What Is The Riviera Country Club Course Record?

Ted Tryba still holds the Riviera course record after setting it back at the 1999 Nissan Open

Ted Tryba plays an iron shot at the 1999 Nissan Open
Ted Tryba broke the course record at Riviera in 1999
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Riviera Country Club is one of the USA's most iconic venues, dating back to 1926 and playing host to the Los Angeles Open for decades.

The club is a staple of the PGA Tour's West Coast swing to start each year and has seen legends of the game crowned champions. Ben Hogan, Sam Snead, Byron Nelson, Tom Watson, Nick Faldo, Johnny Miller, Phil Mickelson, Fred Couples and Jon Rahm are just some of the names to have won around Riviera, but what is the LA venue's course record? And who holds it?

That goes to Ted Tryba, who shot a 10-under-par 61 in round three of the 1999 Nissan Open. The Pennsylvanian, who graduated from Ohio State University, carded nine birdies and an eagle in the third round of the '99 event, where he needed a birdie on the 18th to shoot a 59.

He settled for bogey and a 61 after over-shooting the green and failing to get up-and-down.

Ted Tryba plays an iron shot at the 1999 Nissan Open

Tryba needed a birdie on the 18th to shoot 59 when he broke the course record in 1999

(Image credit: Getty Images)

It gave him the 54-hole lead but he eventually finished T2nd alongside Tiger Woods and Davis Love III.

Tryba's course record 61 beat the previous record of 62 held by Larry Mize, Fred Couples and Kenny Perry.

The American won twice on the PGA Tour, first at the 1995 Anheuser-Busch Golf Classic at Kingsmill Golf Club in Virginia and then at the 1999 St. Jude Classic at TPC Southwind in Memphis, Tennessee.

Joaquin Niemann holds a trophy

Joaquin Niemann broke the 36 and 54-hole scoring records at Riviera in 2022

(Image credit: Getty Images)

The 36-hole scoring record at Riviera was broken in 2022 by Joaquin Niemann, who opened 63-63 to find himself 16-under-par after two rounds. He followed that with a 68 to also break the 54-hole record at 194 before going on to win the tournament.

His final round of 71 left him on 265 strokes, which came up one shy of Lanny Wadkins' 264 72-hole record set in 1985.

Elliott Heath
News Editor

Elliott Heath is our News Editor and has been with Golf Monthly since early 2016 after graduating with a degree in Sports Journalism. He manages the Golf Monthly news team as well as our large Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages. He covered the 2022 Masters from Augusta National as well as five Open Championships on-site including the 150th at St Andrews. His first Open was in 2017 at Royal Birkdale, when he walked inside the ropes with Jordan Spieth during the Texan's memorable Claret Jug triumph. He has played 35 of our Top 100 golf courses, with his favourites being both Sunningdales, Woodhall Spa, Western Gailes, Old Head and Turnberry. He has been obsessed with the sport since the age of 8 and currently plays off of a six handicap. His golfing highlights are making albatross on the 9th hole on the Hotchkin Course at Woodhall Spa, shooting an under-par round, playing in the Aramco Team Series on the Ladies European Tour and making his one and only hole-in-one at the age of 15 - a long time ago now!

Elliott is currently playing:

Driver: Titleist TSR4

3 wood: Titleist TSi2

Hybrids: Titleist 816 H1

Irons: Mizuno MP5 5-PW

Wedges: Cleveland RTX ZipCore 50, 54, 58

Putter: Odyssey White Hot OG #5

Ball: Srixon Z Star XV