Golf: Dreams come true

Richard Dunn

Way back in May 1997, there was a dream. It consisted of two parts:

One male, one female.

Today, actually Friday, the completion of that dream will come true as

we ignite the flame for the inaugural Jones Cup, a men’s community pro-am

that has been dying to get called up to the front page for 38 months now.

If they say patience is a virtue, especially in the game of golf, than

the Jones Cup will be a good thing.

“It goes to show, if you stick with it, once in awhile you get your 15

minutes of fame I guess,” Newport Beach Country Club men’s champion Bob

Kraft said, referring to the Jones Cup on his home course (1 p.m. tee

time for back-to-back foursomes in a better-ball gross format).

Designed partially with the idea of promoting the area’s club

champions in this newspaper’s circulation, the first Jones Cup should be

quite a kick with the four head professionals partnering with the four

men’s club champions in the Fletcher Jones Motorcars/Daily Pilot Club

Championship Series.

The series was started out of this column in ’97 and launched the Tea

Cup Classic for women that summer, as Selby Schriber (Big Canyon Country

Club) won the inaugural Tea Cup at Newport Beach.

In May of that year, the four women’s club champions were challenged

to compete against each other in an 18-hole, stroke-play format to decide

a Daily Pilot champion, since the ladies captured their respective club

titles by whopping margins.

So, Fletcher Jones called one day and said the Mercedes-Benz

dealership in Newport Beach would be happy to sponsor such an event,

which was also created to tout women’s golf and bring the golf community

closer together for a summer day of fun.

Like instant coffee, the Tea Cup Classic brewed quickly and was ready

to serve to an eager public on Aug. 1, 1997.

Some believe, including a Fletcher Jones official, that at least 500

walked in last year’s gallery at one point or another in Tea Cup Classic

III at Mesa Verde Country Club, while others postulate that between 200

and 250 showed up to cheer on their friend, neighbor or club member, or

simply to watch with interest

Some people have strolled the Tea Cup Classic fairways just to examine

a golf course for the first time in the Newport-Mesa area, perhaps an

equity-owned club -- such as Big Canyon, Mesa Verde or Santa Ana Country

Club -- in which they would otherwise not get a chance to see.

It is far from a good walk spoiled, no matter what golf book author

John Feinstein once wrote about the game.

Regardless of the number of people in the gallery, it appears the Tea

Cup Classic has at least accomplished its initial goal of bringing the

club golf community closer together.

“The clubs have been able to grow closer together because of (the Tea

Cup Classic),” said Jerry Anderson, Newport Beach Country Club President

and member of the Southern California PGA Hall of Fame. “Any time the

clubs can get together for a nice little outing is great. We don’t do

that enough.”

The long-awaited Jones Cup, named after the benefactor of the series,

is the ultimate community pro-am in at least one golf writer’s opinion.

“It always seemed like a natural to happen, to have a Tea Cup Classic

for the men,” said Steve Collins, who has won five Big Canyon Country

Club titles, including his first in 10 years in 1999.

INTERESTING how the four amateurs feel about their first round of golf

in front of a gallery, part of the mystic of the Jones Cup and Tea Cup

Classic, in that ordinary golfers who go to work on Monday mornings are

headliners for the first time in their lives.

A recurring theme for the amateurs -- Kraft, Collins, Pete Daley (Mesa

Verde) and Chris Veitch (Santa Ana) -- is hitting the ball in the

fairway. They have not become club champions by playing out of the rough.

“Years ago when I was learning to play golf and not playing very well,

I came to the conclusion that it’s a helluva lot easier to play your

second shot from the fairways,” said Kraft, who sacrifices a little

distance for accuracy.

“You really set yourself up to score by placing the shot in the

fairway ... It’s how many shots it takes to get the ball in the hole, and

there are a lot of ways to do it.”

Want a prediction for Friday from yours truly? I think 4-under-par

will win it. Newport Beach CC will play trickier than most think.

Admission to the Jones Cup is free. The weather should be great.

Paul Hahn (Newport Beach), Tom Sargent (Mesa Verde), Kelly Manos (Big

Canyon) and Mike Reehl (Santa Ana) are the four head pros playing in the

pro-am.

The 2000 Costa Mesa City Championship, formerly known as the Will

Jordan Classic, is Aug. 5-6 at Costa Mesa Golf & Country Club. It is

regarded as one of Orange County’s oldest and most prestigious amateur

events.

This is the 28th year the Costa Mesa championship has been played.

Mark O’Meara, a winner of two major championships on the PGA Tour in

1998, and Scott Simpson, the 1987 U.S. Open winner, are past Costa Mesa

city champions. Simpson won in 1974, O’Meara in ’79. Greg Sato is the

defending champion. John Wardrup (1990-91) and Bryan Saltus (1995-96) are

the only back-to-back champions in the event.