TEED OFF

To play golf, you’ve gotta have a golf course.

Seems simple enough, right?

Well, not so fast. The dynamic between high school golf programs and the courses they frequent actually can get pretty complicated.

It is a unique and increasingly uneasy relationship between the coaches and players and the administrators of the courses where the teams practice and play. Some of these relationships are harmonious; others are contaminated by acrimony and resentment.

Promoting golf to a generation that will be paying green fees in 10 years and membership dues in 20 has plenty of value for courses, and most have willingly donated use of their facilities to local school teams each spring for boys’ golf.

But the addition of girls’ golf as a Southern Section-sanctioned sport last fall nearly doubled the sacrifices courses make, and that has prompted some changes.

Courses are beginning to charge schools not-so-nominal fees. Others are reducing the number of tee times for teams. A few are just saying no.

Public course administrators cite the inability to give up revenue from tee times. Private courses have obligations to members, who pay lavish fees for, among other things, privacy.

Since few of the agreements between teams and courses are in writing, dealing with the different policies at various courses can make running a high school team a topsy-turvy task.

“We have to be reasonable,” said Rob Walker, boys’ and girls’ coach at Cypress High. “Now [high school golf] is year-round. We have to be reasonable with the courses, but they have to be reasonable too.”

Walker knows how tenuous the relationship can be. He has been at odds with Cypress Golf Course for more than a year.

From 1992-1997, the Centurions played Monday-Thursday for $5 a player. New management at the course last year changed the agreement.

“The new management told us they didn’t want junior golf there,” Walker said. “It’s really sad because I thought we had a good relationship with them.”

Cypress players regularly returned to Cypress Golf Course for lessons. They routinely paid to play the course on weekends and in the off-season. The team held its annual banquets at the course, and paid the going rate.

Change of Plans

When the management change was made, Walker said, that all ended.

“They thought about it and considered letting us stay on, but I think they made up their minds--they didn’t want us.”

However, Steve Shimano, general manager at Cypress Golf Course, said the course offered to let both Cypress and Los Alamitos high schools play nine-hole matches after 3 p.m. for free.

“We never said we don’t want kids,” Shimano said. “We offered them nine holes and they didn’t want it. They wanted 18.”

He said giving up any more course time would cut too deeply into the budget.

“We are not a private course,” Shimano said. “I’m running a business and I have to generate revenue from regular customers. We are not anti-anything. The door is always open to them if they want to come back.”

The course’s image, however, may already be tarnished beyond repair, at least in the eyes of those most directly affected.

“It’s like [junior players] are totally banned there,” said Jamie Oliver, a Los Alamitos freshman who said she used to frequent nearby Cypress Golf Course. “Now they don’t even have junior rates. All the people I know say they are never going to play there again.”

Allowing high school teams to play can benefit courses from both public relations and business standpoints.

Players often return as paying customers; where they play high school matches greatly influences where they play for fun.

“Without a doubt,” said Audra Ratajazck, a senior at Western High, which uses Dad Miller in Anaheim. “I don’t really go anywhere else.”

The benefits of allowing access to young players has not escaped Mark Peralta, teaching professional at Meadowlark.

“You have to give a little now because they are going to be getting into an older age group where they start making money,” Peralta said.

“Even now, they are going to want to play on the weekends and that means they might be dragging Dad out there. Dad is going to drag one of his buddies out there and those guys are going to want to ride a cart. Where do you think they are going to play?”

Difficulty finding courses has led to overcrowding at executive courses such as David L. Baker in Fountain Valley and Casta del Sol in Mission Viejo.

Some coaches don’t mind, believing the shorter, easier courses are more suitable for novice players.

But Jonathan Wiemann, girls’ golf coach at Mission Viejo High, would rather have his team playing Mission Viejo Country Club, as the Diablo boys’ team does. He opted for Casta del Sol because the country club didn’t approve his request.

“They made up their minds that they weren’t going to let the girls out there,” Wiemann said. “I was bummed. We don’t ever get a chance to play good courses. The girls can’t turn the corner until they get on the good courses.”

The club stands behind its decision.

“There has to be a sensitivity to the membership,” General Manager Rick Sussman said. “They pay a lot of money to belong to a private club and to be able to play whenever they want. We would love to help everyone in the world. But we have to have a balance with the members.”

A new policy at David L. Baker Golf Course in Fountain Valley prohibits high school play on Thursdays and Fridays, exacerbating the situation at a course crowded with high school teams. The scheduling crunch, however, is not what bothers some coaches.

Course manager Mike Shank confirmed that Fountain Valley and La Quinta play at David L. Baker without charge. But Edison, Huntington Beach, Marina and Santa Ana Valley pay $10 per player, per round.

The Edison and Huntington Beach boys play at SeaCliff Country Club for free, but couldn’t get club approval for the girls.

“It’s very unfair,” Edison Coach Paul Harrell said. “We can’t go and practice without paying. All of our money goes to green fees. I don’t have a [junior varsity] coach because I couldn’t afford one. It gets to me sometimes.”

Shank said the course simply can’t afford to allow every team to play every day for free.

“There are so many high schools out there who want to play here,” Shank said. “We consider Fountain Valley and La Quinta our local teams, but it had to end somewhere.”

In Anaheim, city officials responded to complaints about slow play by cutting back the allotted times for girls’ teams.

“Unfortunately, more than half the people don’t really care about the high school kids,” said Bob Johns, director of golf for Dad Miller and Anaheim Hills. “They just say ‘Get them off my course.’

“You tell them it’s for the good of the game and that you have got to produce future players. They say, ‘Great, that sounds terrific, but just don’t do it while I’m here.’ ”

Who’s to Blame?

So who’s at fault for the strained relationships?

Some hold the coaches and players responsible, saying the coaches try to take advantage of the courses and the players don’t appreciate the generosity afforded them.

“It’s got to be a difficult situation for [course administrators] because we were a problem,” Villa Park Coach Gordon Sutorius said. “The slow play and lack of knowledge of golf etiquette were a problem. As coaches, we have to take responsibility to teach those things.”

Loara Coach Marty Johnson thinks too many coaches take advantage of courses.

“They cancel the matches and don’t let the course know,” Johnson said. “Well, you can understand why the course is upset about that. Most [coaches] know the game, but not necessarily about running a team.”

Caught in the middle of this tug of war are the high school players, many of whom are oblivious to the difficulty in securing course time.

“These kids just want to play,” said Canyon Coach Jan McKendrick Harold. “They can’t play enough. They just need someone to let them.”

Which, Sutorius says, is the bottom line.

“We have to realize that without the courses, there is no golf.”