Cougar Golf Classic great for a dose of school spirit

Washington State coaches make event at Moses Lake Golf Club a must-see

MOSES LAKE — The average sports fan doesn't get many chances to go up close and personal with his favorite athletes and coaches. The average sports fan also doesn't get many chances to see those athletes and coaches shed their professional personas for a few hours.

But if you were at Moses Lake Golf and Country Club for Monday's Cougar Golf Classic, you saw that and more. Yeah, the price is a bit steep even for rabid golfers — $175 per person, which includes an automatic $50 gift credit to the Washington State University athletic foundation — but if you're one of those folks who takes an incredible amount of pride in your alma mater, this was the place to be.

The day began, for most, with an energy-packed breakfast of eggs, sausage and orange juice inside the country club's plush lounge. It ended, roughly nine and a half hours later, with a satisfyingly exhaustive dinner of prime rib, salmon, potatoes, asparagus and salad inside the even more plush dining room.

In between, there were more than five hours of driving, chipping and putting between friends, co-workers, neighbors and assorted WSU coaches. Take all this into account, and $175 isn't an unreasonable amount to pay — roughly $20 per hour.

Of course, if you were springing for one of the dozens of auction items that evening — everything from a Drew Bledsoe-autographed helmet to airfare and all-access pass for next year's Colonial golf tournament — you shelled out a wee bit more than that.

The Herald's group of myself, Publisher Harlan Beagley and Circulation Director Tom Hinde were originally supposed to be paired with Cougar football head coach Bill Doba. But plans, as they so often do at these sorts of soirees, changed and we got graduate assistant football coach Ryan Smaha instead.

Now, many folks might be a bit disappointed with that turn of events. But it didn't take long for Smaha to make us forget our plight, smashing drive after soaring drive 200 yards down the center of the fairway. Football might be Smaha's area of expertise, but he was no slouch golfer. We kidded him that he was actually the Cougars' head golf coach, to which he deftly quipped something to the effect of, "I'd last about two weeks in that job before they fired me."

We had a wildly fun, if not entirely successful day on the links, breaking up our ho-hum string of pars with a smattering of birdies and bogies. Thank goodness it was a scramble event, because when you have guys like me who haven't touched their clubs in a year, a par 4 can turn into a par 12 real quick.

Doba took a few minutes after dinner to field some questions, including his thoughts about Moses Lake High School graduate B.J. Guerra, an incoming Cougar freshman. While it's not often true freshmen see playing time for a Pac-10 school, don't be surprised if Guerra does, especially with WSU's depth concerns in the trenches.

"We'll bring him in as a defensive tackle and he could play there or, possibly, on offense as well," Doba said, adding that he was impressed with Guerra and his family during a recruiting visit. "They're good, blue-collar people with a good work ethic and I'm sure they'll pass it on to him."

The Cougar coaches are on a long bus tour that takes them next through Wenatchee, Bellingham, Tacoma and the Tri-Cities. Doba said he's always pleased about coming to Moses Lake, evidenced by the fact that he's played in the Cougar Golf Classic for the past 18 years, as long as he's lived in the state.

"It's a tough course — as good of greens as anywhere we play," he said.

While men's basketball coach Tony Bennett was in Australia with his team and new women's basketball coach June Daugherty is recovering from a heart attack, women's soccer assistant coach Lindsey Jorgensen and baseball head coach Donnie Marbut were in attendance to talk about their respective teams.

As most Pac-10 fans realize, there's a reason the conference gets the moniker, "Conference of Champions." Both Jorgenson and Marbut acknowledged that their teams weren't ready to contend for national titles yet, but they're moving in that direction. WSU soccer just missed an NCAA Tournament berth last fall with a 9-7-4 overall record. WSU baseball rebounded from a 1-9 start in conference to finish 10-14, and while their 28 overall victories this spring were eight less than last year, Marbut felt that was due to a much tougher schedule.

While football and basketball are the premier college sports and probably always will be, it's important to shine the spotlight on the athletes and teams who are creating a positive image for their university. The Cougar Golf Classic is just one chance for WSU to convey that message to its alumni.