New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1912-04-23
GOLF DOCTORS DISAGREE
CaIkins Says Watson Missed Ball
en- a Full Swing.
HANDICAP LIST TIE BONE
Work Begun in Rearranging the
Public Links at Van Cort-
landt Park.

fence by Robert q. Watson Of the national
golf handicap list Was equivalent to miss
Ing the ball altogether" The Plainfiold
man alAo states that out If number Of
plans that were suggested for limiting the
field in TIE national championship tourna-
rent the United states Golf Association
selected the ono cntailng the most work.
Calkins adds that simpler method could
he devised. he writes as follows:
u have read with interest Bob Watson's
defence Of the national handicap list, and
! may say IN all sincerity that this Is the
first time I ever saw him take a fun swing
at the ball and squarcly miss it. In fact,
he missed It 40 badly that I can't believe
he ever saw It, Here is the controversy
n a nutshell: The National Golf Associa-
ton was up against a larger entry for
its amateur championship than 70 could
handle. and decided 90 limit the entries 10
r'ayers with q handicap Of six or better.
IS everybody knows, the real purpose was
t. compile q list of good PLAYERS eligible
for the amateur championship. end Of
course the natural result, human nature
being what it Is, was tina, club handicap
rcrs rated their players &C low as they
could and shoyclled all the PLAYERS they
could into group six I'm order 10 make a
good showing.
"Bvt tho committee members Of the
United states Golf Association went step
further. Instead Of combining themselves 70
an eligibility list, they thought they might
as well put out a national handicap list.
This is proved by the wording Of the blanks
which they sent out to the various clubs
Cd H1Gi
intention to compile handicap list. so that
any player on the list would he able to
play anywhere in the United states on
proper handicap.
u pointed out I'm an art'." Garner ''I5
month that it would be '"-"'0;oI" ''''o~-
sible to obtain reliable figures from ciuoS
for handicap list out 81 returns '' ''-
ports prepared with the main object IN
naming as many players as posslhi" en-
titled to enter tho amateur championship.
l stated that while was entirely IN sym
PATTY with any experiment ny l"e a'"',"i
body TO Keep the entries Tor the nIuN IIu-
bon event OF the year WITHIN reasoha"I-
limits, I thought It mistake 10 puhl7n
any eligibility list as handicap nSI
charged specifically that the United states
Golf Association had disabled itself from
producing a reliable handicap list by under
taking n make It serve an entirely different
purpose, T. e, an eligibility or qualification
list
Either Secretary Watson did not read
my remarks carefully or he has somehow
contrived most admirably 10 miss the point.
Nobody who knows ANYTHING about assocla-
ton handlcapping believes that returns
ba fOr init
entries can he relied upon for handicaps.
Watsons reply is almost as naive as the
eyorsa Of the girl in Aidshipman Easy
In roplv 10 NV argument that a single list
cannot ha made 70 serve for handicaps and
also for y qualification test. he replies that
T. &c inst absolutely necessary TO have the
latter,
"That my criticism Of the United States
Golf Association was moderate in tone
would appear from a letter which | have
lust received from another member of the
national committee. who. after reading my
article, expresses satisfaction that did not
rub II in any harder. ] merely expressed an
opinion that a list which undoubtedly will
he eoryiCoahle as q qualification list should
not be taken too seriously rs a handicap
list Secretary Watson appears to take Of
fence ut this ana 10 regard my CRITICISM az
unfair and unjust But ne IL RulltN "I
very amusing and no DOUBT an lnadNcrteht
error in stating that the sole purpose OF the
list is 10 serve the requirements OF the
amateur event The public announcement
Of the United states cor Association Is
mat IN" hS' IS lh'e"oeu ~ serve as n To-
uohai hahol'7p Ia'lhE'
ocgCDgatFrr, bplGc M he pil-
Inc hauohaI asSo''a''"h h"I's Il" manu-
cap events ana mere is no necessary LOT 'S
complying H'ho''aP u7" '''e"' ',"' II
CANNOT "o'H'e one ~ any me, .,'
d" "u"'E 20 ,.'''7 anu ~ nv