SNUG COSTA MESA NO SLOUCH.

Byline: Dave Shelburne Staff Writer

COSTA MESA - Short but sweet, open-to-the-public Costa Mesa Golf and Country Club is worth the 60-90 minute drive from the San Fernando Valley just for the greens.

Sloped and firm, with plenty of undulation to keep you focused, they put most of the bite in the defense against par on the longer, par-72 Los Lagos course - just 6,542 yards from the tips - as well as the par-70 Mesa Linda course that stretches to just 5,538 yards.

Don't be fooled by the lack of yardage. In last weekend's 32nd annual Costa Mesa City Championship, only 12 players in a championship field of 169 - all with a handicap index of 2.2 or lower - wound up under par for the 36-hole event that included one round on each course.

Only three players, including tournament champion Brandon Christianson of Valencia, bettered par both days. Christianson, an 18-year-old U.S. Amateur qualifier, had this assessment of the courses that produced his first non-high school victory of the year:

``They are pretty good muni courses,'' the UCLA-bound graduate of Valencia High said. ``Nothing special, but good diversity between the holes and the greens were there - they were really running good. They were good throughout the day, and I didn't finish until late in the afternoon.''

Both courses offset their lack of length with stout rough and plenty of bends in the fairways. Additionally, constant breezes can make for some tough decisions when trying to select the club best suited to leave an approach shot below the flagstick on the firm greens.

Miss your pick above many of those greens and you could quickly lose two strokes.

Loads of trees and some troublesome water help make the two courses, especially on Mesa Linda, challenging as well as fun for those who can place their shots.

Water figures prominently on the 208-yard, par-3 seventh hole and the left inside of the dogleg turn on the 560-yard, par-5 14th on Los Lagos. It is less intrusive on Mesa Linda but on one hole is prominent, covering most of the distance between the tee and green on the 114-yard, par-3 eighth.

Los Lagos yielded no lower score than 68 in Sunday's final round. One 64 was the best the championship field managed on Mesa Linda on a weekend course. Superintendent Jim Fetterly earned praise from Costa Mesa regulars for the condition of the kikuyu-grass fairways as well as those smooth-rolling but challenging greens.

The length of both courses is deceptive because of so many doglegs, with 11 holes bending left or right to some degree on each course.

On Mesa Linda, the prettiest and most memorable hole might be No. 8; the most difficult is the 412-yard, par-4 first. Three par-5s under 500 yards likely will appeal to long hitters on that course. The last of Mesa Linda's six par-3s - the 188-yard 17th - easily plays up to its ranking as the fourth-toughest hole on the course.

As might be assumed from its length, Mesa Linda also has some good short par-4 holes, notably the severe dogleg-right third. Hit your tee shot at the mid-fairway tree on this 347-yarder - and the 268-yard 15th, with a green fronted by the biggest, steepest-lipped bunker on the course.

Two of the best on Los Lagos are par-4 holes - the 412-yard third and 414-yard 16th, rated the No. 1 and 2 handicap holes on that course, respectively. The most interesting par-5 might be the 543-yard, dogleg-left fifth, while the into-the-wind, 178-yard fourth and water-sided, 208-yard seventh are both strong par-3 holes.

Dave Shelburne, [phone]

dave.shelburne(at)dailynews.com

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Trees and water offer challenges on the eighth hole at Costa Mesa Golf and Country Club's Los Lagos course.

Dave Shelburne/Daily News

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