Oct25 Mickelsons home escapes fires

A pair of major champions, Phil Mickelson and Scott Simpson, were among those evacuated from their suburban San Diego homes on Monday.

Mickelson’s house in Rancho Santa Fe, which he moved into this April, escaped fire but his property suffered undefined damage, said Mickelson spokesman T.R. Reinman. A street that intersects Mickelson’s street lost all but one home, and two houses on his street were lost, Reinman said.

“He’s very fortunate,” Reinman said.

When Mickelson returned Oct. 22 from a corporate outing in New York, his wife Amy and their children had evacuated to their beach house in San Diego.

Simpson also left his Poway home Monday. He went to an in-law’s residence but then had to evacuate again. He ended up staying at his brother’s home in Orange County before heading to this week’s Charles Schwab Cup Championship in Sonoma, near San Francisco.

Simpson’s agent, Jim Lehman, said it was his understanding that Simpson’s residence escaped damage in an area that was hit hard. The Del Mar summer home of Lehman’s brother, past British Open champion Tom, also was said to be safe.

Some fairway homes at Stoneridge Country Club in Poway weren’t as fortunate as they were among those lost. Stoneridge is a former LPGA tournament site.

Meanwhile, the first two rounds of the first stage of PGA Tour Q-School at Carlton Oaks in suburban Santee were postponed Oct. 23-24. Officials were to meet Wednesday afternoon, with a plan to play 27 holes on both Thursday and Friday. The site was not harmed by fire but was victim of poor air quality.

Fire also burned down to the edge of two sides of daily-fee Salt Creek Golf Club, in Chula Vista 20 minutes southeast of downtown San Diego.