Riviera Hit By 'Powerful Storms' Days Before Genesis Invitational

Main image of Riviera Country Club's 18th hole in 2023 and two inset images of the rain at Riviera in 2026 — (Image credit: Getty Images/Skratch on X/Eamon Lynch on X)

Bad weather in the Pacific Palisades area of California is once again affecting the PGA Tour's Genesis Invitational.

Last year, the devastating California wild fires severely affected almost all of the Pacific Palisades and prevented Riviera - which was not touched by the fires - from hosting for the first time since 1998.

However, as Woods and co. build up to the latest Genesis Invitational at Riviera on Thursday, tournament preparation for the players has been altered by a more familiar weather front.

A video uploaded by Golf Channel's Eamon Lynch showed heavy rain falling across Riviera on Monday while a photo shared on X by Skratch revealed the 18th green under a river of rainwater.

A river at Riviera wasn't on our bingo card this week. 😳 pic.twitter.com/1pHusTmeNbFebruary 16, 2026

And, unfortunately, that is a pattern which is expected to be repeated at least once over the coming days.

Briefly discussing the Genesis' preparation window being affected after the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am on Sunday, Rory McIlroy said he is excited to return to Riviera but knows he might have to rely on historic experience of the layout if he is to claim a first win there.

He said: "Look, I missed the last year. I think we're all looking forward to getting back there. It's one of the best tracks we play all year...

"The weather looks pretty nasty the next couple of days so I don't know how much preparation we're going to get in."

Following thunderstorms and persistent rainfall throughout Monday, Tuesday's forecast shows light rain in the area for much of the day before "a second powerful Pacific storm system is forecast to arrive Tuesday night with heavy rain and strong winds," per the PGA Tour's own information.

Winds are predicted to gust as strongly as 40mph on Tuesday night before Riviera CC endures further gales on the final day of practice.

A third Pacific storm system is believed to be arriving during the day on Thursday. And although it is not forecast to be as strong as the previous two, heavy rain is expected to fall which could make the golf course even softer than it already is.

Thankfully, dry weather is forecast for the remaining three days of the tournament and no further interruptions are expected.

A soft Irish day at Riviera. pic.twitter.com/0ZqcLQMCTAFebruary 16, 2026

Although it is hoped the PGA Tour's event will be played in full and on time, there was not such good news for the next generation of stars as the 2026 Genesis Invitational Collegiate Showcase at Riviera Country Club was canceled on Monday.

The college event gives one player the chance to make a PGA Tour start through winning the one-day tournament, with former winners including Scottie Scheffler, Sahith Theegala and Will Zalatoris.

Scottie Scheffler hits a driver off the tee — Scottie Scheffler won the 2018 Genesis Invitational Collegiate Showcase at Riviera Country Club

However, heavy rain and a partially-flooded course saw the tournament cancelled for 2026.

The problem of bad weather is not exclusive to Riviera, however, with Pebble Beach suffering plenty of rain early on in last year's Genesis Invitational.

In a PGA Tour report of the first round, it said "cold temperatures, consistent rain and wind gusts over 20mph made the conditions extremely tough on an already brutish course" before more rain fell into day two.

A general view of Riviera Country Club during round one of the 2019 Genesis Open when heavy rain led to a seven-hour delay

Turning the clock back several more years, the 2019 Genesis Open - as it was then known - had its first round reset due to heavy rain and poor visibility, despite 30 players having already teed off.

There was a seven-hour delay in total after Riviera was waterlogged by heavy rain, with players such as Phil Mickelson and Jordan Spieth afforded second chances following tough starts to their first attempt at round one.

The same situation is not expected in 2026, but round one is likely to see preferred lies in place once more - just as was the case throughout the week at Pebble Beach as Collin Morikawa claimed victory last week.

Jonny Leighfield is our Staff News Writer who joined Golf Monthly just in time for the 2023 Solheim Cup and Ryder Cup. He graduated from the University of Brighton with a degree in Sport Journalism in 2017 and spent almost five years as the sole sports reporter at his local newspaper. During his time with Golf Monthly, Jonny has interviewed several stars of the game, including Robert MacIntyre, Ian Poulter, Lee Westwood, and Joaquin Niemann. An improving golfer himself, Jonny enjoys learning as much about the game as he can and recently reached his Handicap goal of 18 for the first time.

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