The Golf Police Will Be Out in Force at Nissan

So there you are, standing along a fairway at the Valencia Country Club during the Nissan Open, when a shanked drive lands about a club-length away.

You want to take a closer peek and amble toward the ball.

Not so fast, says Lewin Minter.

No harm meant, you say, and move to the green, striking an animated conversation with someone while Nick Faldo eyeballs a putt.

Not so loud, says Al Roth.

Ooops! You wait for the blood to drain from your face and approach John Daly between holes for an autograph.

Not on your life, says Dennis Wright.

Such are some of the golf etiquette breaches committed by spectators that Minter, Roth and Wright are set to guard against during the PGA Tour’s one-time stop at Valencia this week.

The trio, and hundreds of other volunteers, are gearing up to work as marshals at the $2.1 million tournament that could attract 100,000 people.

But, in reality, the three men agree that problematic fans at golf events are the exception and not the rule.

“To be honest, the thing I look forward to is talking to the fans, who are very knowledgeable and pleasant,” Roth said. “Occasionally you get a belligerent person but that’s very rare. Part of the job is you make friends with the customers.”

Roth, 66, is in his 20th year of volunteering at pro tournaments in the Los Angeles area. A former counselor at a San Fernando Valley middle school, Roth first started helping at tournaments through his membership at a golf club. He became more involved after retiring in 1991.

Roth says finding workers for the weekends is generally easy, but weekdays are a different story.

“You have to appeal to independently wealthy people or retired people,” Roth said.

At Valencia, crews from different golf clubs monitor each hole, from the tee box to the green. The groups each have up to 30 or 40 people who take turns rotating every two hours to various spots on their watch.

Those positioned at greens have the additional task of reporting scores for that hole over walkie-talkies so they can be posted on the leaderboard.

Scores are kept by volunteers, who also chart shots and accompany a foursome for 18 holes.

Roth’s unit, from El Cariso Golf Course in Sylmar, is stationed at the 422-yard, par-four fourth.

Volunteers each have to work at least three days over the weeklong affair--including the celebrity-am and pro-am preceding the Open--and pay $60 for a hat, shirt and jacket. They receive breakfast and lunch, and credentials to attend the tournament when off-duty.

Like Roth, Minter is a crew captain. The former construction worker from Canyon Country first volunteered last year at Riviera, the traditional home of the Nissan Open and where the tournament will be played next year.

Minter, 61, and his group from nearby Vista Valencia are handling the 460-yard, par-four ninth. And although a relative rookie, Minter is well aware of his responsibilities as a marshal.

“Some of the players have little things they like to do or don’t like to do when they are on the tee or when they get to the green, so the caddies tell us,” Minter said. “You try not to get in their line of view, so the best thing is to stand behind them.”

And never chat with the players, except to reply.

“We are expected not to talk to them,” Minter said. “If they address you, that’s OK, but you’re not to initiate the conversation.”

That’s fine with Wright, 43, a telephone contractor from Sylmar. His group, the L.A. Unified Schools Golf Club, is at the 369-yard, par-four eighth and Wright is happy to be at ground zero.

“I like to watch the tournaments [on TV] anyway, so this gets me inside the ropes and up close,” Wright said.

But not as close as some folks might want to be.

“Probably the toughest thing is to ask people to give the pro enough room, but most people are very amenable to the instructions,” Roth said. “The fans are there to have a good time.”