Tee for Six With Ties to Northridge

Whoever’s in charge of alumni fund-raising at Cal State Northridge could have a field day.

When play begins today in the 96th Southern California Golf Assn. Amateur Championship at Santa Ana Country Club, the field of 84 players will include six current or former members of the Northridge golf team.

It’s quite a cross-section of Northridge’s past and present. Former Matadors range from 38-year-old Michael Turner of Sherman Oaks to Chad Butler of Valencia, who will be a senior in the fall.

Other former Matadors in the event include Jamey Forsyth of Chatsworth, Jeff Sanday of South Pasadena, Sang Hyun of Glendale and Rick Sessinghaus of Burbank.

“Kind of interesting, don’t you think?” said Forsyth, who completed his eligibility in 1991.

Almost as interesting as trying to handicap which of the players has the best shot at the title.

Hyun, a former Matador assistant, won the L.A. City Men’s championship earlier this summer and Sanday has won the State Amateur and Long Beach City championships over the past month. Turner is a two-time L.A. City and four-time Southern California Public Links champion.

The 72-hole event, which began in 1990, is the second-oldest continually contested amateur championship in the nation. The field will play 36 holes today. After completion of the second round, the field will be trimmed to the low 42 players plus ties.

Tiger Woods, who won the SCGA Amateur last summer as an 18-year-old, will not defend his title. Woods is playing this week in the Scottish Open. However, several of the state’s best will be on hand, including many from the region.

In addition to the Northridge contingent, the field includes several additional area notables:

* Craig Steinberg of Van Nuys, a three-time winner of the SCGA who advanced to the semifinals of the State Amateur last month. Steinberg could become only the third player to win four or more SCGA championships.

* Don Baker of Canoga Park, a former USC standout and PGA Tour pro who finished tied for fourth in the SCGA Amateur last summer.

* Charlie Wi of North Hills, who won the Pacific 10 Conference individual championship as a senior at California last spring and won the State Amateur in 1990. Wi’s third-place score of 278 last summer would have been good enough to win the tournament in every year but 1985 and 1994.

* Jason Gore of Valencia, who won the Pac-10 individual championship in 1993 and 1994. He will be a junior in the fall at Pepperdine. Gore, Forsyth and Butler all are Hart High graduates.

* Chad Wright of Ventura, who tied for fifth individually in the NCAA Division I Championships last spring. Wright will be a junior in the fall at USC.

Santa Ana has not played host to the event since 1956, when an 18-year-old named Al Geiberger won the championship under the old match-play format. In the 1940s, the course was often played by Sam Snead and Ben Hogan, who were stationed at nearby military posts.

Plenty of PGA Tour luminaries have competed in the SCGA Amateur and failed to win the title, including Corey Pavin, Craig Stadler, Scott Simpson, Steve Pate and Mark O’Meara.