PLAYING IT UP AT GOLFING FUND-RAISER : ACTOR JOINS HOSPITAL BENEFIT FACILITY IN SIMI SEEKS TO BUY HEART MONITORS FOR WOMEN'S UNIT.

Byline: Alicia Doyle Daily News Staff Writer

Playing golf with Simi Valley Hospital's brass Monday wasn't intimidating for actor Mickey Jones, who relied on his ``rock `n' roll golf credo'' as much as his swing during the hospital's first charity tournament.

Jones' rules of the game: Use your driver whenever possible. Scream at slow play. Gamble. And pray for the death of conservative golf.

``I want to promote golf to the average guy,'' said Jones, who played on a team with a radiologist and cardiologist, as well as the hospital board's chairman and vice chairman.

As they built camaraderie along the 18-hole course, the men were equal - despite their pedigrees.

``I've made lifelong friends on the golf course,'' said Jones, a Simi Valley resident who plays to a 16 handicap. Supported by his role as one of Tim Allen's contractor buddies on the show, ``Home Improvement,'' Jones also has played golf all over the country during his travels.

``It's cool that I can support my community in my own back yard,'' Jones said. ``The whole idea is just to go out and play with your friends and have a great time.''

Jones was among nearly a dozen celebrities who gathered Monday to play in the Wood Ranch Country Club Golf Classic. Coordinated by the Volunteer Guild of Simi Valley Hospital and Health Care Services, the event was expected to raise at least $20,000 for more electronic fetal monitors for the hospital's women's unit, said hospital spokeswoman JoLynn de la Torre.

The monitors - which cost between $10,000 and $14,000 each - enable medical staff to anticipate, prevent and perform the intervention of fetal distress by monitoring fetal-maternal heart rates.

To meet the needs of their maternity patients, the hospital has been renting additional monitors. Additional ones will meet current and future needs and provide technological upgrades in performance. The new monitors are also easier to operate, emit lower ultrasound energy to the fetus and can monitor twin births, de la Torre said.

About 140 golfers turned out for Monday's event, including hospital staff, local businessmen and corporate sponsors. Celebrities on hand included former Dodger shortstop Maury Wills; Kenny Bob Davis, a musician and actor; and former Dodger pitcher Don Newcombe.

The participation fee for each player was $125 - which included a partial donation, greens fees, golf cart and meals. Wood Ranch Golf Club donated the use of its facility. The event also featured a silent auction and prizes.

Simi Valley Hospital and Health Care Services has served the Simi Valley community for more than 30 years. The nonprofit organization is part of the Adventist Health system of 20 hospitals in the western United States. Adventist Health has been a leader in Christian health care delivery for more than 120 years, with all profits going directly back into the hospital to improve operations and equipment, officials said.

Bob Carmen, hospital board chairman, played Monday to show his support as a 13-year member of the board.

``I'm proud to be part of the Simi community,'' Carmen said.

B.J. Christensen, the board's vice chairman, said golfing under clear, blue skies was a great way to benefit the hospital's efforts.

``A good day on the course is better than working any day, isn't it?''

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2 Photos

Photo: (1--ran in CONEJO only--color) Mickey Jones, center, gets his team, from left, James Lilley, Bob Carmen, B.J. Christensen and Joon Bahng, off on the right foot.

(2--ran in CONEJO only--color) Charity golfer Jose Yson looks on as teammate Ron Ramos makes his way onto the green Monday at the Wood Ranch Country Club Golf Classic fund-raiser for Simi Valley Hospital.

Andy Holzman/Special to the Daily News