Lake Chabot Golf Course

Lake Chabot has been part of Oakland's golf landscape since 1923, which makes it one of the oldest continuously operating public courses in the East Bay. It sits in the hills above the lake it's named for, and the elevation gives it something most Oakland-area courses don't have — genuine views. On a clear morning the Bay Bridge and downtown Oakland skyline are visible from multiple points on the course, and the surrounding parkland creates a sense of separation from the city that feels complete even though you're 15 minutes from downtown.

The 27-hole facility gives the course some flexibility. The rolling terrain through mature oak and eucalyptus corridors produces the kind of uneven lies that don't show up on a range mat, which is one reason the course develops better golfers than flat munis tend to. The greens have contour that rewards golfers who think about where to miss rather than just aiming at the flag. Recent facility improvements have raised the bar on conditioning, and the course now plays more consistently through the winter months than it did in earlier years.

Lake Chabot hosts the Oakland City Amateur and other local tournaments, and has a loyal base of regular players who've been coming here for decades. Weekend morning tee times move quickly — the combination of scenery, conditioning, and price is hard to beat in the East Bay. If you're playing from the Hayward, San Leandro, or Castro Valley side of the hills, this is the course worth building your Saturday around.