The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1909-07-22
RODGERS IDEA OF
RATIONAL GOLF

In a recent exchange, Jason Rodg-
ers, who seems to be an authority on
golf, has the following on some of the
fine points of the game which should
be of interest locally:
Self-preservatiOn is the first law OF
nature among all animals, man includ-
ed. In the case of a burning build
ing man is usually the on,y animal
capable of considering the safest
means of escape. Horses, dogs and
cats will rush blindly by the regular
route of egress, oftentimes directly in
to or through the fire.
You will say, what has this to do
with golf?
The answer is simple When in the
difficulties of an impossible lie utilize
your best and coolest judgment to get
well out on the fair green rather than
chop away at the ball and roll up
double figure score for the hole.
The eighteenth hole at Garden City,
with it's deep sand pits cut into either
side of the green itself and another
back of it, has been the scene of many
losses to first-class performers who
through poor judgment, sought to
save penalty stroke.
In the qualifying round of the anna
teur championship last year Marshall
Whitlach got into one of the traps
short of the green and proceeded TO
chop his ball out, and before he got
through had piled up 10 strokes for
the hole, which prevented his quail
fication.
A few moments later Jerome d. Ira
vers came along. He drove into the
same trap, but instead of trying to
play out he lifted his ball back of the
hazard under penalty OF two strokes,
pitched his ball dead and went down
for a five.
Instead of reckoning the placing at
cost of two strokes. it was only ac-
tually one. Even though the ball
could be pitched out in one, it might
not stay on the green, or might go
| into one of the other traps as Whit
latch's did. AS it would take at least
one stroke to get out, It is safer to
pay an additional stroke to place 1t
in a good lie just to your liking.
In the recent invitation tournament
at Garden City, Charles B. Macdon-
aid a former national amateur cham
pion, and Frederick Herreshof both
received heavy penalties by trying to
chop out of these traps. Macdonald,
after innumerable ctrokes in the trap
back of the green, ricked up and fail
ed to turn in a card, while Herreshon,
after a IL owing to wasting strokes in
one of the traps, tied for last place
in the first 16.
| 1t is easy enough to give this ad-
vice, but much more difficult to follow
it, as l found in a game at Montclair,
when | took ~ strokes on an easy
z96-yard eleventh hole. My drive hit
a stone on the hillside and bounded
into the woods
1t seemed TO be such a simple niblick
shot to get out on the fair green that
/ tried it. On the down swing the
| club struck a stone back of the ball
and | didn't move il, Confident that
could bring off the stroke next time,
! | tried it again and only succeeded
in topping it into a worse lie. | will
draw a veil over the rest of the play,
Had l taken the ball from its bad lie
and teed it up back of that point |
would have made the fair green in
four and probably scored a seven. l
came home in AZ, notwithstanding the
| - hut failed 10 uualify
In improving the lie of ball I'M
der penalty of two strokes in medal