What if we told you that you could play a PGA TOUR winner’s home course for less than your Friday night tab?

Welcome to The Loop — a new LAGC series highlighting green-grass golf around Los Angeles. Courses with character, community, and history. First stop: El Prado Golf Courses in Chino Hills.

Just under an hour from Dodger Stadium, El Prado is proof that you don’t have to drive too far or spend too much to play quality golf.

It’s a well-respected public golf facility in the LA area, known for solid, straightforward golf. It’s a local staple for the people of Chino Hills, and it’s captured the attention of the rest of LA too. It’s affordable, busy, tougher than it looks, and has a long history of developing competitive players, including our very own Sahith Theegala. Within the Southern California golf world, it’s considered one of the area’s most reliable and well-used public tracks.

The Course

El Prado offers 36 holes split between Butterfield Stage and Chino Creek.

We got the chance to take on Chino Creek, which stretches nearly 6,900 yards from the tips, 5,600 from the forward tees. This is where Sahith Theegala first learned to shape shots before heading to Pepperdine University and eventually the PGA TOUR.

The front nine opens up with generous fairways, light rough, and greens that roll pure. The back nine tightens the test — elevated tee boxes, water in play, and just enough breeze to make you think about placement.

Chino Creek is the longer of El Prado’s two layouts. It’s a course that rewards power and precision — long, accurate drives and confident mid-irons are key. The fairways here run tighter and trickier than those on Butterfield Stage, and the small greens are well-guarded by bunkers and thick Kikuyu rough. Creeks and water hazards come into play on seven holes (including three of the last four), keeping you honest from tee to green.

Rick Hunter, Theegala’s coach growing up, still teaches at El Prado, and has been for the last 20 years. He’s won awards such as the Inland Empire’s PGA Teacher of the Year and the US Kids Top 50 Master Teacher.

The Experience

Weekday tee times start around $40, stay under $60 on weekends, and drop to $30 at twilight. El Prado is also part of the Youth on Course network — making it one of SoCal’s most accessible rounds.

"Experience it all in under four hours. Proof that good golf can not only keep pace, but is closer than you think.”

And when you’re done? Head to the grill. Locals swear by the foot-long El Prado dog and the Philly cheesesteak — two reasons you’ll want to linger post-round.

The Point

El Prado is golf that fits your day, your budget, and your city. It’s the reminder that great golf can be found right around the corner. You may have been told that the best golf is behind gates, but really, it’s in the neighborhoods, communities, and public spaces that built L.A. golf culture.

The Loop is LAGC’s nod to that — a celebration of accessible, authentic golf in motion.

So, where are we looping to next?