Golf Takes Center Stage With Toshiba Classic

Fred Couples shows off his trophy for winning last year’s Toshiba Classic.By Brian Lichterman | Sports Editor

As the calendar flips to March, the sports world in Newport Beach turns to golf and Newport Beach Country Club's Toshiba Classic. 

The annual week of events kicks off Monday and will wrap up Sunday as 2010 champion Fred Couples aims to defend his title.  The Toshiba Classic is the only PGA Champions Tour event held in Orange County and boasts such players as Bernhard Langer, Tom Lehman, Hale Irwin, Lee Trevino and many more.

The tournament began in 1995 as the Toshiba Senior Classic, and since has become a Newport Beach institution.  Past champions include Hale Irwin (1998, 2002), Gary McCord, Jay Haas, Langer, and possibly the most famous face on the tour, last year's champion Couples. 

After pro-am shotgun starts Monday through Thursday, the main tournament will begin play on Friday with an awards ceremony on the 18th green Sunday.

You can visit the Toshiba Classic website for tickets to any of the events during the week as well as parking and shuttle information.  The event is a great way to get up close and personal with some of the legends of the game and take a stroll around Newport Beach Country Club's beautiful course. 

The Toshiba Classic has become one of the favorites for the guys on the tour and this year's tournament has a strong field that includes the likes of Tommy Armour III, Paul Azinger, Corey Pavin, Tom Kite, Curtis Strange, and Orange County resident Mark O'Meara to name a few.

Mark Calcavecchia and Michael Allen will be making their Champions Tour 2011 debuts at the Toshiba Classic, and Ian Baker-Finch will be playing in his first-ever Champions Tour event.

This is Calcavecchia's second year on the Champions Tour, but first full season.  A 13-time winner on the PGA Tour, Calcavecchia played in 14 Champions Tour events in 2010 with his best finish being a secondd at the 3M Championship in Minnesota.  He's also made a cut on the PGA Tour this year, at the Bob Hope Classic, and tied for 33rd when he shot in the 60s all five rounds and posted an impressive 17-under.

Allen turned 50 in 2009 and shortly after turned a sponsor's exemption at the Senior PGA Championship into his first Champions Tour victory becoming just the 14th player in tour history to win in his Champions Tour debut.  Both Calcavecchia and Allen played last weekend in the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, where Allen tied for 60th.

Baker-Finch, perhaps best known in the golf community for winning the 1991 British Open at Royal Birkdale and being a commentator on CBS and TNT, noted a while back that he wanted to debut at the Toshiba.  He made his "senior" debut at the end of 2010 when he tied for 15th at the Handa Australian Senior Open at Royal Perth Golf Club.

Last year, Fred Couples astonished the golf world in his Toshiba debut by shooting 18-under-par and winning the tournament by four strokes.  Couples went on to win four events in 2010, set the Champion Tour's scoring average record (67.96), finished second on the money list and the Charles Schwab Cup points list to Bernhard Langer, and was named Champions Tour Rookie of the Year.

The major charity of the event is the Hoag Hospital Foundation.  This year's tournament will also benefit the Mary and Dick Allen Diabetes Center at Hoag.  Over the past 13 years, the Toshiba Classic has generated $13 million for charity, the most on the tour.

For ticket prices, parking information, and other information regarding the Toshiba Classic, click here.

Hooping It Up

Newport Beach city league players leap for a jump ball in hoop action this week. Photo by Jim CollinsBy Brian Lichterman | Sports Editor

A few weeks back I wrote about one of our city's recreation leagues.  That time it was softball.

This time it's basketball. 

Now if you're like me, you like to shoot some hoops on your own, possibly join a pickup game down at the 38th St. Park, or just find the closest bucket and get back to perfecting that jump shot as time winds down

3 … 2 … 1 … It's good!

However, if you'd like to take your game up a notch, you should think about joining up with a city league.  Winter basketball registration is long over, but spring will be here before you know it as the winter league wraps up.  You can't register for spring yet, but once the winter leagues are over, you can visit the Newport Beach website and sign up to play on an existing team or to register your own team.  Also, the seasonal Newport Navigator has listings of times and locations for the various leagues. There are summer, fall, winter, and spring leagues.

As with softball and soccer, the city basketball leagues are more about playing than win-at-all-costs competition. For instance, some of the team names in the different divisions are Rhoids, JCC Drpouts, 2nd String, The Bellies, and another steroid reference, Juicers.  With names like those, I don't think there are too many brawls like a Lakers-Celtics game could have.

Like any other team sport, from flag football to kickball, it's always better to have more players on your team in case people get tired, somebody is sick and can't make it, or has a completely separate personal engagement.  Let's just say that if you're supposed to put five players on the court each game, you probably shouldn't sign up a team with eight people. 

On the other hand, if you have too many people on the team, some people might not get the chance to play.

Some people, like Jay from one of the teams I watched the other night, signed up simply because he works with people much older than he is, and isn't able to get out and be social with people his own age (late 20s) as often as he'd like

"I'm 15 years younger than the next youngest person in my office," he said.  "I wanted to get out and mix it up with young people again."

Others join simply to get exercise.  A spectator, and girlfriend of one of the players, I sat with said, "This is the only time I see Brad run!  It's his only real exercise during the week." 

I can relate to that, and in this cold weather we've been having, the last thing I want to do is run outside!

Personally, I joined a league a while back because a friend of mine was a captain of a team and had two open spots.  I wound up playing six seasons in a row because I had so much fun.  We would get together before the game for pizza and a beer, and maybe even have a couple afterwards.

They're socially competitive leagues, which is a real departure from growing up and playing high school or college sports.  Some people have been playing team sports as long as they can remember, and once the rigors of adult life set in, there can be a huge void in the "competitive sports" department.  The camaraderie and teamwork aspect of sports is what truly bonds these city-leaguers.

From what I could tell, the outcome of the game was irrelevant for the most part.  The fun was in being there and cheering on their teammates.

For more information and to register for future leagues in Newport Beach click here. 

No Biz Like Snow Biz

Chandler Hunt goes airborne on a halfpipe at the Park City Snowboard Academy in Utah.By Brian Lichterman | Sports Editor           

Newport Beach's own Chandler Hunt, 12, wants to be a pro snowboarder.  

So far, so good.

Hunt has two sponsors in Smith Optics and Surfside Sports, and just this Wednesday added a third: Flow.

He is attending the Park City Snowboard Academy, a breeding ground for the pros.

Chandler began snowboarding around four or five years ago on family vacations.  He skateboards and surfs occasionally here in Newport as well, so snowboarding would seem to be a natural transition.  His mother Stephanie said, "He's a combination of fearless and competitive."  Since his interest in the sport continued to grow, a couple of years ago, his parents researched a youth snowboarding team at the local resort Mountain High, in Wrightwood.  After joining that team and continued success with the sport, he joined another team last winter in Lake Tahoe at the Northstar resort and split his time between the two.

He loves the sport, and he just kept winning contests.  His parents thought it was just a phase, or a temporary interest, but snowboarding has become much more than that to Chandler.

Chandler begged his parents to move to the mountains and be home-schooled, but since they have another child in school here in Newport, a full family move didn't make sense.  So, the Park City Snowboard Academy turned out to be a perfect compromise.  Chandler's parents split time with him in Utah during the season, and in mid-April he'll come back to Newport.  In the summer he trains at Mt. Hood.

While in Park City, he's being home-schooled by a proctor who teaches Mariner's Christian curriculum.  "It's a very unorthodox arrangement, but the school has great in accommodating Chandler.  Most of the serious competitors are either home-schooled or move to the mountains," Stephanie said.

"I go to school from 2 to 5:30 and I like it a lot more," Chandler said.  "It's pretty much the same work as home but I love to be out in nature in the morning and let my mind be free."

His favorite type of snowboarding is freestyle, since it's where you get to do tricks and go over rails.  His favorite trick right now is the rodeo flip, basically a flip with a twist in the middle of it.  He's also fond of the alley-oop mctwist, another flip trick.  Growing up watching ESPN's X-Games and the Olympics has really inspired him to take on this difficult sport.  Although he's having a blast in Utah and is living a lot of young boy's dreams, there are still drawbacks to being far away.

"I miss all of my friends back home," Chandler said.  "I miss hanging out with my brother and learning life lessons from him.  He teaches me how to act around the older boys.  I really miss my brother."

In the world of action sports, the earlier you start the better you become.  Some of the X-Games athletes are only in their late teens but have been snowboarding or skiing most of their lives. 

Make Way for the Midwinters

The Balboa Yacht Club will host the Laser fleet at this year’s Midwinter Regatta. Photo by Mary LongpreBy Brian Lichterman | Sports Editor

Sailboats will be officially taking over the waters of Southern California this weekend, as the Southern California Yachting Association hosts its Midwinter Regatta. 

Among the yacht clubs hosting events will be several in Newport Harbor, including the American Legion Yacht Club, Bahia Corinthian Yacht Club, Balboa Yacht Club and Newport Harbor Yacht Club.

The first Midwinters was held in 1928 when the SCYA teamed up with the Los Angeles Junior Chamber of Commerce to show the world what a "sports paradise" California could be, even in the winter.  The event attracted sailors from as far as the East Coast and the Great Lakes. 

The Southern California weather in February hasn't always been cooperative, and this year could be a tough one as well.  In 1935 a near hurricane decimated the harbors, and other years have seen dead calms, heavy fog, and even rain. 

A major technological shift came in the '60s when fiberglass boats brought about rapid growth in one-design classes at the Midwinters.

Los Angeles Harbor was the only venue for many years.  The first expansion added Alamitos Bay and 1973 saw the addition of racing at Marina del Rey and King Harbor. 

In 1977 entries reached a record 1,200.  New venues continued to be added through the years until races were being held from Santa Barbara to San Diego and as far east as Arizona and Nevada.  Some changes in venue and classes occur from year to year to keep current with class interest, but typically 25 or more host clubs and 100 classes participate in the Midwinters.

This year, more than 600 boats will be participating in the Midwinters at 30-plus venues throughout the Southwest.

Each of the Newport Beach clubs will host different classes.  ALYC will have the PHRF Non-spinnakers, BCYC will have the Harbor 20, 25, and Thistles, BYC will have the Senior Naples Sabot, Laser fleet, and NHYC will have the Junior Naples Sabot A, B, and C fleets. 

For more information on the event and tips on where to view the races visit http://www.midwinters.scyaweb.org/2011mwr/index.php

Diamonds in the Rough

A determined batter belts a good one in city league softball. Photo by Jim CollinsBy Brian Lichterman | Sports Editor

With major leaguers about to report to training camp and preseason baseball about to get under way, it only felt right to take a look at our city's winter softball leagues and see how things are going. 

Wednesday night's co-ed league over at the Community Youth Center and Grant Howald Park provided just such an opportunity.  Even though team Flying Hdghogs didn't have enough girls on the field at the official game time and had to technically forfeit, the game was still played and team Happy Hr Hittr won by a mile anyway.  Happy Hr Hittr even offered to “loan” the other team some girls just so they didn't have to cancel the game. 

Everybody came to play, and that's exactly what they did.

This is what community and city leagues are all about.  These guys and girls aren't looking for the most competitive game they can find; they're The mood on the field is jovial, the game is secondary to cheering on teammates and supporting one another, and basically everybody is having a good time. 

Even one of the team's unofficial mascot Bella, one of the player's rambunctious dogs, was taking infield practice and chasing down balls.  However, she did miss her parents when they had to take the field and made no secret of it.

“This league is pretty light,” Dan Auger, a veteran referee and city employee of 24 years said.  “Everybody is out to have a good time and the games are only about an hour and 10 minutes.”

A player takes his lead from first at Grant Howald Park Wednesday evening. Photo by Jim CollinsThe game is played with typical softball rules.  There are 10 fielders, one extra in the outfield, and four girls are needed on the field to have a legit game.  The girls on both teams were shaded towards the right of the diamond, because most batters are right-handed and will pull the ball to the left, but with a the girls pitching and playing first base, they more than held their own and were involved in many plays throughout the game.  A lot of balls stay on the ground simply due to the nature of a high, looping pitch, but a few were blasted into the outfield.

“This is a quiet community over here.  We shut the lights off manually when we're done,” Auger said.  “We use wood bats and limited-flight softballs so the balls don't go over the nets in left.” 

However, if a ball does happen to go over said net, it's an automatic three outs for the team and the player is ejected for the rest of the game.  So, watch out lefties!  Everybody starts their at-bat with a no ball and one strike count.  If you get to two strikes, you get one foul ball to waste and then the next is an automatic out.  It keeps the game moving.  There's a 160-foot line in the outfield that defenders must stay behind, when a girl is batting, until her bat hits the ball.  This is to prevent teams from stacking all their defenders in the shallow outfield.

Overall Newport city's softball leagues are a positive at a time when things like controversial City Hall plans, city employee pensions, and the universally struggling economy weigh on our minds.  If nothing else, it's a way to get outside and enjoy America's pastime.  Baseball is alive and well in Newport Beach, and hopefully that will continue through winter, spring, and summer.

Sure Happy Hr Hittr beat the Flying Hdghogs 16-1, tripping the 15-run mercy rule to end the game, but in all honesty, nobody seemed to mind, and more importantly, everybody still had fun.