Few golf clubs in the Los Angeles area carry the cultural weight of Lakeside. Founded in 1924, it became one of Hollywood's defining gathering places, counting Bing Crosby, Bob Hope, W.C. Fields, and Oliver Hardy among its early members — Hope in particular was so devoted to the club that his ashes were scattered on the grounds. That history seeps into the place in a way no renovation can manufacture.
The course itself occupies the east bank of the Los Angeles River in the shadow of the Verdugo Mountains, routed through mature trees that give it a genuine sense of enclosure rare for the flatlands of the San Fernando Valley. At par 70, the layout doesn't chase length for its own sake — it rewards precision and course management over power, a design philosophy that suits a members' club where the game is meant to be savored rather than survived.
Burbank sits at the heart of the entertainment industry, and Lakeside remains a private retreat for those connected to that world. Getting on requires knowing a member, but for those who do, the round comes loaded with a century of stories.
