Hedge Clipping Is Routine for English Golfer

Shaun Lynch, a 33-year-old recreational golfer, hit a three-iron off the tee at the par-five, 496-yard dogleg 17th hole at the Teign Valley Golf Club in Christow, England.

He cut the dogleg by driving over a 20-foot hedge. The shot bounced down the steep fairway and rolled and rolled and rolled. “I had no idea where it had gone,” he said. Where it went was into the cup. A hole-in-one.

Golf World reported that Lynch’s ace appears to be the longest ever, eclipsing the 480-yard record set by Larry Bruce in 1962 at Hope CC in Arkansas.

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Trivia time: Trivia time: Who holds the NFL record for most yards gained rushing in a game?

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Bogey ball: Oakland Athletic pitcher Ariel Prieto is learning golf from teammate Stan Javier. Said Prieto: “I play golf like I pitch. I hit sinkers, sliders and curveballs.”

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Up to date: “You can’t give guys all that money and guarantee it to them and expect them to be dedicated, expect them to bust their tails. Human nature isn’t like that.”

Bob Cousy, the famous Boston Celtic player, made that statement a quarter of a century ago when he was the coach of the NBA Cincinnati Royals.

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Food language: Mike Lupica wrote in Esquire magazine that Dodger pitcher Hideo Nomo is the first player in the door for Manager Tommy Lasorda’s post-game spread.

Said Lasorda: “He may only speak Japanese, but the guy sure can eat Italian.”

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Ouch!: Bill Reynolds of the Providence (R.I.) Bulletin has a better nickname for Peter McNeeley than “Hurricane”--it’s “The Great White Hopeless.”

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Twilight Zone?: Jack Faulkner, the longtime Ram executive, still remains headquartered at the team’s former facility in Anaheim, scouting teams and grading players on film.

“There’s no team here, no team in the Coliseum. We don’t even have an arena team,” he told Jeff Schultz of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “How weird is that?”

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Stone-age thinking: Buddy Ryan, Arizona Cardinal coach, isn’t interested in acquiring Deion Sanders. Said Ryan: “I’ve never been a Deion fan. I like a guy who can tackle.”

Yeah, and it was once said that Jim Brown couldn’t block. So what?

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Curious statistic: Tom FitzGerald of the San Francisco Chronicle notes that Andy Van Slyke of the Philadelphia Phillies has reached base on catcher’s interference 17 times in his career.

“Just wondering: Is his bat of regulation length?”

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FYI: Of the The 10 most-requested tickets to the 1996 Olympic Games, five gymnastic events are included.

Number one on the list is the opening ceremony, according to the Atlanta Committee to Organize the Games.

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Trivia answer: Walter Payton of the Chicago Bears, with 275 yards against the Minnesota Vikings on Nov. 20, 1977.

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Quotebook: ESPN’s Joe Theismann on Pittsburgh Steeler running back Bam Morris: “I’ll tell ya. He’s got the running back of a feet. I mean the feet of a running back.”