The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-11-03

time he is jacketless and all in white. A large glass of iced water Is laid before him to begin with, and then the half of grape fruit or a cantaloup with a piece of ice stuck in the middle is laid before him as the first course. These things, as we get them in America, are very delicious.
 About this time an argument begins round the table about the qualities of dif- ferent balls and clubs, and l am closely questioned about the way In which we do things in England. Next there Is oat- meal porrdge laid ron the table, with tea or coffee, and the men begin to match themselves for the afternoon round. MT. A says he will play MT. B for fN but the latter says he is already engaged to play MT. for 950. Eventually Messrs. A, and c agree to play three-ball match for R100 corner. Such extensive wagering is not the rule, but it Is ex- ceedingly frequent. The professional in America has a very different status from that which his brother in Britain has. He comes into the clubhouse as he pleases, and frequently enters into these money matches on terms which are often advantageous to himself, and makes a profit out of them. Recently the pro- feSsional at the club where l am writing these notes played a couple of rounds with the same member and won fS, a hundred cigarettes, and gold chain from him. The gold chain came in because quick settlements are the rule in America, and the member in question happened to have not quite enough dollar bills in his pocket and was not very keen on keep
 ing the chain.
 A little while previously the same pro fessional had been invited by d member,
 who was2in the insurance line of busi- ness,4 play him for the first years premium on a 91000 policy, the under
 standing being that if the professional
 giving a certain number of strokes, won the match he would receive the policy paid up for the first twelve months for nothing, whereas if he lost he was to pay twice the proper premium. He won nice- ly, and a few days later the insurance man played him for the second year s premium, and the excellent professional will now have nothing to pay for his in- surance until 1914. To golfers at home all this kind of thing as between anna teur and professional must seem exceed ingly improper and bad, but to tell the truth, ways and methods are such in America that 1t very soon ceases to ap- pear even to the Englishman to be at all wrong. The professional in America, to do him justice, conducts himself in a very nice way.
 Well, before the finish of the breakfast he is-called in and a match is made be- tween him and one of the members for a couple of boxes of balls at 36 shillings the dozep After the porridge, bacon and eggsy calf's liver and bacon, or some- thing of that kind, is served with a baked potato, a little more iced water may be called for; then there is marmalade with toast and sweet cakes, and at a quarter of eight all get aboard the club motor omnibuses and are whizzed away to 4t, uto l4~-1.+ likely carried on their arms
 Before o'clock they are hard at work In the big city. Some early birds were even there by o'clock. They work very
 hard, no dawdling of any kind, and by or 2 o'clock they have finished for the day and are off back to the golf club as fast as they can go Frequently they are back in time to lunch there Soup,
 some meat done in American fashion, an American salad, blueberry pc, iced water, and a glass of cold tea with lump of ice in it and piece of lemon, finishing up with a large supply of ice cream, and then a big cigar, are what the American golfer goes out to play upon The cad- die that he takes out to carry his clubs costs him tenpence an hour-always paid by the hour during which he is in the golfers service, and not by the round. By this time the player is in thinner and lighter clothes than ever, and he has been cooled down by more shower baths.
 His round is played pretty much as 1t might be done in England, except for the fact that, despite the heat and be- cause of his remarkable vitality, he races after the ball when he has hit 1t much more quickly than we do. He does not saunter and he does not talk: he is dead keen on his game. But he takes little more time on the consideration of his stroke when once he has reached his ball than we do He is most deeply painstak- ing, and whatever the state of the game may be he never plays any shot care lessly Towards the end of the match he may develop an idea for playing the enemy for f10 a hole for the remainder of the round, and when it is all over everybody is quite satisfied with every thing.
 cigar and then a long American dinner, with vegetables very fancily done, corn cobs. sweet salads, plenty of iced water, ice creams, "horses' necks"-ginger ale with lemon and ice-and so forth. Long arguments on the verandah upon the re- spective merits of British and American golf, and at 10 o'clock this busy golfer of the United States gets himself off to bed. He never sits up late He sleeps, of course, with his windows wide open, with a wire netting arrangement to keep out the flies and mosquitoes, and as he drops off to his slumber he feels that golf Is the best of games, that America is the best of countries, and that this is the best of all possible worlds.