The Genesis Invitational has worn a lot of nameplates over the past 100 years, Los Angeles Open, Nissan Open, Northern Trust Open, Genesis Open , but the throughline has stayed the same: if you win this tournament, you own a piece of golf history.
The event made its debut in 1926, and the champions list is a time capsule of the sport itself, moving from early-era legends to modern superstars with Signature Event stakes.
A Century of Champions
Here is a year-by-year roll call of every champion:
| Year | Winner | Total | To Par | Won By | Money |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Jacob Bridgeman | 266 | –18 | 1 | $4,000,000 |
| 2025 | Ludvig Aberg | 276 | −12 | 1 | $4,000,000 |
| 2024 | Hideki Matsuyama | 267 | −17 | 3 | $4,000,000 |
| 2023 | Jon Rahm | 267 | −17 | 2 | $3,600,000 |
| 2022 | Joaquin Niemann | 265 | −19 | 2 | $2,160,000 |
| 2021 | Max Homa | 272 | −12 | PO | $1,674,000 |
| 2020 | Adam Scott | 273 | −11 | 2 | $1,674,000 |
| 2019 | J.B. Holmes | 270 | −14 | 1 | $1,332,000 |
| 2018 | Bubba Watson | 272 | −12 | 2 | $1,296,000 |
| 2017 | Dustin Johnson | 267 | −17 | 5 | $1,260,000 |
| 2016 | Bubba Watson | 269 | −15 | 1 | $1,224,000 |
| 2015 | James Hahn | 278 | −6 | PO | $1,206,000 |
| 2014 | Bubba Watson | 269 | −15 | 2 | $1,206,000 |
| 2013 | John Merrick | 273 | −11 | PO | $1,188,000 |
| 2012 | Bill Haas | 277 | −7 | PO | $1,188,000 |
| 2011 | Aaron Baddeley | 272 | −12 | 2 | $1,170,000 |
| 2010 | Steve Stricker | 268 | −16 | 2 | $1,152,000 |
| 2009 | Phil Mickelson | 269 | −15 | 1 | $1,134,000 |
| 2008 | Phil Mickelson | 272 | −12 | 2 | $1,116,000 |
| 2007 | Charles Howell III | 268 | −16 | PO | $936,000 |
| 2006 | Rory Sabbatini | 271 | −13 | 1 | $918,000 |
| 2005 | Adam Scott | 133 | −9 | PO | $864,000 |
| 2004 | Mike Weir | 267 | −17 | 1 | $864,000 |
| 2003 | Mike Weir | 275 | −9 | PO | $810,000 |
| 2002 | Len Mattiace | 269 | −15 | 1 | $666,000 |
| 2001 | Robert Allenby | 276 | −8 | PO | $612,000 |
| 2000 | Kirk Triplett | 272 | −12 | 1 | $558,000 |
| 1999 | Ernie Els | 270 | −14 | 2 | $504,000 |
| 1998 | Billy Mayfair | 272 | −12 | PO | $378,000 |
| 1997 | Nick Faldo | 272 | −12 | 3 | $252,000 |
| 1996 | Craig Stadler | 278 | −6 | 1 | $216,000 |
| 1995 | Corey Pavin | 268 | −16 | 3 | $216,000 |
| 1994 | Corey Pavin | 271 | −13 | 2 | $180,000 |
| 1993 | Tom Kite | 206 | −7 | 3 | $180,000 |
| 1992 | Fred Couples | 269 | −15 | PO | $180,000 |
| 1991 | Ted Schulz | 272 | −12 | 1 | $180,000 |
| 1990 | Fred Couples | 266 | −18 | 3 | $180,000 |
| 1989 | Mark Calcavecchia | 272 | −12 | 1 | $180,000 |
| 1988 | Chip Beck | 267 | −17 | 4 | $135,000 |
| 1987 | Chen Tze-chung | 275 | −9 | PO | $108,000 |
| 1986 | Doug Tewell | 270 | −14 | 7 | $81,000 |
| 1985 | Lanny Wadkins | 264 | −20 | 7 | $72,000 |
| 1984 | David Edwards | 279 | −5 | 3 | $72,000 |
| 1983 | Gil Morgan | 270 | −14 | 2 | $54,000 |
| 1982 | Tom Watson | 271 | −13 | PO | $54,000 |
| 1981 | Johnny Miller | 270 | −14 | 2 | $54,000 |
| 1980 | Tom Watson | 276 | −8 | 1 | $45,000 |
| 1979 | Lanny Wadkins | 276 | −8 | 1 | $45,000 |
| 1978 | Gil Morgan | 278 | −6 | 2 | $40,000 |
| 1977 | Tom Purtzer | 273 | −11 | 1 | $40,000 |
| 1976 | Hale Irwin | 272 | −12 | 2 | $37,000 |
| 1975 | Pat Fitzsimons | 275 | −9 | 4 | $30,000 |
| 1974 | Dave Stockton | 276 | −8 | 2 | $30,000 |
| 1973 | Rod Funseth | 276 | −8 | 3 | $27,000 |
| 1972 | George Archer | 270 | −14 | PO | $25,000 |
| 1971 | Bob Lunn | 274 | −10 | PO | $22,000 |
| 1970 | Billy Casper | 276 | −8 | PO | $20,000 |
| 1969 | Charlie Sifford | 276 | −8 | PO | $20,000 |
| 1968 | Billy Casper | 274 | −10 | 3 | $20,000 |
| 1967 | Arnold Palmer | 269 | −15 | 5 | $20,000 |
| 1966 | Arnold Palmer | 273 | −11 | 3 | $11,000 |
| 1965 | Paul Harney | 276 | −8 | 3 | $12,000 |
| 1964 | Paul Harney | 280 | −4 | 1 | $7,500 |
| 1963 | Arnold Palmer | 274 | −10 | 3 | $9,000 |
| 1962 | Phil Rodgers | 268 | −16 | 9 | $7,500 |
| 1961 | Bob Goalby | 275 | −9 | 3 | $7,500 |
| 1960 | Dow Finsterwald | 280 | −4 | 3 | $5,500 |
| 1959 | Ken Venturi | 278 | −6 | 2 | $5,300 |
| 1958 | Frank Stranahan | 275 | −9 | 3 | $7,000 |
| 1957 | Doug Ford | 280 | −4 | 1 | $7,000 |
| 1956 | Lloyd Mangrum | 272 | −12 | 3 | $6,000 |
| 1955 | Gene Littler | 276 | −8 | 2 | $5,000 |
| 1954 | Fred Wampler | 281 | −3 | 1 | $4,000 |
| 1953 | Lloyd Mangrum | 280 | −4 | 5 | $2,750 |
| 1952 | Tommy Bolt | 289 | +5 | PO | $4,000 |
| 1951 | Lloyd Mangrum | 280 | −4 | 1 | $2,600 |
| 1950 | Sam Snead | 280 | −4 | PO | $2,600 |
| 1949 | Lloyd Mangrum | 284 | E | 3 | $2,600 |
| 1948 | Ben Hogan | 275 | −9 | 4 | $2,000 |
| 1947 | Ben Hogan | 280 | −4 | 3 | $2,000 |
| 1946 | Byron Nelson | 284 | E | 5 | $2,667 |
| 1945 | Sam Snead | 283 | −1 | 1 | $2,666 |
| 1944 | Jug McSpaden | 278 | −6 | 3 | $4,300 |
| 1943 | Not Played (WWII) | — | — | — | — |
| 1942 | Ben Hogan | 282 | −6 | PO | $3,500 |
| 1941 | Johnny Bulla | 281 | −3 | 2 | $3,500 |
| 1940 | Lawson Little | 282 | +2 | 1 | $1,500 |
| 1939 | Jimmy Demaret | 274 | −10 | 7 | $1,650 |
| 1938 | Jimmy Thomson | 273 | −11 | 4 | $2,100 |
| 1937 | Harry Cooper | 274 | −10 | 5 | $2,500 |
| 1936 | Jimmy Hines | 280 | E | 4 | $1,500 |
| 1935 | Vic Ghezzi | 285 | +5 | PO | $1,075 |
| 1934 | Macdonald Smith | 280 | E | 8 | $1,450 |
| 1933 | Craig Wood | 282 | −2 | 4 | $1,525 |
| 1932 | Macdonald Smith | 281 | −3 | 4 | $2,000 |
| 1931 | Ed Dudley | 285 | +1 | 2 | $3,500 |
| 1930 | Denny Shute | 296 | +12 | 4 | $3,500 |
| 1929 | Macdonald Smith | 285 | +1 | 6 | $3,500 |
| 1928 | Macdonald Smith | 284 | E | 3 | $3,500 |
| 1927 | Bobby Cruickshank | 282 | −6 | 6 | $3,500 |
| 1926 | Harry Cooper | 279 | −9 | 3 | $3,500 |
From the Los Angeles Open to a Riviera Institution
The Genesis Invitational’s roots run deeper than most stops on the PGA Tour calendar, and the tournament’s official history reads like a snapshot of golf’s evolution. It permanently settled at The Riviera Country Club in 1973 – a move that helped turn it into one of the Tour’s signature annual destinations.
Riviera itself is part of the mythology. The tournament notes that the event is the site of Jack Nicklaus’ professional debut, Tiger Woods’ first PGA Tour event, and has produced 25 champions in the World Golf Hall of Fame.
A few milestones from the tournament’s timeline put its staying power into perspective. In 1926, the Los Angeles Junior Chamber of Commerce backed the inaugural event with a $10,000 purse, described as the richest prize at the time in professional golf – a reminder that the “big money” DNA has been baked into this tournament since the beginning. Then in 1929, the LA Open became the first tournament broadcast on radio, a pivotal moment in turning pro golf into a spectator product beyond the ropes.
The history page also underlines how this event has often reflected the sport’s broader cultural shifts. Charlie Sifford won in 1969, a landmark moment given his significance as the first African American member of the PGA Tour. And decades earlier, the tournament recorded multiple trailblazing appearances by Babe Didrikson Zaharias, including noting she became the first woman to play in the LA Open in 1938. Put together, the Genesis Invitational isn’t just a winner’s list; it’s a timeline of how golf has changed, who got to be part of it, and why Riviera still feels like a stage where history tends to follow the final group.
Genesis Invitational Winners Through the Years: A Century of Golf Legends