Santa Ana brings veteran presence

Of all the teams in this year’s Jones Cup, Santa Ana Country Club

likely boasts the most familiarity among its participants.

Three players: head professional Geoff Cochrane, women’s champion

Marianne Towersey and 2004 men’s champion Bill Welch competed in the

re-formatted Jones Cup last year at Newport Beach Country Club, when

the team finished at 2-under-par 69, tying Big Canyon Country Club

for second place.

The format for this year’s event evolved even more with the

addition of a fifth participant for each team: a second golf staff

member. This will create four fivesomes from each of the four private

clubs in Newport-Mesa (Big Canyon Country Club, Santa Ana Country

Club, Newport Beach Country Club and Mesa Verde Country Club).

Now Santa Ana gets its turn to try and take care of home-course

advantage for this year’s extravaganza, which tees off at 1 p.m. Aug.

30. Newport Beach Country Club claimed the first of this newest Jones

Cup on its home course a year ago.

This year’s hosts boast quite an imposing lineup: Chris Veitch,

Towersey, Welch, Cochrane and Director of Golf Mike Reehl.

Veitch sparkled the last eight months with victories in two of

Santa Ana’s major championships. He won a fifth men’s club title in

June, defeating defending champion Welch in a 36-hole match-play

final. Six months earlier he claimed the senior-stroke play

championship following a final-round 69 in rainy, gusty conditions.

Towersey won an unprecedented 21st consecutive Santa Ana women’s

club championship in February and will fly in for the event from her

new home in Carmel, Calif. She moved there earlier in the year.

Reehl has spoken with Towersey and said she is enjoying living on

the Monterey Peninsula.

If not for Veitch’s strong streak, Welch would be sitting with

men’s and senior club championship titles. The 2004 men’s club

champion finished runner-up to Veitch in both events.

Welch is the father of former Corona del Mar High volleyball and

football standouts Tom and Kevin Welch.

Cochrane will make his third straight Jones Cup appearance, adding

to the experience factor that could benefit Santa Ana.

Before this newest Jones Cup format, Towersey, winner of the most

club championships, male or female, in Newport-Mesa history, torched

the Tea Cup Classic record books. She won five of the seven

tournaments that featured the four women’s club champions from each

of the four clubs against one another in an 18-hole, stroke-play

event.

Towersey also claimed two of three California senior women’s

amateur championships from 2002-2004.

Reehl returns to the Jones Cup foray after a two-year hiatus. He

had competed in the first three Jones Cup events (2000-02) under the

prior format which featured a better-ball of partners with the men’s

champion and golf staff member from each club teaming up.

With the experience of this group and the advantage of playing in

at their home club, Santa Ana team members should like their chances

to hoist this year’s trophy.