San Diego’s Riverwalk Golf Club: History Happened Here
By Kirk Kenney
Like the San Diego River, the area’s golf history runs through Mission Valley.
Those playing at Riverwalk Golf Club might be interested to know that they are walking in the footsteps of some of the greats of the game.
Some 60 years ago, before malls and stadiums and restaurants and condominiums filled the valley, there was a golf course that shared the grass with those grazing at nearby dairy farms.
The Mission Valley Country Club (which changed its name to Stardust Country Club in 1962) hosted the San Diego Open off and on for six years in the 1950s and ’60s before the tournament found permanent residence in 1968 at the Torrey Pines Golf Course.
Champions of the San Diego Open when it was played at Stardust include Tommy Bolt, Gary Player and local favorite Billy Casper. They outplayed Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus, among others, through the years.
While the course lost some of its luster when the PGA moved north, it still kept its connection to the pros. Or future pros, anyway. One of Phil Mickelson’s first jobs was at Stardust in the mid-1980s. Among his responsibilities was picking up range balls - although he probably was the one who hit many of them - on the driving range.
The Stardust driving range was located just north of Interstate 8, where passing motorists now get a glimpse of Riverwalk’s signature hole, the 304-yard par-4 third hole on the Mission Course. Water guards the hole virtually from tee to green, forcing all but the biggest - dumbest? - hitters to put the ball in the fairway to the left. A beautiful waterfall to the left of the green provides further distraction and acquires more than its share of approach shots.
While the hole is perhaps the most stunning on the course, there are plenty of others that grab a golfer’s attention. Stardust was transformed in the late 1990s, with its flat fairways given some character by the time it reopened in 1998 as Riverwalk. It now includes three nines - the Presidio, Mission and Friars courses, all par-36 ranging from 3,153 to 3,397 yards - and was reshaped by designer Ted Robinson to include “undulating fairways, waterfalls and well-protected bentgrass greens.”
Riverwalk lived up to its name when heavy rains came through San Diego during the ‘98 winter, although maybe Riverboat would have been more appropriate. The entire course resembled one big water hazard for a day or two. It was some sight. Under normal conditions, either ponds, creeks or waterfalls are present on 13 holes rather than all 27 holes.
Each nine includes a pair of par-5s that measure more than 500 yards from the back tees. The par-3s can be just as challenging, however.
Riverwalk includes a quality practice range and a restaurant for sitdown dining after a round. The course’s central location makes it one of the most convenient places in the county to play.
