These Golfers Have a Fine Short Game

There is a long and a short to this golfing anecdote. The long was the approach shot, which hit on the front part of the green and ran all the way to the back.

The short was the golfer who stood over what had to be a 40-foot putt. He had to reach up to get the putter out of his bag.

The long was the putt.

It went in.

The golfer was Michael Fairbanks, 4. His birdie got him back to par after two holes of the first round of the 10-and-under division of Junior World Golf at Presidio Hills Golf Course.

Four?

There being no age divisions for 4-and-under, 6-and-under or 8-and-under, the youngster from La Mesa would have to play with the older men in the 10-and-under category.

“Four?” said Ralph Trembley, long a Junior World official. “That’s the youngest I can ever remember.”

Indeed, Presidio Hills is the land of the Lilliput putters this week. With Junior World under way at Torrey Pines, Balboa and Singing Hills, the tiniest of tykes are going at it through Thursday at the 18-hole three par that plays to a 56 for this tournament.

This is the week when the players use their allowances to mark their balls.

This is the week when tee prizes come in the form of candy and soft drinks.

This is the week parents stand behind ropes near the clubhouse and stretch on their tiptoes and either squint or adjust binoculars to see what their urchins are doing out on the course, which happens to be forbidden territory to all but golfers and scorekeepers.

One youngster seemed just a bit fidgety as he (and his parents) checked in with starter Maria Falk.

“Don’t be nervous,” Falk said soothingly. “This is just like any other tournament.”

In truth, these kids rarely showed any trace of nerves, even when their names and hometowns were announced on the first tee. The impression I got was that they haven’t been playing long enough to know that golf is a tough game.

What’s more, these kids haven’t been around long enough to know about such golfing staples as gimmes, foot wedges and mulligans. There were loose and seemingly carefree but still disciplined in etiquette.

“They take the game very seriously,” Falk said. “They’re very competitive. And cute. This is my favorite age.”

Eldrick “Tiger” Woods’ favorite age seems to be whatever age he is. He has won the 10-and-under twice, 11-12 once and is now taking his first crack at the 13-14s at Balboa Park. If he keeps moving up the age ladder hereabouts, he will win whatever the San Diego Open is called before the turn of the century.

However, Tiger is a big kid now compared to the munchkins at Presidio Hills.

Lee Sanudo, 9, might be typical of most of the 10-and-unders.

“He didn’t get interested in golf until seven weeks ago,” said his father, Cesar, a golfer of some note himself hereabouts. “He was busy riding his bike and swimming and playing baseball. It shocked me when he came to me about playing golf.”

That is the way it is with most American youngsters. There is so much to do and so little time to do it. Golf takes a different level of concentration, even to play it poorly.

Consequently, Donna Abrego, whose family has run Presidio Hills since her grandfather helped build it in 1932, was a little skeptical when Bud Buell approached her about giving his grandson some lessons.

“It’s not hard to teach kids if they’re coordinated enough,” she said, “and if they have enough of an attention span.”

Abrego suggested to Buell that group lessons would be appropriate for his grandson.

After all, Michael Fairbanks was only 4.

“We couldn’t find any place that would let him on the course,” said Buell. “Donna gave him four lessons and told us he could play junior golf.”

How right she was.

Bud Buell and I were standing by the first tee when young Mr. Fairbanks knocked that tee shot 40-feet past the pin on No. 2. We got distracted as we talked and finally looked up to see the little figure in the red cap, white shirt and shorts leaning against a tree next to the green.

“Looks like he’s done,” I said. “Did he tap in for his par?”

We didn’t know, but Abrego did. She just happened to be walking near the second green when the youngest (and maybe smallest) golfer in the field stood over that 40-foot putt. She might have been the most excited person on the course when the ball disappeared into the cup.

However, the birdie did not seem to be any big deal to 4-year-old Michael Fairbanks. He stood off to the side and waited for his playing partners to finish so he could get on with shooting a 65 for his round.

A real veteran, huh?

“Every time anyone asks,” said Maybelle Buell, his grandmother, “he says he’s been playing for years.”