After more than a year of reconstruction and decades of historic significance, the Maggie Hathaway Golf Course officially reopened Friday, March 27, with a ceremony celebrating both its transformation and the enduring legacy of the woman whose name it bears.
Located behind Jesse Owens Park at 1921 W. 98th St., the redesigned nine-hole course welcomed Los Angeles County officials, golf leaders, community stakeholders and youth golfers for a ceremonial first tee ahead of its public reopening on March 28.
The $21 million renovation—funded through a combination of county investment, private donors and support from organizations including the United States Golf Association, Southern California Golf Association and the L.A. Country Club—marks a major reinvestment in recreational access for South Los Angeles. Los Angeles County contributed nearly $8 million to the project.
“The newly improved Maggie Hathaway Golf Course stands as a powerful tribute to its namesake, a trailblazer who made the sport of golf more inclusive and a fierce advocate for racial justice,” said Los Angeles County Supervisor Holly J. Mitchell. “With a nearly $8 million investment from Los Angeles County—paired with generous philanthropic support—we have not only rejuvenated the beauty of this space, but through programs and ongoing partnerships, we are also ensuring that communities that don’t often see themselves represented in golf feel welcomed and included.”
Mitchell emphasized that the course’s impact extends beyond recreation. “I look forward to residents of South Los Angeles and surrounding communities enjoying this public golf course and all it has to offer for generations to come,” she added.
The project, 16 months in the making, features a completely refreshed layout designed by renowned golf course architect Gil Hanse, who volunteered his services at no cost. The upgraded course includes a 12,000-square-foot practice green, an expanded driving range, improved drainage systems and modernized practice facilities.
With a total par of 27 and stretching 885 yards, the course is designed to be accessible to beginners while still engaging for experienced players. Discounted green fees were offered for opening day to encourage community participation.
Construction will continue on a new clubhouse, slated to open this winter, that will serve not only as a golf facility but as a community learning hub. Plans include a youth enrichment lab and community programming space aimed at introducing young people to the sport and expanding educational opportunities.
“For decades this course has been a place where people who didn’t always see ourselves represented in the sport of golf felt welcome and included, because it is in our community,” Mitchell said during the ceremony. “We’re expanding on that promise—giving families and neighbors a beautiful, accessible space to learn, play and grow.”
The course is named after Maggie Mae Hathaway, a pioneering Los Angeles journalist and civil rights advocate who used her platform as a sports columnist for the L.A. Sentinel in the 1950s to challenge segregation in golf. Her advocacy helped break down racial barriers at public golf courses across the region.
“She was one of the biggest advocates for integrating golf in Los Angeles back in the 1950s and ’60s,” former State Senator Steven Bradford said of Hathaway in 2023. “We need to make sure that we invest in her legacy and what she stood for—inclusion, equity, and above all, balance.”
Originally closed in January 2025 for renovations, the course now reopens as both a modernized sports facility and a reaffirmation of its historic role as an entry point into golf for underserved communities.
As the first golfers return to the greens, county leaders say the revitalized Maggie Hathaway Golf Course stands not only as a tribute to a trailblazer—but as a renewed commitment to equity, access and opportunity in South Los Angeles.