, or the staff and managers cleaning and maintaining the clubhouse and golf course, there are plenty of signs that this is a place where people love to spend their time.
