1996 Prep Golf Preview : Dickey’s Reputation Precedes Him--by a Generation

Perry Dickey III would be the last to say he had it tough growing up. He was, after all, raised at a country club.

But at SeaCliff Country Club, Dickey had obstacles to overcome, mainly the expectations that come with being the son of the club’s general manager.

Perry Dickey Jr. is a prominent name in Southern California golf. He is a past president of the Southern California PGA and is a member of the PGA’s national board of directors.

That’s a big name to live up to and the younger Dickey said he had some rough times. Friends sometimes broke country club rules--riding three to a golf cart or not respecting the greens--in his presence and then would chide him for speaking up.

“They almost resented me,” Dickey said, “because I wanted to maintain the integrity of the rules.

“I would take it personally and they would say, ‘Perry, why are you so worried about this and that?’ But I have relaxed over the years.”

Along the way, he grew into an excellent player for Huntington Beach High School. Last season, Dickey won the Sunset League individual title and finished seventh at the Southern Section individual final, shooting one-over-par 73 (an Orange County low) at Canyon Country Club in Palm Springs. At the CIF-Southern California Golf Assn. tournament, he finished among the top 25.

Dickey also helped the Oilers win their third consecutive Sunset League title. This season, which began last week, Dickey will try to lead Huntington Beach to a fourth in a row.

Currently, Dickey, a senior, is a bit rusty because he played for the Huntington Beach basketball team. He said he joined the team--he’s 6 feet 4 and started a few games at center--to ease the grind of everyday golf. “I was going through the motions,” Dickey said, “and I thought it would be nice to take a break.”

It’s not as if he put his golf bag in mothballs. He tried to pick up his clubs at least two or three times a week to “keep the feel,” practicing all day nearly every Saturday and playing Sundays with his father.

Now he’s back to giving his full attention to the game. Dickey says his focus sometimes borders on obsession. “I get made fun of at school,” he said. “Sometimes, I sit there in class and do my grip. It’s just a habit. It’s probably bad because I don’t pay as much attention as I should.”

That depends on what you’re preparing for. Perry wants to become a professional golfer. And although he says he hasn’t applied himself fully to school work, he has a 3.73 grade-point average. He plans to go UCLA and play for the Bruins.

Dickey’s single-mindedness has taken him a long way. Though he grew up around a golf course, he was no Tiger Woods-like prodigy. When Dickey was about 3 or 4, his father cut down a set of clubs for him, but little Perry showed little interest.

Soon after Perry Dickey Jr. got the job at SeaCliff about 12 years ago, he would take Perry out on the course and let him play along, joining the group from 150 yards in. That didn’t spark much interest; Dickey preferred playing soccer or baseball.

“My wife and I thought he would never really play golf.” his father said.

But when Dickey was in eighth grade, he started going to the golf course more frequently, often stopping by while walking home from school.

It was a struggle at first. His peers had a significant head start. Jeff Farley, who would later be an Oiler teammate, and others were already strong players.

“It was horrible,” Dickey said. “It really ate me up because Jeff was good. And he and the other guys were cocky. They could juggle the ball with their sand wedge and do all these shots, and I could barely get the ball off the ground.”

Through diligent practice, Dickey improved enough to make the Huntington Beach varsity as a freshman. His father helped teach him that it didn’t matter that others could hit the ball farther than he could. As time passed, those deficits decreased and now although Perry isn’t the longest off the tee, he is one of the straightest and rarely winds up in trouble.

In their regular Sunday matches his father gives him primers on the value of playing smart. The competition is heated. “We enjoy each other’s company,” said Dickey Jr., “but we want to beat each other’s brains out.”

Said his son: “Playing my dad is kind of frustrating because I do hit the ball better than he does, but he gets it up and down.

“He scrapes around and shoots his 74 or 75 and it’s frustrating because if I beat him, I beat him by some--it’s never by a lot.”

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Golf at a Glance

Other top players: Julia Allison, Foothill, Jr.; Jason Beach, Los Alamitos, Sr.; Kris Blackburn, University, Sr.; Bill Bodensteiner, University, Sr.; Darren Boyle, El Dorado, Sr.; Craig Brooks, Corona del Mar, So., Steve Brooks, Corona del Mar, So.; Mike Bulsombut, Ocean View, Sr.; Bruce Campbell, Valencia, Sr.; Mike Cleveland, El Dorado, Jr.; Bill Collopy, Newport Harbor, Jr.; Lisa Costello, Brea Olinda, Jr.; Perry Dickey, Huntington Beach, Sr.; Ryan Donovan, Esperanza, Sr.; Anthony Eliason, Brea Olinda, Sr.; Jason Gross, San Clemente, Sr.; Parker Hayden, Mater Dei, Sr.; Manny Hays, Whittier Christian, Sr.; Peter Hergert, Esperanza, Jr.; Bob Johnson, Ocean View, Sr.; Ryan MacArthur, Los Alamitos, Jr.; Justin Massey, Edison, Jr.; David Matthews, Magnolia, Sr.; Tony Mendoza, Huntington Beach, Jr.; Ryan Olson, Dana Hills, Sr.; Jon Pan, Marina, Sr.; Brett Parker, Mater Dei, Jr.; Robert Pavlovich, Aliso Niguel, So.; Brad Perkins, Foothill, Jr.; Eric Lama, Valencia, Sr.; Donald Rhee, El Toro, Fr.; Nick Seymore, Foothill, So.; Justin Shapiro, Newport Harbor, Jr.; Will Smith, Dana Hills, Sr.; Kyle Song, Woodbridge, Jr.; Kyle Stedman, Rancho Alamitos, Jr.; Chad Towersey, Corona del Mar, So.; Max Wallick, Corona del Mar, So.; Eric Wang, Cypress, Sr.; Chris Wilson, Huntington Beach, Sr.; Ron Won, University, Fr.; Yon Yim, Woodbridge, So.; John Zanias, Orange Lutheran, Jr.; Mike Zapel, San Clemente, Jr.

League favorites: Century: Villa Park. Empire: El Dorado. Garden Grove: Rancho Alamitos. Golden West: Servite. Orange: Valencia. Pacific Coast: Estancia. Sea View: Santa Margarita. South Coast: Trabuco Hills. Sunset: Huntington Beach.

Key dates: April 19, Freelance qualifying, California Country Club, Whittier; April 29, Southern Section qualifier for CIF-SCGA girls’ individual, TBA; May 6, Western Regional (for freelance qualifiers), L.A. Royal Vista, Walnut; May 7, Southern Regional, Coto de Caza; May 14, Southern Section team final, Canyon Country Club, Palm Springs; Southern Section individual final, Sandpiper Golf Course, Goleta; June 6, CIF-SCGA Championships, Temecula Members Club.

Notes: For the past few years, there has been an upswing in the numbers of girls’ participating in local high school golf, and this season Newport Harbor is continuing the trend in a big way. The Sailors have 12 players on their team and have scheduled six matches against other girls’ teams. Five or six individual tournaments have also been planned, the first at Costa Mesa Country Club on March 19. . . . Dana Hills missed the postseason for the first time in 10 years last season, but Coach Phil Wilburton is confident the Dolphins can get back. “I haven’t had this many quality players for a long time,” he said. . . . Huntington Beach has a 21-match Sunset League winning streak.