Slugger likely to appear

Could Mark McGwire make his second appearance in Newport-Mesa for a

public golfing event in a span of 2 1/2 months?

It’s looking more likely that Major League Baseball’s former

single-season home run king will compete in the Costa Mesa city golf

championships Saturday and Sunday at Costa Mesa Golf & Country Club.

On Monday, a friend of McGwire’s told tournament director Sean

Collins the former first baseman would play in the event held on Mesa

Linda and Los Lagos courses.

As of Monday afternoon, Collins hadn’t received an entry form from

McGwire or spoken to the former St. Louis Cardinals’ and Oakland

Athletics’ slugger.

It would be McGwire’s first appearance in the city championships,

but second golf competition in Newport-Mesa in less than three

months.

McGwire, a member at the ultra-exclusive Shady Canyon Golf Club in

Irvine, shot a 6-over-par 77 and missed advancing out of U.S. Open

local qualifying at Newport Beach Country Club May 18.

The Costa Mesa championships format thinned out this year, but not

in the number of interested golfers whom always seem to inundate

Collins with entry forms.

Collins trimmed this year’s tournament from five to four flights,

consolidating players with higher handicaps into one flight.

As of Sunday afternoon, the championship flight -- players with

handicaps of 2.2 and less -- had the most entries at 150. Collins

expected that number to leap near 200.

The first flight, those with handicaps of 2.3 to 7.6, contained 75

players with 57 and 55 golfers already entered into the second and

senior flights, respectively. Second flight players must have

handicaps ranging from 7.7 to 15.1.

Collins also cut the maximum allowed handicap from 18 to 16 this

year.

Senior flight handicaps can range from zero to 14.7, making for an

intriguing few rounds, Collins said. At least a dozen senior flight

contestants hold single-digit handicaps.

Championship flight golfers will play Mesa Linda (par 70, 5,538

yards from the back tees) Saturday -- tee times in the flight begin

at 6 a.m. -- while players in the three other flights will tackle the

Los Lagos course (par 72, 6,542 yards). Golfers will switch courses

Sunday.