When the country club and course opened in 1926, it was known as the Los Angeles Athletic Club Golf Course. William P. Bell helped Thomas in the design and planning of the course. They were in charge of assembling a labor force to build the course from scratch in the Santa Monica Canyon. The entire country club and golf course cost $243,827 to build; at the time, it was one of the most expensive in golf history. The course has been modified a few times, most notably in 1992 when Ben Crenshaw and Bill Coore redesigned the bunkers to look as they did when the course opened.