GOLF NOTEBOOK / STEVE KRESAL : New Practice Range in Westminster Wants a Country-Club Feel

On some rare farmland in the middle of Westminster, the future of practice ranges is taking root. Or at least Tom Utman, president of USA Golf Centers, hopes so.

Utman’s company recently opened a driving range and practice area on 17 acres off Hoover Street. The practice center is lined on both sides by a strawberry farm.

Nothing about the facility, which took five months to build, is average, according to Utman. He hired an interior decorator who selected the green and white pattern that is visible on everything from the range balls, to the mats, to the benches, to the umbrellas, to the bag stands.

“We wanted a country-club feel,” Utman said. “But not everybody can afford that so we wanted to bring the country club to the masses.”

To help push that point, golfers are allowed to take any club for sale in the pro shop out to the range for a test hit or two.

It’s 310 yards to the back fence and although many a big hitter has tried, Utman said no one has been able to clear it . . . yet.

Buckets of balls cost $4, $5, $6 and a jumbo bucket is $10 for the mats. To hit off grass, buckets are $6 and $8. There are 96 hitting stations included in a two-story structure and the range is open from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.

There are also three sand traps and practice greens for those who want to work on their short game.

Within the next few weeks, an enormous putting green and another chipping and pitching area will open.

The center offers not only a quality place to practice but also a chance to learn the game using the Hank Haney method.

Haney has taught golf for 20 years in Texas and has worked with more than 100 tour professionals.

Mark O’Meara, Chip Beck and Bruce Crampton are among those who have gone to Haney for help.

A team of Haney-trained professionals, headed by Andy Cude, started teaching at Westminster 10 days ago.

“We’re here for the community,” Cude said. “If we don’t work with them, then we’ll fall flat on our faces. We’ll help anybody hit the golf ball better.”

Rates at the center range from $60 for a one-hour private lesson with a teaching assistant to $95 with the head instructors. Follow-up lessons are $15 to $25 cheaper. There are also group clinics.

The Haney method is a very hands-on approach. Early on, the teacher often stands behind the golfer and helps the individual take the club back and then forward in the proper position.

For instance, if a player doesn’t generate enough of a hip turn, the teacher will pull on the person’s belt loop to demonstrate the point.

“What we are doing here is blowing people’s minds,” Cude said. “They have been gadgeted to death (on television). We just want them to come here and take a quality golf lesson, and once they come, they’ll be back.”

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Scott Richardson, a freshman at Saddleback College, capped his impressive season by being selected the team’s most valuable player.

Richardson, from Dana Hills High School, had a stroke average of 74.4 and was the medalist in 10 of the 26 events in which he played.

He set the school record for a low round with a 66 on the par-71 Whispering Palms course in San Diego.

He also shot a five-under-par 67 at Lake San Marcos Country Club during the Orange Empire Conference Championship. The Gauchos won their 10th title in 12 seasons.

Saddleback finished second in the Southern California championships and fourth in the State meet.