U.S. Amateur championship to be played at Riviera in 2017

Riviera Country Club, a favorite of many touring professionals including two-time winner Fred Couples, has been awarded the 2017 U.S. Amateur golf championship, the United States Golf Assn. announced.

Riviera has been the host site of four major championships, in addition to the various incarnations of the Los Angeles Open, and has an exceptional list of champions.

Ben Hogan won the first of his four U.S. Open titles at Riviera in 1948 and won what was then called the L.A. Open in 1942, ’47 and ’48. Sam Snead, Byron Nelson, Ken Venturi, Tom Watson, Johnny Miller, Nick Faldo, Ernie Els and Phil Mickelson are some of the players who have won the PGA Tour’s L.A. event, now called the Northern Trust Open, at Riviera.

The ’48 U.S. Open was the first major championship contested on the George Thomas-designed layout in Pacific Palisades. Hogan won by two shots over Jimmy Demaret.

Two PGA Championships have been held there –- the 1983 PGA won by Hal Sutton and the 1983 PGA won by Steve Elkington.

In 1998, in the U.S. Senior Open, Hale Irwin ensured his victory with a 12-foot birdie putt on the uphill 18th hole, one of golf’s mosts highly regarded finishing holes.

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U.S. Amateur to be played at Riviera in 2017