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 Andy Thuney retired as Hacienda's head pro last year (PHOTO: Eddie Meeks). Thuney, a career member, veteran director and former president of the SCPGA, is the color commentator on the long-running Southern California TV Team Golf Championship that showcases public, resort and private courses. In the nine-hole, best-ball, stroke-play format, a club pro is paired with male and female amateurs who face off against counterparts from another club. This year, the Southern California finals will be held August 11-14 at Journey at Pechanga in Temecula (and televised later), with the winning Southland team playing the winning Northern California team at Maui’s Wailea Golf Club in October. “Andy’s show is a great opportunity to promote and showcase the SCPGA golf professionals, their members and their facilities,” said Nikki Gatch, the SCPGA’s assistant executive director. “It’s also a great promotion of the game of golf.” Thuney is partnered with Tom Kelly of USC football fame, with Kelly as the play-by-play announcer and Thuney offering analysis, player facts and anecdotes. “Working with Tom is a riot,” Thuney said. “He’s got more stories than you can ever tell. And he’s the only living member of Riviera Country Club who has aced all of its par 3s.” Thuney got the gig in 1994 when producers of a Northern California version of the show began holding auditions for a show in the Southland. He fit the bill perfectly, having spent five years in the mid-1980s covering the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic and the Nabisco Dinah Shore for a Coachella Valley cable station. Thuney also participated in a half-hour golf program that ran five nights a week for nearly 11 years. “I try to keep it fun and entertaining,” he said. “Having been around so long, I know a lot of the amateurs and pros.” After graduating from Cal State Fullerton in 1971, Thuney set his sights on becoming an English professor, but the job market was saturated. So he went to Plan B and became a club professional. His first job was in 1972 at River View Golf Course, where he learned the job’s nuances from Wally Bradley, “truly one of my mentors and truly one of the old-fashioned, classic golf pros,” Thuney said. Thuney also worked at Western Hills and Candlewood country clubs, and last year he retired as the head pro at Hacienda Golf Club. Evidence of his popularity there can still be seen at the St. Thuney’s Bash, held each year around St. Patrick’s Day. “Andy’s personality is bigger than life, particularly when he has a microphone in his hand,” said Hacienda General Manager Frank Cordeiro. Thuney is known for his impersonations and accents, and he also writes poetry, a pastime he relishes because of the genre’s “concise topics.” “I don’t think I have the patience to write a novel or even a short story,” he said. The broadcast of the Southern California TV Team Golf Championship starts August 2 and runs every Sunday at 6 p.m. on FS West Prime Ticket. A rebroadcast of the week’s match follows on Tuesday afternoons. Thuney’s advice: Look for the listing “Team Golf” in either the Los Angeles Times or TV Guide. |
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RSS SubscribeReaders Feedback:
Tom Kelly constantly refers to the SCPGA Club Pros as PGA Pros when the are shown playing on TV. They are not actual PGA Pros. They are members of the SCPGA and are only club pros. Tom Kelly appears to be purposefully misleading the viewing public. They should be called PGA club professionals not to confuse the layman. None of the so called Pros could ever make the PGA tour, a completely separate organization.
| Comment at 11/8/2009 |
PGA pros IS a correct phrasing of the club pro. If the player were a PGA TOUR pro they would be referred to as PGA TOUR professional. By the way MANY "club pros" have gone on to play as members of the PGA and European Tours.
| Comment at 4/24/2010 |
Hello,
I am on the board of directors for the Los Serranos Mens Club in Chino Hills, CA. A 36 hole Jack Kramer course that holds many SoCal tournament including the pre-qualifier for the PGA Northern Trust. We have a 73 year head pro named John Powell who is the brother of Senior PGA Tour Jimmy Powell. John regularly breaks par, and we have alot of top notch members. How do I find out more information concerning the Team Play events I see on TV?
| Comment at 12/5/2011 |
