Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1913-07-20
STANDARD GOLF
BALL NEEDED
SAYS TICHENOR
Local Expert Believes That 1t Is
Time We Had National
"PiIT" for Game.
By Tick Tichenor.

Is long way DtlWtHA t-tt ftN
leather covered ball with it'
stufing OF feathers TO the lively
rubber-cored golf ball Of the present
day and time Yet such has beer
the evolution Of the golf ball from a
round pebble, which the shepherd
tending his flock. knocked into a
rabbit hole with his crook, to the
leather-covered ball with its feather
Ftuning. The feather ball was the
torerunner Of the old solid gutta
percha ball. And the old guttapercha
ball. IN turn, had to give way to the
more lively successor, the rubber
cored ball.
II was the invention OF the rubber
cored ball which. in my opinion, did
more to increase the popularity Of the
game IN this country than anything
else. Here was a ball which, when
even half missed from a tee or iron
shot. would give the average player
almost AS much distance as he could
get when his shot with the old gutta
ball was well hit II was much
easier ball 10 get out OF a cuppy lie
with either a wooden or an iron club
II was g ball which gave the average
PLAYER the chance to feel the thrill
his drive travelling down the course
toward the two-twenty mark--a thrill
formerly only enjoyed by the hardest
hitters.
For, say what you win and argue
as you may, the drive is the most
enjoyable shot in golf--if you are
driving well IT, on the other hand,
a player is hooking one tee shot and
then slicing the next, or Is hitting on
in the heel and the next on the toe
Of his club, there is nothing more
disgusting to him or more trying on
his vocabulary Of profanity.
1T was only when near OF on the
green that the old gutta ball had
the advantage. Being far less lively.
Il could be pitched up to the hole
with more confidence. And once on
the green. it was a far and away the
better putting ball. as IL did not have
the tendency of our present ball TO
jump out Of the cup. II some one
could manufacture a ball which would
combine the qualities OF the ball Of
to-day through the green with those
OF the old gutta on the green, he
couldn't All the orders for them.
As it is, each year we see a new
ball brought out which has greater
distance to It than any OF the balls
in use the previous year Now, a
man. is a short driver who is not
around the 2OO-yard mark on all OF
his tee shots, while the distance OBJ
tanned by some OF the really hard
hitters at times is almost Beyond
belief II Is said that in the open
championship at Chicago last year
that Tom Anderson was on the green
on 5o0-yard hole with a drive and
a mashie.
sometimes wonder how much live
lier the ball will get. II they get
much livelier the courses which
had to be reconstructed after
the coming OF the rubber cored ball
will again have to be rebuilt, and
those built within the last few years
will also have to be changed to make
the holes conform to the shots pulled
off with the extra-lively ball. OF
course. such a condition can not 20
on forever There must be a halt
somewhere.
A year or two ago we heard and
read a great deal about the propo-
sition of having a standard ball. but
within the past few months there
has been no agitation on this sub
1ect. But, sooner or later. I am GER
tain that Il win again be revived and
that some time in the future the rule,
OF the golf committee will formulat,
rule specifying the requirements
of a standard ball. OF course. suct
a measure will meet with the strong.
est kind Of opposition from the man,
ufacturers and even many OF thu
players themselves But in the end
believe IL viii be for the best interes
OF the game
IF the rules OF the golf committe,
should say that only STANDARD
balls could be used in tournament
and that no ball should be consid
cred standard which did not float II
water. then I think they would hav
taken a long step forward In putin,
the numerous golf clubs. which ar
being built each year, in a position
to lay out their courses so that tn
value OF a hole could be maintainer
instead OF being nullifed, or reall,
fine hole made an Indifferent one b.
the introduction OF a new make q
ball.
The requirement that a bail shouI
feat n order to he a standard bal
would, OF course, do away with al
of the small. heavy balls now .
generally used and which have give
the increase in the distance secure
in all Of the shots. These balls. beinl
sistance OF the air than the ordinar
size ball and, being heavier. have
much longer run 10 them after strilI
ing the ground
IN baseball, we have a standard @
official ball IN which the weight
size and material are defined an
in other games, even II the definition
s 10 the ball is not so specific. Their
is some mention OF its particula
b character. In the rules Of golf Their
is no mention OF the size weight O
material Of which the golf ball mus
be made
Realizing that the yearly increas
in the distance gained by the intro
duction OF new makes Of balls mus
be overcome in some manner il tn
value Of a hole is TO be preserved II
s. Colt, who IS probably the mos
famous golf course architec. in tn
world advocates the DONG away. fl
great many instances. with tn
present style Of straight-awav hole
and, instead having holes with a de
Ci6ed angle TO them. BY this meth
Cd he hopes 10 force the placing d
the tee shot in this angle and thu
limit the amount of distance secure,
by the tee SHOT and in this way main
tain the value Of a hole as 20 tn
second shot He also advocates tn
placing OF traps much closer to tn
green than has heretofore been Gus