Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-12-08
FORTUNES OF WAR IN
CHAMPIONSHIP CONTESTS
By W. Herbert Fowler.


well. and when I met Hilton he beat met
after fine match by holing two twentyl
yarders: he was seventy-three and II
seventv-five. When two rounds later he
met Travis he took well over eighty! Such
is the luck of the game. Later on, Bobby |
Maxwell and Horace Hutchinson had a !
great match. and Horace won on the nine
teenth green by holing a good putt. and
doing the hole in four in spite of being
In the bunker and guarding the green in
his second. When he came out in the
afternoon to play Travis, the strain OF his
morning match told, and he played tho
early holes in a style quite foreign to his
usual form. and he too went under. Many
of us thought then, and / think now. that
If Maxwell had beaten Horace Hutchin-
son he would have put paid to Travis
account.
The final was the most extraordinary,
match l ever saw: there were severali
critical shots in it. and all went one way. |
must say that the way Travis surmount- |
ed difficulties that day was wonderful. !
1t was BLOWN. half a gale and some OF
the curries were all he could manage, but
the way he played for certain safe spots.
and the way he putted, will ever be re-
membered. In Ted Blackwell he met the
longest driver playing golf at that time,
and the curries were child's play to him. :
Yet steadiness and accuracy triumphed
over strength. Blackwell had several
chances in the morning round, but let !
them slip. At the eleventh hole the win
was such that Travis could only Just clear
the bunker from the tee and could not,
reach the green in two. Blackwell. on
the other hand hit a very long shot and
was made for cleek shot or driving
mashie To our horror his caddie gave
him his brassie. and he took 1t. Where I
the ball would have gone If he had hit IL
fair and square can only be imagined.
but hes hit it so hard on the head that IL
rolled few yards. and of course Travis
then got out of his tight place. Even
worse was the thirteenth hole. where
Travis was unable to reach the green In
three shots. and Ted was close to the
green in two. His third shot, however,
was so badly hooked with a mashie that
1t ran over the green, and as Travis;
pitched nicely and got down still another
putt he lost hole he should have won.
where Ted took too short club for his
second. ,
Curious and Exciting.
have mentioned this match in detail to-
show how accuracy and sticking to an
opponent may overcome superior power.
Poor Freddy TAFT stamped his name in
bold letters on many champ! onship games.
He was a perfect wonder in making re-
coveries from apparently impossible situ-
atoms. His opponent would think, well,
I must win this hole" when q wonderful
shot and a fine putt would transform the;
position. At Prestwick in 1899 there was
large pond of casual water short Of thei
seventeenth green. Freddy was in 1t, and
with little or no hesitation in he waded. ]
got the ball out of the water onto the
green, and SO saved himself.
On one occasion John Ball probably won
the championship by two fine strokes.
Playing Guy Campbell, he was two down
and six played, and going to the seventh
hole he was in rough grass over the Eden
in two: Campbell was about ten yards
from the hole in the like and looked all
over like being three up. Johnny got
his ball somehow onto the green, and, |
playing two more. holed a long putt. Guy
missed in two and lost the hole and prob
ably also the match.
One OF the most exciting and at the1
same time most curious matches have
seen was between Bobby Maxwell and
Hermon DeZoete at Muirfield in 1903. !
They met in the semi-fnal and Bobby
played very we'll and was always plum
down the middle of the course. DeZoete.
on the other hand. was wild with his tee
shots beyond words, but his recoveries
with his irons We're little short of mar
velous. They halved the eighteen holes,
and then came a most exciting, hole.
which eventually Bobby won in four after
DeZoete locked all over like winning in
three. Bobby won the final easily. but
this was the narroweSt shave imaginable
The Hoylake championship of 1902 was
remarkable for the effect the Haskell
ball had and the intense excitement its
advent caused among al, golfers. The
final was another wonderful match. In the
morning Charles Hutchinss had played
such a brilliant game that he had a lead.
Of eight holes at the end Of the first
eighteen What a grand fight Fry madel
shall never forget thosa last twelve.
holes, for Hutchings was still up with
II to go, and he only won at the last
hole by holing a putt Of quite five feet.
Another great match was that when
Hilton beat Johnny Low at ST. Andrews
In 1901. For long time Hilton, who at
that time was In grand form, looked like
winning easily. but Johnny stuck to him.
and by grand putting got him all square
and two to play Then came that most
difficult hole. the seventeenth. or road
hole" The green is very narrow-only
ten to twelve yardS-with a nasty bunker
on the left and the road on the right.
and yet Hilton put full shot within two
yards OF the hole. This made him dormy
one and another similar shot at the
eighteenth made him champion for the
second year running. This, l think, was
the finest shot | ever saw made at criti-
cal moment. and with an adverse crowd
all round him.
have not touched on the open cham
pionships, as l find ii difficult to take the
same interest in medal play, marvellous
as is the game as played by the cham
pions.
We have a new champion this year. and
must say he is we'll worthy OF the posi-
ton. ard az "a player must rank with the
great triumvirate. 1 offer Arnaud Massey
my hearty congratu ationsi