Presidio Golf Course dates to 1895, when landscape architect John Lawson laid out nine holes on the Army's Presidio reservation for the founders of the San Francisco Golf and Country Club. Robert Wood Johnstone stretched the layout to 18 holes in 1910, and Herbert Fowler and Tom Simpson reworked it in 1921. For its first century the course was reserved for military officers and the private Presidio Golf Club, hosting Theodore Roosevelt, Dwight Eisenhower, Bob Hope, and Arnold Palmer, whose management company took over when it finally opened to the public in 1995.

On the course

Today the par-72 card reads 6,477 yards, but the ground makes it play longer. Fairways run through tight corridors of eucalyptus and Monterey pine, and the routing climbs and drops constantly, with uphill approaches, the occasional blind shot, and rugged bunkering that pinches the landing areas. Level lies are rare, and when fog rolls through the trees the cool, heavy air takes distance off every club, so placement off the tee matters more than raw speed.

Who it suits

It is a premium public ticket by San Francisco standards, and it carries the traffic that comes with roughly 65,000 rounds a year. Reviewers generally praise the conditioning and the strategic bunker work while noting that pace can drag at peak times and that the hills make walking a real workout; plenty of regulars ride. It suits golfers who would rather plot their way around a classic parkland test than try to overpower one.

The practice setup covers a driving range, putting green, and short-game area, with an academy of PGA professionals for lessons and clinics. A full pro shop and the clubhouse's Ironwoods Bar & Grill round out a property that sits inside a national park minutes from the Golden Gate Bridge. Pick the Presidio when you want the most historic public 18 in San Francisco and a genuine championship-caliber test to go with it.

Architect: John Lawson · Opened: 1895