Omaha daily bee., 1910-04-03
GOLF In It's SOCIAL ASPECT
Links Generally Filled Up with Men
Past Middle Age,
MOST WOMEN DEv0TEs NATIONS
Young Men Turn out only ON Days
When Important Tournaments
or MIA Meets Are
BOOked
MOST WOMEN DEvOTEs NATIONS

NEW YORK. April 2-The social import
ance Of golf, entirely aside from its sport.
ing aspect, has a lot Of consideration
whenever two or more golfers OF middle
age or more gather at the nineteenth hole,
as the golf club cafe has come to be
known. Very often you will hear those
OF middle age ask, What would we be
doing now IL We were not golflng9' and
the answer in effect usually is, Playing
cards or billiards at the club and absorbing
more cocktails than are good for us"
IL would surprise any non-golfer to visit
some popular golf course near New York
and, standing near the first tee, note the
ages Of those who drive off on any whole
or half holiday. Almost Invariably IL
would be found, unless there is an Import
ant tournament on hand, that u majority
Of the men players are Of middle age or
more and that the women-well, the ma
jority Of them are matrons let II be said.
On lays Of important tournaments the
youngsters naturally outnumber the old
stersi the latter are not keen enough play
ers, even when they play well enough to
hope to qualify in an important tourna-
ment' to care for the hard, close compsti-
ton OF the game. And there is the ex-
plantation OF the lack Of knowledge Of
the non-golfing public as to the army Of
oldsters who are devoted to the game; the
public gets its impression as to the aver
age of players from pictures and those nat
urally accompany accounts Of important
tournaments where the younger players
are much in evidence.
Should the photographer visit the links
upon another day than when some big
meet is being run off then he could snap
match after match composed of men OF
30 and older. the men who are the real
support Of the game in this country now.
as they long have been in Great Britain.
And 1t is a fact that American golf did not
get its great impetus until men no longer
young discovered the lure of the game on
Its social side.
youngsters played it as an athletic con-
test and It grew very slowly on this SIDE OF
the water. It's total failure was prsdIoted.
we never would have many full eighteen
hole links, never have attractive CLUB
houses, said observers, simply because the
youngsters could not stand the cost.
Fovunately just o. failure seemed inevl-
table some men beyond the younEBter age
took up the game, ''Just To se what there
Is in It." and they found an outdoor social
recreation which fascinated them. That
settled the fate OF golf In this ~6ountSy,
hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands
took up the game. provided literally the
money for better and larger links, for club
houses modelled after the houses of the
then few fine country club houses In the
neighborhood Of New York, Boston and
Washington,
But to develop the game on the social
side Americans shattered many British
traditions. Ex-Premier Balfour has recently
spoken OF this,
Americans" no said. talk and laugh
as they play they even ehaff eneh other.
With us It is a silent game
Worse than silent. solemn British play
ers who visit American links are as great
objects of surprise for their speeohless
seriousness IN going ths rounds as were
American visitors on British links to Mr..
Balfour.
It was all a matter Of temperament.
Americans, those who saved the game to
this country, were generally men Of COM
Portable circumstances, men who were &C.
customed to pass their hours OF recreation,
many of them, in town clubs, where op-
porunity for friendly chat and gossip, sven