Great sports movies aren’t just about sports, they’re about something deeper, says Dennis Quaid, and his latest film, “The Long Game,” is no exception.
On the one hand, “The Long Game” is about a team of outsiders who, against all expectations, win the golf championship of a high school in the state of Texas.
But on another level, the film is really about “belonging and not belonging, and what it means to be an American, and what it takes to achieve that,” Quaid said April 12 during the third hour of TODAY.
“The Long Game” is based on the true story of five Mexican-American high school students who were banned from playing golf at an all-white country club in Texas in the 1950s.
Determined to compete, they built a makeshift golf course and, without any formal training, formed their own team, the San Felipe Mustangs, and became state champions.
Quaid appeared on the third hour of TODAY with two of his “Long Game” co-stars, Cheech Marin and Jay Hernandez.
Working on “The Long Game” marked a reunion for Quaid and Hernandez, who both starred in the inspirational 2002 baseball drama “The Rookie.”
“The films mirror each other in some ways,” Quaid said of “The Rookie” and his latest film. “They’re about outsiders.”
Read on to learn about the true story that inspired “The Long Game” and what became of the real San Felipe Mustangs.
Is “The Long Game” based on a true story?
Yes, “The Long Game” is based on the true story of the San Felipe High School golf team, the Mustangs, a Mexican-American golf team that overcame segregation and discrimination to win the 1957 Texas state high school golf championship.
The film is an adaptation of Humberto G. Garcia’s 2012 book “Mustang Miracle”.
According to Texas Monthly, Garcia spent four years researching his book, interviewing former San Felipe players and reading newspaper archives.
The film tells the story of five Mexican-American high school students – Joe Treviño, Gene Vasquez, Felipe Romero, Mario Lomas and Lupe Felan – who were caddies at a country club in Del Rio, Texas in the 1950s.
Since the boys were not allowed to play at the white-only country club, they built their own course and taught themselves to play golf.
The boys formed a golf team and, against all odds, became Texas state high school golf champions under the coaching of school district superintendent JB Peña.
“Suicide Squad” star Jay Hernandez plays Peña and “9-1-1: Lone Star” actor Julian Works portrays the leader of the boys’ team, Joe Treviño.
Dennis Quaid plays Frank Mitchell, a country club member (and Peña’s fellow veteran) who helps the golf team.
The team’s inspirational story gained wider recognition following the release of “Mustang Miracle.”
In 2012, the Mustangs were inducted into the Latin American International Sports Hall of Fame.
Team member Vasquez, who is played by Gregory Diaz IV in the film, told Entertainment Weekly last year that the honor was “very gratifying.”
“After so many years, over 50 years, we finally got some recognition,” he said.
In 2016, the Mustangs were also inducted into the National Hispanic Heritage Hall of Honor.
In 2023, Vasquez spoke to Entertainment Weekly about his team’s remarkable accomplishments.
“It’s a dream come true that only happens in America,” Vasquez said. “We were fighting brutal poverty and brutal discrimination. Our parents were immigrants, they couldn’t read or write, and we were very poor. So for us, it was very exciting because we could work as a caddy, make a little money and learn to play golf by imitating the golfers. And then we had an idea: Let’s build our golf course. We started gathering all the equipment and started swinging.”
What happened to the real Mustangs? Here they are now
The former Mustangs pursued different careers over the years, with some of them staying in touch and maintaining their lifelong passion for golf.
Gene Vasquez
Vasquez and one of his former Mustang colleagues, Felipe Romero, attended the premiere of “The Long Game” at the South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas in March 2023.
Vasquez died in 2023 at the age of 83, according to his obituary in the 830 Times, which also says he leaves behind seven children, 18 grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren. He previously taught in public schools in San Felipe and later worked in real estate, Texas Monthly reports.
Felipe Romero
Romero was previously honored by the Texas House of Representatives for his accomplishments. In a 2011 resolution, the House noted that after high school, Romero attended the PGA Business School in San Antonio “and learned the business side of golf.” The House also noted that Romero “professionally competed on national and international mini-golf tours while working as a bus driver and instructor for the Metropolitan Transit Authority in Houston.”
Lupe Felan
Felan attended a screening at the White House on April 9 with several stars of “The Long Game,” and according to Marin, Felan “still plays golf every day.”
Texas Monthly reported in February that Felan lived in Yucca Valley, California. He reportedly worked for the Marine Corps and later for the California Department of Motor Vehicles throughout his career.
Mario Lomas
According to Texas Monthly, Lomas went on to work as a caddy on the PGA Tour and later as a greenkeeper at a country club. Romero and Felan told the newspaper they lost touch with Lomas over the years.
Joe Trevino
Treviño died in 2014 at the age of 75, leaving behind two sons and two daughters. He was an avid golfer throughout his life, and enjoyed restoring golf clubs and giving golf lessons, according to his obituary published by Trinity Mortuary. He also reportedly worked for 35 years at Laughlin Air Force Base and later Travis Air Force Base in California.
How to watch The Long Game
“The Long Game” premiered at SXSW in March 2023 and was released in theaters in April 2024. The film can be streamed on Netflix today.
This article was originally published on TODAY.com.
