Chipping in for kids

More than 200 golfers either eagled, birdied, parred or bogeyed holes Monday at the Pelican Hills Golf Club at Newport Coast during the Tommy Bahama’s 11th annual Pacific Coast Classic.

Abused or neglected children from throughout Orange County will benefit from their play. Each year, thousands of dollars are raised for Olive Crest, a nonprofit organization that’s transformed the lives of more than 50,000 abused, neglected or at-risk children since 1973, said Marisa Aguilar, an Olive Crest spokeswoman.

The work of Olive Crest indeed has not gone unnoticed and somewhere somebody knows some child whose life has been made better because of a few rounds of golf, said Deanna Steele, past president of the Lighthouse Guild, which helps raise money for Olive Crest.

“We work tirelessly to meet the individual needs of kids in crisis. We provide them safe homes, counseling and education,” Aguilar said.

Josh Kukla of Tustin knows the feeling of a safe home. Now 20 and on his own, Olive Crest placed Kukla in a group home in Tustin when he was 14, he said. His mother, an alcoholic, was “too unstable” to take care of him, he said, and his father never wanted any part of him.

So Olive Crest, in effect, became his second family.

Kukla still remembers the day the house in Tustin was remodeled from the bottom up — thanks to the thousands of dollars raised from a Tommy Bahama golf outing a few years ago. “They painted all the walls, they brought in new furniture for the living room, they completely redid the bathroom,” said Kukla, in a telephone interview from Tustin, where he works as a barista.

“Golfing is a wonderful platform to raise funds,” he added. “It beats car washes. Let’s put it that way.”

Some golfers paid as much as $6,500 a foursome, while others footed the minimum $375 per person to compete Monday..

“Pelican Hill is an awesome venue for a golf tournament that provides us with a tremendous opportunity to give back to kids less fortunate,” said Steven Kolin Ozonian, 25. “From the volunteers to the players to staff and committee members, it truly has been a remarkable team effort.”

Meanwhile, Pelican Hills wasn’t the only golf course to hold a tournament for the sake of helping others. Mesa Verde Classic Golf Tournament at Mesa Verde Country Club put on a tournament to help Costa Mesa United, which supports youth sports.

Immediately following play, each player was invited to bring a guest to enjoy hors d’oeuvres, a no host bar and silent and live auctions. A buffet dinner was to be served and Ed Fawcett, Costa Mesa Chamber of Commerce chief executive and president, was to be honored, according to a news release.