Belief System

Strolling the fairways at plush country clubs last week during the PGA Tour’s Bob Hope Classic in Bermuda Dunes, Esteban Toledo was only a three-hour drive from his hometown of Mexicali, Mexico, but was a long way from his roots.

He played with confidence, producing the types of shots seen only on the PGA Tour and finished tied for 51st--a comfortable distance from the cut line and a far cry from the Toledo of most of the 1990s who struggled to make cuts and keep his playing privileges.

He even had a gallery--a handful of fans from Mexicali--following him around, pointing toward his shots, smiling and chatting in Spanish.

“Yeah, look at that,” a humbled Toledo said. “They came from Mexico to watch me play.”

They came because they know how far Toledo had come.

The youngest of 11 children born on a Mexicali farm, Toledo taught himself to play golf at an early age and has found success in a sport not usually played by poor farm children.

When he was 8, Toledo would sneak onto golf courses and hit rocks with a beat-up seven-iron he found. He would hide in trees until the course had closed, then climb down to fish balls out of the ponds with his toes. He would sell them to members the next day.

But now that Toledo has attained a level of consistent success on the top professional golf tour in the world, he has a message to deliver:

“It’s all what you believe,” he said. “I always believed in myself. I went through some really, really bad times and I don’t know how in the world I made it, but I know I never stopped believing in myself.”

Toledo, 37, who now lives in Irvine, has detailed his message in a book about his life co-written with Michael D’Antonio, “Tin Cup Dreams,” which will be released March 1. In it, he describes his journey from poverty to success, focusing on his life between the ages of 6 and 20.

“People will be surprised about what happened in those years,” said Toledo, who did not want to give too many details. “It’s kind of sad, but it’s just a wonderful story that I’m really excited about. The book will tell you who I am. I want the people to know who I am. Not just as a golfer, I’m a person like everyone else.”

Toledo tried professional boxing and was 12-1 in a four-year lightweight career. A bout with appendicitis ended that career, but Toledo has kept fighting.

Starting when he turned professional in 1986, Toledo went to the PGA Tour qualifying tournament 12 consecutive years. Twice, in 1993 and 1997, he qualified. Two other times he missed qualifying by a stroke.

He played what has become the Buy.com tour for nine years. He also played the Asian and Mexican tours, but he never let go of his dream to play the PGA Tour.

The last two seasons, Toledo has established himself as a fixture on the tour. He avoided a return to Q school by finishing among the top 125 on the PGA Tour money list in each of the past two seasons (No. 93 in 1998, No. 107 in ‘99).

“It’s not surprising,” said Monty Blodgett, the former head professional at Newport Beach Country Club who regularly works with Toledo. “Each year you see him, he has more confidence. You can just see it. He has always had a consistent swing, great timing and rhythm.

“He’s got some shots that only the best have--he can get up and down from a ball washer. Now he has confidence and that’s the missing link with an awful lot of good players.”

In two tournaments this season, Toledo has finished 14th and 51st. He has four of nine rounds in the 60s and is 37th on the tour in scoring average. His confidence is soaring.

“As soon as I kept my card twice, I believed myself that I can beat these people,” Toledo said. “I’ve just got to make some birdies and make some putts. I have the game to win, it’s a matter of time. I think I just need more experience being in the last group or the second to last where the pressure is on and see if I can really handle it.”

But because the childhood days of hopping fences to get on courses and sitting in trees waiting for sunset are etched in his brain, Toledo said just playing golf is fine with him.

“I’m not trying to put pressure on myself,” Toledo said. “If I win, great. If I don’t, it’s not going to be the end of the world. I still have what I have, and what I didn’t have before.”

Things like a family, including 10-month-old Eden, the first child of Toledo and wife Colleen.

“The success won’t ever go to my head because I’m still nobody,” Toledo said. “I’m just a little guy who is hungry to learn some things in life. I went to Q school 12 times--I appreciate what I have now. I appreciate what I went through in my life. I don’t think anybody on this tour did what I did. I won’t ever forget that.”

According to Blodgett, the struggles Toledo encountered are a big reason for his success now.

“He remembers his roots,” Blodgett said. “There is something about certain people that want to scratch and claw. Esteban happened to be one of these fighters.”

People are beginning to take notice. Among the people in the gallery following Toledo at the Hope were a reporter and a photographer from a Mexicali newspaper. It was the first time Toledo could remember a Mexican paper sending someone to cover him.

“It’s kind of nice,” he said. “It makes me feel good that they start recognizing the guy from the local town who is in the big leagues. I’m kind of surprised that I haven’t had more media and reporters from Mexico, but this is the way it goes. This is the beginning and as soon as I start winning, everything will take care of itself.”