TOSHIBA CLASSIC NOTEBOOK:

NEWPORT BEACH — Scott Hoch has been through some hard times in his career, but he experienced a serious low when he was playing poorly, yet felt in good health last year.

He was depressed about his game. Standards are set high in Hoch’s game and because he wasn’t reaching them, he became very disappointed.

But a turning point came when he picked up on a new putter and went to Leadbetter’s Academy with Sean Hogan.

Now, seemingly all of a sudden, he’s the man to beat on the Champions Tour. He will go for his third straight win of the year when first-round play of the 14th Toshiba Classic begins today at the Newport Beach Country Club.

Certainly who he is paired with will provide some motivation. He tees off from No. 1 at 11:20 a.m. with Bernhard Langer and Toshiba defending champion Jay Haas, the two-time Champions Tour Player of the Year.

“I got a great pairing, which, if anything will help me play better,” Hoch said. “Always good to play with some of the top players ... I’m looking forward to that.”

Hoch won the Allianz Championship and the ACE Group Classic last month, putting him at No. 1 on the Charles Schwab Cup standings, the season-long points program that reward’s the Champions Tour leading player with a $1 million annuity.

What’s more he made the cut for the Honda Classic on the PGA Tour, proving he is resilient.

“...One thing about my game is in the past — it hasn’t reached the levels that some people have, but it also had reached the depth that other people have, too,” Hoch said. “When I don’t play well I don’t completely lose it and I don’t go down for long. That’s one thing I characterize with my game: it doesn’t reach the pinnacle that a lot of the other guys do, but also doesn’t hit the lows.”

A high would be a third-straight win with a title in the Toshiba Classic.

 Comedian George Lopez and World Golf Hall of Famer Lee Trevino highlighted the pro-am action Thursday at the Newport Beach Country Club, but several locals were also taking their swings.

Doug DeCinces, the former Corona del Mar High baseball standout and owner of the Beach Pit BBQ in Newport Beach, competed in the two-day pro-am that ended Thursday. His foursome, along with pros John Harris (Wednesday) and Sandy Lyle (Thursday) were second in low-gross team score at 125, two behind the leader.

Also included in DeCinces’ foursome was Hank Adler, the former Toshiba Classic tournament chairman.

UC Irvine’s new athletic director, Mike Izzi, also played in the pro-am, as he was paired up with pros Craig Stadler and David Edwards.

Daily Pilot Publisher Tom Johnson played with “Beer Man” Mark Johnson and Jim Thorpe.

 The pro-am also featured former UCLA quarterback Cade McNown. McNown, who had a stint in the NFL, was part of a foursome that played with pro Loren Roberts. The team had the low-net team score of 52 Thursday.

 Brian Dubia, the 25-year-old Special Olympics golfer who was featured in the Daily Pilot Tuesday, played with Morris Hatalsky and Larry Nelson in the pro-am.

Dubia was able to play in the pro-am when David Horowitz, a close friend of the family, paid $7,000 for Dubia to get a spot. Dubia’s father, Chris, was his caddy.

Chris Dubia, an attorney, said he enjoys being his son’s caddy, but he loves to play, too. That’s why father and son won’t stick around for the three-day tournament.

They had already planned a trip to Oregon. The two share a close bond and that will only get stronger when they play at the Bandon Dunes golf course. They plan to play the course at least twice. They leave Friday morning and return Sunday.

Brian will have to go back to work. He’s a grocery bagger at Gelson’s in Dana Point.

STEVE VIRGEN may be reached at (714) 966-4616 or by e-mail at steve.virgen@latimes.com.