The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-08-03
GOLF IN THE ROCKIES.
II Is Not the Classic Game, But 1t IL
Good Sport Nevertheless.

Good Sport Nevertheless.
From Golf.
1t was the writer's good fortune to
spend a recent season at Manitou Park.
in the Rocky mountains of Colorado.
where throughout the entire summer
| golf was played most enthusiastically
upon links which, If not of the st. An
| drews type. were certainly unique and
| most beautiful.
This mountain valley, called by Hell
| en- Hunt Jackson the Cradle of Peace"
lies just over the Rampant Range, 80
| miles from Manitou Springs and ten
miles from the summit of the Ute Pass.
The quiet beauty OF the valley, with its
panorama of distant mountains, the
great expanse of meadow land and
pine covered slopes, and. above all, the
wonderful tonic of that perfect climate,
made the days upon these links some
thing to be remembered forever.
There is no moist sand or earth at
hand for tees; in this dry atmosphere
none can be kept moist at the greens,
so for tees we use very serviceable
ones made of sections of old rubber
hose, having a tail of cloth attached to
them to keep them from following the
ball too far.
From the teeing ground the course
descends the bluff through sage and
flowers to the brook, then short dis
lance beyond the stream through sage
again to the natural "bunkers," the
most difficult ground of the course.
Just beyond the bank is the ranch
fence, with the putting green on the
far side. The combination of trout
stream, bunkers and barbed wire fence
made life very exciting during the play
HrGf hnln TlrTf oil Of
were frequently cleared by good drives
The ground is full of prairie dog holes
and as we approach, the little animals.
with shrill and constant chorus,
scramble through the sage to their
mounds, stand up, survey us critically,
and, with a final defiant cry, tumble
head first into their holes.
Something has happened ahead, and
cur crack player exclaims, laconically.
Prairie dog hole" as he rushes after
his own ball, dropped many yards
ahead, perhaps to the same fate.
One ball has disappeared, rolling
down out of sight into hole just as
the owner came running up. AS he is
in hurry to go on with the play he
takes new ball without losing a
stroke. The hole is marked, and we will
some other time dig the ball out, or
find it thrown out by the little beasts
tIeuiStlNcS. lHlS Lney usually did in
day or two.
If there is any unpleasant feature in
Rocky Mountain golf, it is the danger
of losing balls in the holes of these
little pests. Large sums have been
spent by the proprietor of the park in
the endeavor to get rid of them, but
to no avail
In one season alone $1,000 was ex-
pended in vain attempt to extermi-
nate them by pumping sulphur fumes
into their underground habitations.
For several days preceding a golf tour
nament we made vigorous efforts to
lessen, at least, the number of the
holes and to cut short the rapidly in
creasing prairie dog families
Carbon bisulphide was poured into
the holes, the openings filled with dirt.
and the mounds levelled For two days
we congratulated ourselves, but alas
on the third day, the day of the tour
nament, there were many more holes
than there were in the beginning: il
seemed as If every single individual of
the prairie dog family-father. mother
son and daughter-had set to work in
dependently and dug out a new OMEN
ing for himself.
Though many balls were lost during
the summer, we came to accept the
prairie dog as matter of course. and
to carry goodly supply of balls in
readiness for an emergency.