Golf came to Northern California in the 1890s, and a surprising number of the region's founding courses are still played today. From a country club dating to 1893 to the oldest course west of the Mississippi, these layouts are living history. Here are the oldest golf courses in the Bay Area, from the earliest onward.
Many are private clubs steeped in tradition, but a few — Del Monte, Lincoln Park and the Presidio among them — welcome the public onto fairways that have been in play for well over a century.
Burlingame Country Club — Founded in 1893, Burlingame is the oldest country club in the Bay Area, its course later touched by Robert Trent Jones Sr. and restored by Todd Eckenrode.
San Francisco Golf Club — Established in 1895, this ultra-private A.W. Tillinghast masterpiece is consistently ranked among the top courses in the United States.
Presidio Golf Course — Dating to 1895 as a private military club, the Presidio is now a public course winding through the national park — a rare chance to walk 19th-century fairways.
Del Monte Golf Course — Opened in 1897, Del Monte is the oldest golf course in continuous operation west of the Mississippi — and it's public, on the Monterey Peninsula.
San Jose Country Club — Founded in 1899, this hillside club is the South Bay's oldest, with commanding views over Silicon Valley.
Lincoln Park Golf Course — Laid out in 1902 on the cliffs above Lands End, this San Francisco muni offers Golden Gate Bridge views and more than a century of city golf history.
Claremont Country Club — An Oakland-Berkeley hills club dating to 1903, Claremont is famed for its short but severe, hilly layout.
Menlo Country Club — Founded in 1904 and later renovated by Kyle Phillips, Menlo is one of the Peninsula's oldest and most storied clubs.
The Peninsula Golf & Country Club — Established in 1911 in San Mateo, the Peninsula club blends a classic parkland course with a grand clubhouse and deep local history.
Sequoyah Country Club — A 1913 Oakland hills club with a compact, tree-lined course and one of the East Bay's oldest memberships.
Planning Your Round
The public options here are the way in for most golfers: Del Monte, Lincoln Park and the Presidio all let you play genuinely historic ground for a daily-fee price.
Curious how these classics have changed? See our guide to recently renovated Bay Area courses and the Alister MacKenzie designs of the region.
Want the full story of how these courses came to be — from the 1895 Presidio nine to Harding Park's championship rebirth? Read The History of Golf in San Francisco.