This Game Perfectly Lends Itself to All Wired Enthusiasts

Golf and the Internet seem to be natural partners: something about the sport makes it perfect for cyberspace discussion.

Most likely, it’s the demographics. There is an obvious overlap between people who play golf and people who have computer access.

There’s certainly no shortage of online golf information, some of it even useful. For instance, GolfWeb (www.golfweb.com), probably the most comprehensive golf site on the World Wide Web, offers coverage of the PGA, Senior PGA, LPGA and European PGA, and that’s just for starters.

You want information on the Nike Tour, the Australian PGA or the Asian Tour, it’s there. Even the American Junior Golf Assn. has a presence.

You can buy equipment from the virtual pro shop and check out the database of 19,000 golf courses around the world. Many of the listings include public comments about courses (17 Orange County courses have received comments). If you are new to an area or just looking for new people to play with, you can scroll down to the playing partner section and answer a posting or submit your own.

GolfWeb also offers information on golf tours and links to many other golf sources on the Internet: there are 209 listings for golf-related personal home pages.

You could spend hours pointing and clicking.

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Friday, another golf organization is adding itself to the mix: the Southern California Golf Assn.

The SCGA’s home page (www.scga.org) is scheduled to be up in time to report first-day results of the 97th SCGA Amateur Championship at Santa Maria Country Club.

Bob Thomas, the organization’s director of communications, says it will be a dynamic site that he hopes will evolve into a clearinghouse of information for Southern California golfers.

Visitors to the site will be able to access a directory of Southern California courses and results of SCGA events. SCGA members will be able to look up their current handicaps (although they won’t be able to post scores).

“It will definitely be one of the most comprehensive regional golf sites in the country,” Thomas said.

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Orange County, with 15 golfers in a field of 83, is again well represented in the SCGA Amateur. They are: Jeff Farley (Huntington Beach), Ben Garner (Lake Forest), Joe Garner (Lake Forest), Jaycy Igarashi (Laguna Hills), Scott Jordan (Costa Mesa), Tim Kanazawa (Huntington Beach), Jim Knickerbocker (Costa Mesa), Brian Leff (Brea), David Neish (San Juan Capistrano), Brian Ricketts (former Cypress College player), Rich Sims (Placentia), Mark Stoecker (Aliso Viejo), Jeff Strang (Laguna Niguel), Rick Talt (Laguna Beach), and Scott Turney (Aliso Viejo).

The tournament is stroke play, two rounds Friday and one on Saturday and Sunday.

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Fullerton’s Mike Kim tied for medalist honors in qualifying for the U.S. Junior Amateur last week at Los Coyotes Country Club. Kim, who will be a senior at Sunny Hills High this fall, shot 69-69, tying him with Cerritos’ James Myoung (70-68).

Kevin Na, a 12-year-old from La Canada, was four strokes behind Kim and Myoung at 142 and Irvine’s Ron Won (143) won a one-hole playoff with J.T. Kohut of Simi Valley for the final spot.

The U.S. Junior Amateur is July 23-27 at Forest Highlands Golf Club in Flagstaff, Ariz.

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Jin Park, another senior-to-be at Sunny Hills, finished tied for 11th in the American Junior Golf Assn. Tournament of Champions last week in Scottsdale, Ariz.

Park shot 74-72-72-75 and finished 16 strokes behind champion Charles Howell of Augusta, Ga. Jeff McGraw, a Servite graduate, finished six strokes behind Park.

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For what it’s worth: GolfWeb reports that Ladbrokes of London has established Tiger Woods as a 150-1 longshot to win the British Open, which starts Thursday at Royal Lytham and St. Annes. Nick Faldo and Colin Montgomery are co-favorites at 12-1.

Last week, Woods shot 81-75 at the Scottish Open and missed the cut by three strokes.

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Notes

The Wilson Pro-Junior Championship, being played today at Temeku Golf Course in Temecula, pairs PGA professionals and junior players. There are three teams from Orange County: Marty LaRoche (Tustin Ranch), Scott Booth, 11, and Brett Rasinski, 12; Kevin McNece (Mesa Verde), Andy Thomson, 16, and Lauren Brown, 14, and Dan Baker (Santa Ana), Catherine Martin, 16, and Chad Towersey, 16.

The Orange County Golf Notebook runs weekly. Readers are encouraged to make suggestions. Call (714) 966-5904, fax 966-5663 or e-mail Martin.Beck@latimes.com