Bosco alumnus Aaron Grimes to compete in U.S. Open local qualifier

St. John Bosco High School graduate Aaron Grimes will compete Monday for a chance at the U.S. Open. (Photo by Robert Beck/USGA via Advocates Professional Golf Association)

LOS ANGELES — Aaron Grimes, a St. John Bosco High School alumnus and Compton native, will take a major step in his golfing journey Monday, May 12, when he tees off at Brentwood Country Club in Los Angeles to compete in a local qualifier for the 2025 U.S. Open.

Grimes is one of 84 players vying for just five spots that will advance to final qualifying on June 2 — the last stage before reaching one of golf’s most prestigious championships.

Grimes, who began playing golf at age nine, has become one of Southern California’s notable golf talents, blending professional success with deep community roots. He was a four-year starter at St. John Bosco and earned First Team All-Trinity League honors as a senior.

While there, he was teammates with current PGA Tour star and eight-time winner Patrick Cantlay.

“Compton High didn’t have a golf team, so I went to St. John Bosco for the opportunity,” Grimes has said in past interviews.

After high school, he played collegiate golf at College of the Canyons, where he earned first-team all-conference honors, and later at Cal State Northridge in 2014-15 and 2015-16.

Now 29 and still living in Compton, Grimes made headlines last August by winning the Long Beach Open in a sudden-death playoff, becoming just the third African American in the event’s 67-year history to claim the title. He also set the course record at Green River Golf Club in Corona last month with a blistering 62.

Grimes has spent more than a decade caddying at Los Angeles Country Club and is the co-founder of the Compton Country Club Initiative, which promotes affordable golf, educational support, and community-building events for Compton residents.