FROM THE NEWSROOM:Gentleman’s game is fun after all

I haven’t met a lot of child prodigies in my life. But I’m pretty sure I just did a couple of weeks ago.

That’s when I inadvertently got teamed up on the back nine of the Costa Mesa Country Club with a young teen by the name of Jacob Knapp.

Jake, as many call him, was playing in a twosome behind me and my friend that morning.

Then, when the party in front of us slowed down, he and his playing partner asked if they could join me and my longtime buddy Larry and play with us the rest of the way.

A little background is in order here. Larry and I have been surfing together for most of our lives. We started back in junior high school, and it has carried on until well into our adult lives, surfing through our 20s, 30s and, egad, 40s.

So while we still paddle out in the water on occasion, we’ve picked up a new habit that is just as addictive, and to my wife’s chagrin a bit more costly — golf.

I never thought I’d like golf. To me it was just a game for old guys with nothing better to do in retirement.

I mean, what would you rather do, paddle into a nice, clean tube ride at the 56th Street jetty or wade through a thicket of grass looking for the little white ball that you just caromed off a tree?

For many years, the answer was easy for me.

So two years ago, after watching my boss leave me behind as he headed off to multiple golf tournaments and outings, I bought a cheap set of clubs and decided to take up the game.

After several frustrating months of attempting to swing woods and irons, my play started to gradually improve, and a funny thing happened. I began to fall in love with this grand old gentlemen’s game.

That brings me back to Costa Mesa Country Club, where Larry and I often start our day now by sneaking in nine holes instead of catching a few waves, and my encounter with young Jake occurred.

“Sure,” Larry told Jake and his friend. “Why don’t you join us?”

Jake, an eighth-grader from TeWinkle Middle School, walked up to the tee and absolutely blasted a drive.

I knew then I was in for an embarrassing morning.

Because not only could Jake drive the ball much farther than me, he also got on the green faster and putted with precision. While I got busy shanking my tee shots and overshooting the greens, Jake looked like a miniature version of Jack Nicklaus.

Wanting to know more about this young phenom, I started quizzing him. Turns out Jake is the younger brother of Ryan Knapp, another golfing prodigy who plays on the Estancia High team.

He also told me he was going to be on the cross country team at TeWinkle and he wasn’t too happy to see all the bad publicity about his school, which he said was largely inaccurate.

“They never talk about the good things we do,” he said.

I assured him we’d keep trying to talk about the good things.

Coincidentally, I learned later, Jake is also the grandson of Gordon Bowley, a longtime Costa Mesa resident and businessman who has been instrumental in pushing for a stadium at Estancia High.

Even more coincidentally, Gordon and his wife, Carol, Jake’s grandma, were sitting in front of me at the Breaker’s World Team Tennis match Monday night.

Bowley assured me I’m not the only “old guy” Jake regularly embarrasses. He said he’d play with his grandson and Jake would purposely hit the ball into the sand trap for fun. And he’d still be able to get the ball up and down.

Jake, I also, learned, regularly shoots in the 70s. Heck, so do I. Only difference is I do that on nine holes, Jake does it on 18.

So as the pros get set to play in the British Open this weekend, I’m betting one day we see Jake Knapp’s name in that field. At least my bruised ego is sure hoping so.

One of the best things about summertime in Newport-Mesa is all the fun things to do. I mentioned the Breakers tennis team, and watching them play is definitely a fun night out.

We watched the Breakers beat the Kansas City Explorers in the portable stadium built in the Newport Beach Country Club parking lot. Pretty cool venue, I’d say. The season ends July 25, so hurry up if you want to catch some tennis action. For more information on that go to https://ww3.wtt.com/ .

Of course, the Orange County Fair is in full swing now and that’s always a great spot to go in the summer. After hauling my wife, three kids and their two friends to the fairgrounds Sunday, I can personally attest that the whole Cowabunga surf theme is fun for young and old alike. For more on the fair, go to https://www.ocfair.com/ocf/ .

Finally, if you are in the mood for Beatles music, take a stroll over to Fashion Island tonight to hear the tribute band the Fab Four, who I hear are dead-on with their impersonations of the famous British band. The band is in town for the shopping center’s Summer Concert Series. The preferred seating is sold out, but the general seating area is free. For more on the concert series, call the Fashion Island Concierge at (949) 721-2000 or go to www.shopfashionisland.com .