Locals claim regatta

NEWPORT BEACH ? The Newport Harbor Yacht Club swept St. Francis Yacht Club of San Francisco to win the Pacific Life Yacht Club Challenge on Saturday.

Newport Harbor won the first two match races to win the best-of-three final. Balboa Yacht Club did the same to win the third place competition, defeating Detroit’s Bayview Yacht Club.

Jon Pinckney was the skipper for Newport Harbor, which hosted the event and was the top seed with an 8-0 record after two days of round robin racing. Balboa, captained by Craig Fletcher, was the No. 3 seed in the field with a 4-4 mark.

The event brought nine clubs from around the country for the competition, using identical Catalina 37 sloops.

San Diego Yacht Club, Long Beach Yacht Club, Rochester Yacht Club of Rochester, N.Y., and Southern Yacht Club from New Orleans lost in Thursday’s quarterfinals and tied for fifth place.

The Newport Harbor Yacht Club puts on the annual Flight of the Lasers race.