NINTH ANNUAL JONES CUP:

Could this be the year?

The Santa Ana Country Club will be entering the ninth annual Jones Cup looking for its first win in tournament history.

Past Jones Cup tournaments have seen the battle for the top spot usually ending with a Big Canyon Country Club victory. The club near Fashion Island in Newport Beach has won the Jones Cup five times.

But this year’s very talented group out of Santa Ana Country Club will try to change all that on Tuesday at 1:30 p.m. at the Newport Beach Country Club.

“This is gonna be the year,” said club pro Geoff Cochrane, who has participated in the Jones Cup four times. “We are excited about playing at the Newport Beach course because the set-up is very similar to our course over here. It is a tree lined course and the greens are similar in design.”

The courses also have similar elevation and water hazards to get in a player’s way. However, even if the courses were identical, this tournament produces such high level of golfers that it will certainly be a challenge for Santa Ana to win.

The tournament is a best-ball format with five of the best players from each Newport-Mesa country club, that also includes Mesa Verde and Newport Beach teams.

“The tournament is a great chance for us to get out there and play some of the other clubs and pros especially,” Cochrane said. “It is really about gaining some bragging rights.”

With John Gilchrist on the team, those bragging rights are readily attainable. Gilchrist won the men’s club championship last week, becoming the final addition to the team.

He provides a huge advantage on the greens. His putting performance will be a key factor in Santa Ana’s run to its first title.

The team will also be relying on head club pro Mike Reehl to lead the team to a Jones Cup victory. Reehl has been playing in another tournament all week and should be plenty prepared for Tuesday’s Jones Cup.

A clutch performance by the team captain would be essential for Santa Ana to grab its first Jones Cup.

Senior men’s champ Cris Veitch and women’s champ Liz Slater round out the Santa Ana Country Club team.

This will be the first Jones Cup for Slater and she hopes to help the team in any way she can.

“I think the best part of my game is I get to play off the red tees,” Slater joked.

Slater also mentioned that the men on the team are so good that it will just be really fun to play with them.

The enthusiastic attitude of Slater seems to be the theme for all the players in the Santa Ana group. The question remains however: Will that enthusiasm carry over to a win on Tuesday?

With the level of skill this group brings to the course, this just may be their time to take home the cup.

MARK RATTO may be reached at (714) 966-4616.