First Republic Bank seized, sold to JPMorgan Chase

• May 1, 2023

By KEN SWEET | AP Business Writer

NEW YORK — Regulators seized troubled First Republic Bank early Monday and sold all of its deposits and most of its assets to JPMorgan Chase Bank in a bid to head off further banking turmoil in the U.S.

San Francisco-based First Republic is the third midsize bank to fail in two months. It is the second-biggest bank failure in U.S. history, behind only Washington Mutual, which collapsed at the height of the 2008 financial crisis and was also taken over by JPMorgan.

First Republic has struggled since the March collapses of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank and investors and depositors had grown increasingly worried it might not survive because of its high amount of uninsured deposits and exposure to low interest rate loans.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation said early Monday that First Republic Bank’s 84 branches in eight states will reopen as branches of JPMorgan Chase Bank, and depositors will have full access to all of their deposits.

Regulators worked through the weekend to find a way forward before U.S. stock markets opened. Markets in many parts of the world were closed for May 1 holidays Monday. The two markets in Asia that were open, in Tokyo and Sydney, rose.

“Our government invited us and others to step up, and we did,” said Jamie Dimon, chairman and CEO of JPMorgan Chase.

As of April 13, First Republic had approximately $229 billion in total assets and $104 billion in total deposits, the FDIC said.

At the end of last year, the Federal Reserve ranked it 14th in size among U.S. commercial banks. The FDIC estimated its deposit insurance fund would take a $13 billion hit from taking First Republic into receivership. Its rescue of Silicon Valley Bank cost the fund a record $20 billion.

Before Silicon Valley Bank failed, First Republic had a banking franchise that was the envy of most of the industry. Its clients — mostly the rich and powerful — rarely defaulted on their loans. The bank has made much of its money making low-cost loans to the wealthy, which reportedly included Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

Flush with deposits from the well-heeled, First Republic saw total assets more than double from $102 billion at the end of 2019’s first quarter, when its full-time workforce was 4,600.

But the vast majority of its deposits, like those in Silicon Valley and Signature Bank, were uninsured — that is, above the $250,000 limit set by the FDIC. And that worried analysts and investors. If First Republic were to fail, its depositors might not get all their money back.

Those fears were crystalized in the bank’s recent quarterly results. First Republic experienced a modern day bank run as customers rushed to pull out more than $100 billion in deposits following the failure of Silicon Valley and Signature Bank. Unlike bank runs throughout history, First Republic’s demise was fueled by the speed of social media and digital withdrawals that can be made in seconds from a cell phone.

San Francisco-based First Republic said that it was only able to stanch the bleeding after a group of large banks stepped in to save it with $30 billion in uninsured deposits.

First Republic had been looking for a way to quickly turn itself around. The bank planned to sell off unprofitable assets, including the low interest mortgages that it provided to wealthy clients. It also announced plans to lay off up to a quarter of its workforce, which totaled about 7,200 employees in late 2022.

Investors were skeptical, and the devastating quarterly report sent them running for the exits. First Republic shares fell 75% last week and closed Friday at $3.51. Any remaining shareholders are likely to get wiped out. The shares traded at $115 on March 8, right before Silicon Valley Bank failed.

The Fed and FDIC, which regulate the banking industry along with the Office of Comptroller of the Currency, could face renewed criticism over their handling of First Republic. Both acknowledged Friday in separate reports that lax supervision had contributed to the failures of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank.

For Dimon and JPMorgan, there may be a sense of déjà vu: Back in 2008, Dimon was the go-to banker for Washington to find private solutions for that banking crisis and JPMorgan acquired both Bear Stearns and Washington Mutual.

In a statement, JPMorgan portrayed the First Republic deal as beneficial both to the financial system and the company. As part of the agreement, the FDIC will share losses with JPMorgan on First Republic’s loans. JPMorgan expects the addition of First Republic to add $500 million to its net income per year, although it expects to incur $2 billion in costs integrating First Republic into its operations over the next 18 months.

Associated Press Staff Writer Matt O’Brien in Providence, Rhode Island, contributed to this report.

Related Articles

​ Orange County Register 

Dementia doubles in Orange County in less than a decade

• May 1, 2023

In some shadowy tangle between past and present, my grandfather would wipe down the walls of our kitchen. “Good?” he’d eagerly ask.

It was the 1970s, but my grandfather was stuck in the 1920s. He had just crossed the ocean on the S.S. Italia and was working as a busboy in New York City, trying so hard to please the boss. Sometimes he’d suddenly snap back to the present, stare at the dishtowel in his hand and cry.

New number crunching from the Orange County Alzheimer’s estimates that the number of folks enduring this sort of heartbreak has essentially doubled since 2014 in the O.C. That’s a startling jump, from 84,000 to 164,000 people, which works out to about 5% of our total population.

Yikes. We’re not statisticians, but that struck us as scary high. Other estimates of how many Americans are affected by dementia have hovered around 2% of the total population. Surely this can’t be right!

But that was before the latest census. And the rapid aging of the Boomers. And new studies examining cognitive impairment by race and ethnicity.

“The new number is believable, especially if a difference from the previous estimate is the inclusion of mild cognitive impairment as a category,” said Dr. Joshua D. Grill, a noted Alzheimer’s researcher at UC Irvine. “Orange County is ‘grayer’ than the rest of the country, so we do expect relatively more people living with cognitive impairment here.”

UCI epidemiologist and demographer Andrew Noymer concurs. An aging population and increased ascertainment — meaning that the comparisons are not really like-for-like, he said.

Gulp

Jim McAleer, chief executive officer for Alzheimer’s Orange County, walked us through the startling new numbers.

“Rather than going door to door and asking who has dementia, we take the population totals from the census, we break it down by age group, and we apply the prevalence numbers found in the studies we decide to use — in this case a very well respected study from Columbia University,” he said by email.

That Columbia study found a disproportionate burden of dementia and mild cognitive impairment among older Black and Hispanic adults, as well as those with lower education levels.

The study — the first nationally representative study of cognitive impairment prevalence in more than 20 years — found that almost 10% of U.S. adults ages 65 and older have dementia, while another 22% have mild cognitive impairment.

That’s 1 of every 3 older Americans. Gulp. Or, about 3.3% of the total population. And, as one might expect, the prevalence is highest in the oldest people.

“Our society has aged greatly in the past eight years — particularly in the O.C.,” said McAleer. “The identification of mild cognitive impairment is much improved. We now know from the study referenced that up to 22% of seniors over 65 experience some form of MCI. We did not have that information 10 years ago. We only knew then the presumed incidence of dementia.”

Plus, the ethnic mix in Orange County has deepened, and communities of color are more at risk of developing dementia, he said.

He estimates that 34,780 Orange County Latinos age 65 and older have dementia, compared to 16,749 Whites and 9,919 Asians.

Grayer

File photo of the OK Chorale singing group for people with dementia and their caregivers in Laguna Woods in 2019. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Within the broader aging boom, the fastest growing cohort is the oldest of the old, people 85 and up. America currently has about 7 million people in that age range; by 2050, it will more than double, to 18.6 million. Within that group, the number of Americans age 100 and older is expected to more than quadruple, from about 90,000 today to nearly 400,000.

My colleague Andre Mouchard has done a lot of jaw-dropping reporting on this phenomenon, which is already reshaping Southern California.

Over the past decade, the number of people aged 65 and older ballooned 34% in Los Angeles County, 41.6% in Orange County, 40% in Riverside County and 45.4% in San Bernardino County. That will keep going up.

The new statistics are alarming and demand our attention, McAleer said, and underscore the urgent need for increased awareness, resources and support for those affected by dementia and their families.

“We face a public health crisis requiring immediate action,” he said in a prepared statement. “The impact of these conditions extends far beyond the individuals themselves, affecting their families, caregivers and communities. It is imperative that we work together to increase awareness, provide support and resources, and advocate for policies that address the needs of those living with dementia and their loved ones.”

There’s a great deal of research on Alzheimer’s happening here in Southern California, and we wish them Godspeed. The next decade promises to be one of great progress, though there most likely will not be one magic bullet, but multiple therapies to address brain toxins and their outfall in multiple ways.

“Once you hit 50 and 60, you’re staring into the mouth of the lion and the research has a little more immediate impact,” McAleer recently told us. “If you can stop the first couple of dominos from falling, you’ll chip away at the larger problem.”

Please, science. Do your stuff.

Related Articles

​ Orange County Register 

Stagecoach 2023: See photos of performers and fans from Day 3

• May 1, 2023

That’s a wrap on the 15th annual Stagecoach County Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio.

The three-day festival officially came to a close on Sunday, April 30 after Chris Stapleton performed on the Mane Stage and EDM artist and producer Diplo delivered his rockin’ Late Night in Palomino set.

RELATED: Stagecoach 2023: Chris Stapleton, Brooks & Dunn and Diplo wrap up the fest

Day 3 saw early day sets by Tyler Braden, Sierra Ferrell, Luke Grimes, Baily Zimmerman, Ryan Bingham, Parmalee, Turnpike Troubadours and more.

Parker McCollum and Brooks & Dunn held it down on the Mane Stage before Stapleton headlined, while Tyler Childers shut down the Palomino and Lost Frequencies played the final DJ set in Diplo’s Honky Tonk. Ahead of her turn on the Mane Stage, singer-songwriter and “Yellowstone” actress Lainey Wilson was joined by the hit TV series’ creator Taylor Sheridan earlier in the day to grill up some big ‘ol tomahawk steaks with Guy Fieri in his Stagecoach Smokehouse.

 More Stagecoach Country Music Festival news

Stagecoach 2023: Chris Stapleton, Brooks & Dunn and Diplo wrap up the fest

Stagecoach 2023: 5 fun non-music activities to do at the festival 

Stagecoach 2023: Ready to party, yet stay sober? There’s a tent for that

Stagecoach 2023: See photos of performers and fans from Day 2

Stagecoach 2023: Kane Brown, Bryan Adams and Nelly close out Day 2

Stagecoach 2023: Guy Fieri, Jon Pardi toss barbecued turkey legs to hungry fans 

Stagecoach 2023: Trixie Mattel slays Late Night in Palomino performance 

Stagecoach 2023: See photos of performers and fans from Day 1

Stagecoach 2023: Luke Bryan keeps fans singing, Jon Pardi gets a surprise on stage during Day 1

Stagecoach 2023: Country music fans, performers brave the heat and cut loose during Day 1

Stagecoach 2023: How to livestream the country music festival from home

Stagecoach 2023: Brooks & Dunn return to the desert and they’re ready to party 

Stagecoach 2023: Everything you need to know about the country music fest 

Stagecoach 2023: Guy Fieri’s barbecue, sushi and lots of drinks on the menu 

​ Orange County Register 

Stagecoach 2023: Chris Stapleton, Brooks & Dunn and Diplo wrap up the fest

• May 1, 2023

The third and final day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival on Sunday, April 30 started off a little slow. Though there were noticeably more fans on-site earlier in the day, the temperatures did not let up over the long weekend, still hitting over 100 degrees by mid-afternoon.

Festivalgoers didn’t seem to be in too much of a hurry to get to any particular place on the venue grounds and instead hung out in the shaded areas, ducked into the buildings and activations that had air-conditioning and continued to enjoy beer and cocktails in the blistering sun.

The wind also picked up in the early evening and large gusts blew the cowboy hats right off the heads of guests and sent them sprinting after them as they tumbled away. When the sun went down, the energy picked up. Some women traded out their cowboy boots for flip flops and were ready to dance along to the closing acts — Tyler Childers in the Palomino, Brooks & Dunn and Chris Stapleton on the Mane Stage and EDM artist and producer Diplo closed out the Late Night in Palomino after-party with an overflowing tent of enthusiastic fans soaking up the final moments of the festival.

Stapleton isn’t one for small talk. Instead, the country outlier let his songs and guitar playing do the talking.

“We’re going to play as much music as we can,” Stapleton said over the screaming crowd. With a soft, iridescent light shining on the band, he skipped any fancy on-stage gimmicks: pyrotechnics, elaborate lighting and special guests.

Stapleton’s band was fully in sync as they explored the elements of his Southern rock and soul sound with guitar solos galore. He opened with a pair of his breakout its: “Nobody to Blame” and “Parachute,” which seemed to please the crowd as fans danced around in the field. The set was pretty slow paced, with several 30 seconds or longer interludes between songs, during which the stage went dark. But even with those pauses, he kept fans screaming as they could be heard calling out “I love you Chris Stapleton!” in the quieter moments.

He played “Second One To Know” and a rendition of Kevin Welch’s “Millionaire,” with his wife, Morgane, by his side providing backing vocals and harmonizing with her beau, too. Stapleton’s voice and guitar playing shined through “Cold,” “Midnight Train to Memphis,” “Arkansas,” “Fire Away” and his cover of David Allan Coe’s “Tennessee Whiskey.”

Country music duo Brooks & Dunn put on a nostalgia-filled, high-energy show that kicked off with the mighty “Brand New Man,” which instantly had the crowd singing along. They also had no problem belting out most of “Red Dirt Road” as Ronnie Dunn pointed his mic out into the front rows and let them take it away. Kix Brooks looked to be overheating a bit as he sang the ballad, “You’re Gonna Miss Me When I’m Gone.” Whatever may have been bugging him, he shook it off and pounded on his guitar for “Hard Workin’ Man” and the saucy “Rock My World (Little Country Girl).”

Fans swayed and sang along to the heartbreak song “Neon Moon” and tried to keep up with Dunn as he can still hit those very high notes of Daniel Moore and B.W. Stevenson’s “My Maria.” They ended their turn with “Boot Scootin’ Boogie” and “Only in America,” during which they brought out members of different branches of the military in uniform on stage to salute them.

Unlike its Coachella big sister fest, the 15th annual Stagecoach Festival didn’t have too many special guest appearances, which could be due to the fact that most of the genre’s prominent players were performing at Willie Nelson’s 90th birthday party at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles on Saturday and Sunday. There were a few quick appearances here and there, however. Lainey Wilson came out with Brooks & Dunn to sing Reba McEntire’s parts on “Cowgirls Don’t Cry,” Kane Brown’s wife, Katelyn Jae, joined him for “Thank God” during his headlining set on Saturday, April 29 and Breland showed up at Nelly’s Late Night in Palomino set for “Country Grammar” on Saturday, too.

Parker McCollum, who was named ACM’s 2022 new male artist of the year, set the mood for the last sunset slot on the Stagecoach Mane Stage. The Texas-based crooner’s knack for creating coming-of-age, heartbroken tales seemed to go over quite well as fans sang each song like their lives depended on it. One woman was even spotted shedding some tears as she sang, “I Can’t Breathe.”

“I’ve been looking forward to this show all year,” McCollum said with a grin. “I’ve dreamed of playing Stagecoach since I was a kid and to have my name under Brooks & Dunn and Chris Stapleton is insane to me.”

In many ways the set was a testament to where he’s going as he played multiple new tracks off his forthcoming record, “Never Enough,” due out on May 12. He also made sure to play “Like A Cowboy,” a song he mentioned that was actually written by Stapleton. Other highlights included his hits “Handle On You” and “Pretty Heart.”

Earlier in the day, singer-songwriter and “Yellowstone” actor Ryan Bingham pulled a sizable crowd for his set in the Palomino. He performed “Sunrise” and got significant crowd reactions when he went into “Southside of Heaven,” which carried more of a Honky Tonk feel than his studio recording and got the crowd to stomp, cheer and dance with their partners. He also played his Oscar-award-winning song “The Weary Kind,” which was featured in the film “Crazy Heart.”

Over at the Mane Stage, the gaps between the crowds filled with anticipation for Lainey Wilson, who also has a role on “Yellowstone.” She was introduced by the TV series’ creator Taylor Sheridan who got the crowd to yell her name before she came out. During her performance, she told the crowd that Sheridan reached out to her about creating a character based on her persona and bell bottom pants for the show.

“‘Yellowstone’ has been really good to me, and they put my music in seasons two and three and allowed me to share music with a whole lot of people,” Wilson said.

Her set was full of twangy bass lines that complimented her Southern accent in songs such as “Grease,” “Watermelon Moonshine,” “Hold My Halo,” a cover of 4 Non Blondes “What’s Up” and her hit “Heart Like a Truck.”

Tyler Childers closed out the Palomino with several songs that caught the audience’s attention including “Old Country Church,” “Honky Tonk Flame” and “Heart You’ve Been Tendin.’” Before his set, Oklahoma-based group Turnpike Troubadours — who are back after announcing an indefinite hiatus in 2019 — fired through hits like “Before The Devil Knows We’re Dead,” “Long Hot Summer Day” and “Good Lord Lorrie.”

 More Stagecoach Country Music Festival news

Stagecoach 2023: 5 fun non-music activities to do at the festival 

Stagecoach 2023: Ready to party, yet stay sober? There’s a tent for that

Stagecoach 2023: See photos of performers and fans from Day 2

Stagecoach 2023: Kane Brown, Bryan Adams and Nelly close out Day 2

Stagecoach 2023: Guy Fieri, Jon Pardi toss barbecued turkey legs to hungry fans 

Stagecoach 2023: Trixie Mattel slays Late Night in Palomino performance 

Stagecoach 2023: See photos of performers and fans from Day 1

Stagecoach 2023: Luke Bryan keeps fans singing, Jon Pardi gets a surprise on stage during Day 1

Stagecoach 2023: Country music fans, performers brave the heat and cut loose during Day 1

​ Orange County Register 

Kings reflect on season, look ahead

• May 1, 2023

EL SEGUNDO –– Mere hours after their sobering elimination at the hands of the Edmonton Oilers in the first round for a second consecutive season, the Kings were reflective but already looking ahead to another opportunity next year.

Even though the Kings advanced no further in the postseason than last year, in fact they lost in six games in this campaign’s first round rather than seven in 2022, they asserted, to a man, that the team had improved considerably year over year.

“We’re definitely a better team this year than we were last year, I don’t think there’s any doubt at all about that. But, unfortunately, (Edmonton) got better, too,” said defenseman Drew Doughty, who, like winger Viktor Arvidsson, missed last year’s series with an injury but played in all six games this time.

Yet 2022-23 was a banner year during the regular season, wherein the Kings fell a point shy of the franchise record 105 points from 1974-75 and posted the second-best conversion rate on the power play in team history. They scored more per game than in any season since 1993-94, the same moment they last had a 40-goal scorer (Luc Robitaille) before Adrian Kempe potted 41 this season. Trade acquisition Kevin Fiala had six points in three playoff games and, during the regular season, became just the second King to average more than a point-per-game over 60 or more contests in a campaign since Ziggy Palffy in 2003-4.

If literally every Kings player and coach proved less than persuasive and the numbers rang hollow, take it from the authority on scoring, Edmonton captain Connor McDavid, whose 153 points this season were a throwback to the 80s and the second most ever for a player other than Wayne Gretzky or Mario Lemieux.

“I saw huge growth offensively. We knew their system, they played their system really well. They’re so well-coached, Todd (McLellan) has that group really dialed in,” said McDavid, who played for McLellan early in his career. “A healthy Arvidsson, a healthy Doughty, you add Fiala to that series, that’s a pretty potent offensive side. And the power play, I remember last year it wasn’t clicking the way it was this year.”

Advancement in their own process as well as keeping pace with Edmonton, defending champion Colorado and division winner Vegas, among others, started Sunday. Where General Manager Rob Blake was able to enrich his roster with significant pieces in each of the past two offseasons –– a trio of pick-ups headlined by free-agent signing Phillip Danault in 2021 and Fiala via trade in 2022 –– the Kings now face salary-cap constraints.

“It’s more shaping, probably, this summer. The growth of some more players that are getting into that mix that are pushing the leadership group,” said Blake, adding he didn’t see many holes to fill. “I’m not sure it’s as easy to go and add like it has been in the past summers because of the salary-cap situation for the year.”

Per CapFriendly, the Kings project to have around $2.6 million in cap space for next season currently, which will likely necessitate moves to accommodate re-signings and acquisitions. All three roster players the Kings scooped up at the trade deadline (defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov, goalie Joonas Koripsalo and winger Zack MacEwen) are headed toward some form of free agency, as are several members of the Kings’ bottom-six forward group, most notably Gabe Vilardi.

There’s mutual interest in an extension between unrestricted free agents to be Gavrikov and Korpisalo and the Kings, but the cap space they have following extensions for defenseman Mikey Anderson, forward Trevor Moore and backup goalie Pheonix Copley may not be quite enough to sign either, let alone both. Vilardi is arbitration-eligible, and after 23 goals in 63 games, the Kings would likely strive to avoid a hearing by agreeing to terms.

Vilardi provided an internal boost, the type the Kings hope for from some younger players next season as well. One that has been almost as mercurial as he has been tantalizing is sniping winger Arthur Kaliyev, who flashed brilliance at times early on but found himself scratched and then sick during the playoffs.

“Kaliyev can be an impactful NHL player, and not only can be, but we need him to be,” McLellan said.

Defenseman Alex Edler is an unrestricted free agent and fellow rearguard Sean Walker is in the final year of his contract. Edler said he would have to evaluate several factors including team interest, his health (which he said was fine, in fact there were no offseason surgeries awaiting the Kings) and his family’s wishes before deciding to return to the Kings or perhaps the NHL at all next season. Walker, who surmounted a grisly facial injury two years ago and a career-threatening knee injury last season, said that in looking at the totality of the situation, he wasn’t overly confident that he’d return next season. Then, prospect Brandt Clarke will be back in what was already a deep defense corps for the Kings that excluded solid aspirants such as Jordan Spence.

“You know the guys that are coming up, you know where the cap’s at. So, we’ll see what happens,” Walker said. “I know I can contribute and play here, and that’s where I want to be, but at the end of the day, the organization’s got to do what they think is best.”

Blake threw his support behind McLellan, offering only an affirmative “yes” when asked if McLellan would return as coach for the fifth and, for now, final season of his pact. McLellan expressed satisfaction with assistant coaches Trent Yawney and Jim Hiller as well. Yawney worked with the defenseman and ran the penalty kill, the latter of which faltered in the playoffs and often earlier in the season.

Amid the free-flowing dialogue, the elephant in the room was the future of goalie Cal Petersen, who was once anointed the starter and given $15 million reasons to stop the puck over three years. Year 1 of that meaty extension got off to an acrid start at the NHL level and didn’t improve as much as one might expect even after a demotion to the minors, where he competed for most of the season. He wasn’t claimed off waivers and subsequent interest was also evidently non-existent, leaving the Kings with a reclamation endeavor to add to what McLellan described as a “summer project” doing a deep dive on the woeful PK. Petersen, 28, went 16-20-4 with a .904 save percentage in the minors, and performed poorly in two playoff outings, losing both with a .826 mark.

“We’ve got to get Cal to be an NHL goaltender,” Blake said. “That’s why we signed him to (the contract). It was a tough start to the season, in that situation, he was real good about going down and playing games, but that’s a big summer for him to come back and compete.”

When asked to clarify if that meant he thought Petersen would start the year with the big club, Blake’s response bordered on non-committal.

“Yeah, hopefully, yeah,” he said.

Related Articles

​ Orange County Register 

LPGA: Hannah Green wins JM Eagle LA Championship in playoff

• May 1, 2023

LOS ANGELES — Australian Hannah Green rallied from behind in Sunday’s final round to win the JM Eagle LA Open at Wilshire Country Club, surviving a three-way playoff with Aditi Ashok and Xiyu Lin to claim her third LPGA title.

With Ashok and Lin already in the clubhouse at 9 under par after making birdies on the par-3 18th hole, Green forced her way into the playoff by making a 25-foot birdie putt. It was just Green’s second birdie of the day, but it provided her with a boost of confidence that propelled her to victory in the playoff.

“Pretty much all day I left every putt short, I guess I knew how quick the greens were in previous years, and I was just frightened to give myself that four- or five-footer coming back,” Green said. “I knew I needed to get it to the hole and I knew I needed to hit it a little bit harder than what I had all day. I don’t often get my caddie to read my putt, but I pulled him in for the last hole, and we both saw the same line, so it was nice to have that confidence that I was seeing the correct line, and yeah, just stroked it and it went perfectly in the hole.”

With all three players having finished regulation at 9-under 275, they headed back to the 18th hole to start the sudden-death playoff where all three hit exceptional tee shots. Ashok was first to putt, with her 15-foot birdie attempt hitting the edge of the cup and spinning off.

Seconds later, Lin eliminated Ashok from the playoff by converting her 12-foot birdie putt. Needing to maker her putt to keep her chances alive, Green calmly holed a 4-foot birdie putt, sending her and Lin back to 18th tee box for the third time on the day.

Lin pushed her tee shot right with it coming to rest in a bunker on the right side of the green. Seizing an opportunity to put the pressure on Lin to get up and down from the bunker, Green hit another great tee shot that left her 25-feet from the cup.

Lin, who had struggled out of the bunkers all week, barely got her bunker shot onto the green, leaving her with an 18-foot par putt, which she was unable to convert.

Green successfully lagged her first putt down close to the hole and then knocked in the two-foot par putt to clinch her first victory since 2019.

Having just one birdie through her first 17 holes, Green admitted she was a bit surprised she had a chance to win as she stood on 18 for the first time on Sunday.

“When I got off the par-5, 13th, I saw someone at 10-under par, so at that stage I was at 7-under, and I thought there’s no chance I’m even in it, but at Wilshire you can’t put yourself out of it because 17 and 18 are both hard holes,” Green said. “Obviously I had a really good finish yesterday, 5-under through six holes, so I kind of was banking on that. But to hole that putt on 18 was huge. I knew that was to get into the playoff. So I’m just proud of myself with all the nerves that I had that I was able to capitalize on it and hole it.”

While the putt got her into the playoff, Green also made a great up and down for par on the 17th hole, thanks to a great wedge shot from just off the green. As she was walking up to the green she thought she could putt from off the green but when she saw three sprinkler heads in her line, she knew she grabbed her wedge.

“I missed probably four greens all day but I was able to putt from each of them so I literally hadn’t hit a chip in four or five hours, so I was like, I have no idea how this is going to come out,” Green said. “Luckily it was actually sitting pretty well and it was all downgrain, so it wasn’t too difficult a chip, but obviously under the circumstances it was still somewhat difficult. So, I think that was just as big, having a tap-in par on 17.”

Heading into 2020 with the momentum created from her wins two wins, including her first major, the KMPG Women’s PGA Championship, Green said things changed once Covid hit. Over the past two seasons Green played solid golf, including finishing third at Wilshire in 2021 and second last season.

Feeling like she needed some help to end her more than two-year winless streak, Green sought out the help of a sports psychologist from the LPGA Tour earlier this week.

“I just wanted to pretty much chat to someone and just make sure that I’m not overthinking things,” Green said. “I made a plan for a post-shot routine versus a pre-shot routine. I didn’t have to do it too much because I played well this week, but I think just keeping things the same for when I play well and when I don’t play so well is what we worked on. It obviously paid off today.”

Having come close to winning at Wilshire the last two years, Green said getting over the hump this year is extra special for her and her fans who loudly voiced their support throughout the tournament.

“I felt like I had my crew that were out watching me all day, but once I got to 18 I felt like everyone was cheering my name a little bit louder,” Green said. “The members have been amazing to me here. It’s such a special place, to play here in LA and have so many people come out, I’m really excited to come back and defend and hopefully keep putting my name on the trophy.”

Related Articles

​ Orange County Register 

You’ve got a blank canvas; now be creative and live fully alive

• May 1, 2023

Today’s world is rapidly changing, and so are our lifestyles and expectations of aging. Isn’t it just awesome to be alive in such a time as this, with its many beginnings and endings?

Life is truly an exciting adventure. But sometimes, in this open field of opportunities, our choices are of such magnitude that it can seem overwhelming.

Creative living in maturity requires us to once again become like children and endlessly ask, “What else could this be?” or “And now what?”

Pablo Picasso once said: “It takes a long time to become young.” As we mature, let’s also become young. Let’s join in eager explorations of what might be possible and engage in greater learning and greater artistry in our lives. Just as an artist is faced with a blank canvas and the tools of the trade, so are we equipped with the blank canvas of the future and the tools of heart, mind and spirit.

When we enter into our lives with the spirit of creativity, our experience offers us a way to become more original and inventive, and to feel more alive.

There are myths that we may repeat that can inhibit our creativity if we let them – sayings like “I am not artistic” or “I don’t have any talent” or even “I’m too old for that.”

Author Elizabeth Gilbert said, “To me overall, staying creative in old age requires an ongoing commitment to learning, growth and self-expression. With the right mindset and habits, it’s possible to continue to create and innovate throughout your lifetime. Creative living is any life that is guided more strongly by curiosity than fear.”

Fear only keeps us from moving forward into exploring all that we can be. Creativity is our ability to bring something into existence – either something that has never existed before, or something that is a unique combination of what already exists.

Being creative can be something as simple as finding a new use for a familiar object or a unique way of expressing ourselves. What is true is that we don’t have to be artistic to be creative. Sometimes, just using new words to describe ourselves will break us free of self-imposed limitations.

Children will start and then start again, until someone tells them they can’t do something they think they can. Children can be shy or outgoing, boisterous or quiet, and they will choose their own pathway if left alone.

People will say, “It’s just a stage she’s going through.” Let them say that about us!

So what if you are not as strong as you used to be? So what if you can’t see as well as you used to see? So what if there are others who can do more than you?

In a rapidly changing world, we only need to be creative to live fully alive.

The Rev. Linda McNamar is a Laguna Woods Village resident.

​ Orange County Register 

Cold, drizzly week ahead for Southern California

• May 1, 2023

After a warm weekend for much of Southern California, temperatures began to drop on Sunday as a cold storm system makes its way across the region this week.

Light drizzle was expected to begin falling over Los Angeles and Orange counties Sunday evening and carry into the morning, with Sunday’s high temperatures in the 70s dropping into the mid 60s on Monday and slowly decreasing throughout the week, according to National Weather Service meteorologist Joe Dandrea.

Coastline communities will not feel much change after an already foggy weekend kept temperatures in the mid to low 60s.

The brunt of the storm is expected to arrive Tuesday evening and continue through the week, with Thursday as the strongest day, Dandrea said. The rain will be the heaviest in the morning and evening hours.

Riverside County communities will see the most notable drop in temperature this week with clear skies and highs in the 80s on Sunday dropping into the mid-60s on Monday and continuing to cool through Thursday.

There will be a chance of some thunderstorms on Wednesday and Thursday, but the overall rainfall isn’t expected to be more than about a third of an inch across most of the region, Dandrea said.

Meanwhile in San Bernardino County, where mountain residents were pummeled earlier this year by a rare blizzard, about one to two inches of snowfall above 5,500 feet is expected to drop this week. While light snow and drizzle overnight poses a danger to drivers on the mountain roads, there was not much concern on Sunday for any mudslides or debris flow, Dandrea said.

The rain will begin to taper off on Friday with sunny skies expected in time for the weekend, though temperatures should remain on the cooler side with a slight increase heading into the next week.

Related Articles

​ Orange County Register