New-York tribune., 1912-01-21
Plan To Be Considered BY Nsv
Jersey Association.
WOULD AVOID CONGESTION
Atlantic City Anxious to Hold n.
Championship Tournament
This Year. f

The advisability Of changing the p,a,
ment will be considered at the coruir.
meeting of the New Jersey state Golf A..
its president. the meeting will te held :.
No. Il Broadway next Tuesday afternoon
The reason for the proposed chang. !,
conditions is because Of the unwieldy 0sd.
that congested the courses on the FIRST d,,
of the last two tournaments.
At Englewood a year ago there wers M
starters In the qualifying round. with N.
result that the committee found It tnpa,.
sble to start the first match round tha,
same afternoon, except in the championsh,n
set. That meant that in all other division.
the final rounds on the last day had 70 n
limited to eighteen holes.
Word has also been received that m.
Country Club OF Atlantic City is anxiow
to handle the tournament this season. rss,
far IL has always been the judgment a,
the New Jersey officials that it would b.
better 70 keep the tournament nearer Nev
York II is a matter of record, however
that when golfers make up their mird,
10 take a few days off for a competition
they seem Just as willing to travel cus
hundred and fifty miles as. fifty. There are
at present twenty-three clubs belonging Ia
the New Jersey State Golf Association
The latest challenge In the professonal
golf world TO cause considerable talk /,
that Of the two Britishers, George Duncan
and Tom Ball The challenge Of these
brilliant exponents OF the younger school 4,
made world wide and is for a tour.bsll
match. Relative 70 this announeement
The London Field" makes the following
comment:
Their records show that they have sci.
dom played in public without springins
surprise of one sort or another on, the
spectators. and in a match OF the sort
specified the capacity tc spring surprises
is almost as valuable as steadness. Ths
rules of golf state that the game is PLAYED
by two parties, each playing his own ban
Therefore. those who maintain that muti.
ball affairs are not golf in the strictest
sense of the word are correct. If they 20
further, and say that such games are never
worth playing. they are wrong. For golf.
ers of the highest skill the four-ball matca
is. It may be surmised. dull.
Before the ball Is struck from any te.
the probability Is that the hole sbou. to
! be played will be halved, for 1t is unlikely
| that both the partners composing the sid.
will break down in driving or approaching
The sole effect produced by the worst OF
errors in the longer shots is that at the
holing one side has two chances Of get.
ting down a put. the other only one Golf
being, as has been shrewdIy remarked, a
game Of risks. II follows that its chsractsr
is entirely altered when serious risk does
not occur until the balls have been played
on 10 the putting green. The probability
Is that the greater the sum total of ths
ugures attached In the clubs handicap list
TO the names of the parties engaged in a
four-bsll match. the more enjoyable does
II become and the greater the importancs
of the result We do not suggest that ex-
periments should be widely made TO
demonstrate the truth or faIsity of this
surmise. The consequent blocking Of greens
is prospect not to be faced with eq.a-
nimity. One thing is undoubtedly true, u
Is that young player seriously jeopardizss
his chance Of becoming a champion II he
continues TO play four-ball matches reg.
ularly after he has reached certain stage
Of proficiency. At that period he ought TO
be training himself TO face responsibility
without the support of a partner and his
ball.
The fact that the challenge issued by
Duncan and Ball has not been taken up
shows in which direction the truth lies.
II may be, as some hold, altogether I'M
! moral to stake money on the issue OF any
game But II Is certainly true that wager
has wonderful faculty for revealing facts
and exposing fallacies. IL is, in sense.
an easily accessible court OF appeal ine
present position shows that Braid and
Vardon, 10 name the strongest opponents
OF the challengers, realize that they have
much 10 lose by defeat and little to gain
by victory. II the challenge had been 10
a toursome. II is most unlikely that It
would have remained unaccepted. The
professionals who have won champion
ships have never displayed any unwilling
ness 10 face a fair and square issue, ana
we do them no more than justice when We
say that the prospect Of good game Oh
golf is wellnigh as attractive 10 tnen
as the chance Of pocketing substantial
stake