New-York tribune., 1912-04-07
FREAK "STUNTS" IN GOLF
Yarns Fly as Schedule Makers
Arrange Seasons Dates.
FOUR MILES ON $50 STROKES
Some of the Odd Matches That
Have Made Diversion for
the Players.

VIC 10y cIo'
At this season Of the year. with the
ground rapidly freeing itself of frost. the
tournament committees at the various COLT
clubs are working overtime on schedules,
A few have already made their appearance,
though thus far only the regular order &C
competitions seems to have been consid.
cred. AS the spring advances however,
committeeman with ideas are likely to dig
up few stunts entirely new.
While these may be departures from the
traditional, and for that reason frowned
upon in certain quarters. yet they will
make things interesting for the golfers and
act as a stimulant. There are hundreds OF
instances OF freakish happenings coupled
with the game, particularly, Of course. In
America, where individuality enters largely
into everything brought forward. One OF
these was the wager of a Western golfer
to the extent Of 5000 that he could play a
ball over four and a half miles of city
streets In $50 strokes, and did so finding ID
necessary to pay about $1,000 for the dam.
age'he did
Even the dignlfied English sometimes
stoop to the extraordinary. as 1t was once
recorded how certain three OF the holes
were selected from the eighteen by COM
mittee and the numbers placed in sealed
envelope. The competitors had to play the
full round in ignorance Of which holes had
been thus selected, and when they had
finished the envelope was opened and the
PLAYER who had done best at the selected
holes won the prize.
Some golfers appear to revel in calcula-
tions and have an ambition to be playing
half a dozen matches or more at the same
time. OF course, it can be done. 1t is re-
lated how a golfer went out one morning
with twenty-one matches depending on the
round he made. 1t was done In this man.
ner: The players in the party went out in
fours and two of side would make, not
one match with the two on the other side.
but three matches at different odds; one
side, say, giving the other three strokes,
five and six in three different matches.
Again. each man on each side would have
a match with each man on the other, ana
even the partners would play against each
other. IL will be perceived that many en-
gagements were fixed up. but this was only
the beginning of the matches, for the part
ners on each side would play best ball
matches-the scores being taken and the
results worked out afterward, with the
partners in other matches before and be-
hind-and individuals would play mora
matches against the individuals OF other
parties.
The possibilities of this style Of gains
are limited only by the mathematical aoili-
ties of the player or his propensity for hs-
ures of sizable quantity. 1t is almost on
the order of the players who went out for
a round armed only with champagne bot
ties. instead OF clubs: of others who threw
baseballs and counted their throws against
the strokes Of an opponent playing ordl-
nary golf. or of those who shot arrows
and counted their shots against the golfers
strokes
English critics point to the American way
of scoring team matches. as evidenced IN
the Nassau system. which Is In constant
operation. as unusual even 10 the point or
freakishness. They look upon beaten eight
and beaten sixteen divisions much in the
same manner and the way in which Amer
leans play off ties.
They point to what they call unusual
terms that have crept into the goling vef-
nacular by means of the American desire
10 express a whole lot with a single word
or phrase. many of these terms being who'll
ly strange to the English. For instance,
birdie" is an expression that completely
mystihes an English golfer unfamiliar with
American terms whereas the word that
signifies that player has made hole n
stroke less than par is known only to those
from the other side who have visited this
country.
There is an interesting story told as 10
how this expression crept into golf. Sew
eral Years ago a party OF Philadelphia
PLAYERS was making a round. During the
match some one made a remarkably accu-
rate stroke, so close TO the hole that he
was able to better par figures by fun
stroke One OF the players exclaimed:
That was a bird" 1t was forthwith pro-
posed that whenever a player made hole
in a stroke less than par figures he should
be credited with bird and each OF the
other players would give him ball as
premium. The suggestion met with imme-
date favor, and IL grew into custom.
Birds were things 10 be sought contin.
ually, and the players found themselves
striving to get long shots close up so as 10
have a chance for bird"