Rising high, aiming low

Bryce Alderton

Seven hours after completing his first round of the Costa Mesa city

championship Saturday, Huntington Beach’s Robert Caton chipped balls

onto a practice green at Costa Mesa Golf & Country Club.

This was after shooting a 5-under-par 65 to finish the first round

one stroke off the lead. The 28-year-old, who works in Pelican Hill

Golf Club’s guest services department handling valet and cart room

duties, shot a 4-over 76 Sunday to finish in a three-way tie for

sixth.

Lately, Caton has lurked near the top the leader board no matter

where he plays.

He shot a 7-under-par 137 through 36 holes on the Southern

California Golf Assn. Golf Course July 26 to qualify for the United

States Amateur golf championship in his first try. The U.S. Amateur

begins Monday at Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck, N.Y.

During the SCGA tournament, Caton shot a 66 during the first 18

holes in the morning, a round that included five birdies, an eagle

and one bogey. He followed up with a 71 in the afternoon to tie for

medalist honors and to earn one of three spots in the nation’s most

prestigious amateur championship.

“I was so stoked because it was my first time trying to qualify,”

Caton said. “I really felt like I could do it.”

The rise to stardom has come gradually for Caton, who began his

tenure at Pelican Hill four years ago, when he got serious about

golf.

He has won on the Golden State amateur tour and regularly competes

in SCGA events. He is exempt into this year’s SCGA Mid-Amateur Aug.

30-31 at Pauma Valley Country Club after advancing to the second

round of match play at last year’s British Mid-Amateur at St.

Andrews.

Working at a golf course allowed Caton, who carries a 2.5

handicap, free playing privileges, and he tries to take every

opportunity. He practices regularly and plays at least two times a

week, a marked increase from his college and high school days.

David Wright, a PGA professional who is an assistant coach for

USC’s men’s and women’s golf teams, hosts golf clinics regularly at

Pelican Hill and has known Caton for five or six years.

The two often speak when they pass each other on the range or near

the putting green.

“Just the other day, I saw Robert on the practice green and he

asked me how to hit a ball sitting against the collar [of the

green],” Wright said. “He works hard and when he goes out he sets

goals.”

Talk also revolves around the mental aspect of the game, which

Wright said Caton has a firm grip on. Caton started his first round

of the Costa Mesa city championship with a double-bogey and a bogey

and then made eight birdies in the final 16 holes.

“That shows a player who doesn’t give up,” Wright said. “Robert

doesn’t get rattled and that is one of the reasons for his success.”

In June, Caton set the course record on Pelican Hill’s South

Course with a 63.

Caton graduated from Long Beach State in 2000 and started playing

golf when he was young but only casually.

“I used to play here and there, with friends on weekends,” Caton

said. “I would always shoot in the low 80s, but I never worked on my

game.

“I got the job at Pelican Hill and have become a lot better

golfer. After I graduated college, I dedicated my life to golf. This

is what I want to do.”

Caton has played 12 Golden State tour events this year.

A first- or second-place showing in the U.S. Amateur will guaranty

him a spot in next year’s Masters, his ultimate goal. The first three

rounds of the U.S. Amateur are stroke play before the format shifts

to match play over the weekend. Caton leaves for New York today.

Caton hopes to turn pro in 2005.

Watching professionals also contributed to Caton’s interest in

dedicating his career to golf.

“I saw [the pros] walking around and thought, ‘What do they have

that I don’t have?’” Caton said. “They are made of the same things as

we are.”