Evening star., 1914-03-06
MUCH LUCK IN GOLF.
Golfers Believe It, Despite
Statements of Others.
STRANGE THINGS HAPPEN
What Causes Careful Shots to Go
Wrong, While Haphazard Play
Sometimes Holes in One?
BY HOWARD E. LEE.

There is a certain professor Of Yale
University who spends the time OF one or
two lectures each year telling his stu
dents that there is no such a thing as
luck
When this is first told them they In
variably gasp quite perceptibly and then
proceed to take all he gives them with
grain of salt.
Boats" said he collide in midocean.
not by luck, but by a plan which has
been worked out before and which Is al
most inevitable to escape.
He is certain that everything which
happens is somebody's fault or achieve
inent, and that therefore the thing we
ordinarily call luck is no more.
But 1 am a golfer and therefore l am
quite prone to doubt his statement. Sci
entists may doubt that there Is luck, but
l. and you also If you are a golfer, am
sure have seen many queer things hap
pen in this wonderful game to disbelieve
that luck or else something at least quite
similar to luck enters into the game Al
any rate, a good many things occur that
are quite fortunate" and even my friend
the professor will surely agree with me in
this.
For example, have you ever gone out to
play your favorite game and gone along
hole after hole with things breaking just
Nv pencil just broke for the third time
whereypon my neighboring toiler said
Tough luck" Does he believe in luck?
Have YOU noticed that puts will drop
in whether they are topped or hooked or
sliced? Have you ever seen puts go to
the side Of the hole an inch or two and
suddenly turn into the hole for that below
par score? OF course you have. and
you've seen 1t happen time and time
rx-i$I Y,-i1
Then YOU catch yourself and say, Here,
I'd better be more careful, even II am
lucky" whereupon you are particular to
keep your eye on the next putt. and you
hit the ball perfectly. see the ball go up to
the hole. lean over to pick it out. when
presto, 1t rolls by a few inches and then
laughs with glee at you!
What Causes Apparent LuckP
What causes it? Can the scientist
saw it was your fault in either event
and II 1t was how can you do other
wise? One thing is certain. and ex-
pect you all to agree with me that
whether or not luck is a correct word.
the little golf ball is queerly acting
thing at times.
have never seen a person make a
hole in one, nor have I ever done IL
myself. but many one Is made eacn
wear. and I'll venture to state that
oftentimes the shots which produce
them are no better than many a shot
which finally enables the player to hole
out in three. Are you still with me In
this? If not hear me a little longer:
There is a member of the Williams golf
team. John Gillette. with whom have
played many a time ana Invariably.
for some reason or other, possibly
"luck." have beaten him. And yet
last summer up in Maine he made two
ones in a single nine-hole roundl And
vet have never made a one. Nor do
/ see any great prospects of making
such a score.
Here is another interesting bit along
the same line. Mr.. Arthur Everett, a
London golfer. who is fifty-seven years
old and who took up the game at the
advanced age Of forty-six, is said to
have made twelve holes in one stroke
| each-and ten of these have been done
, in the last two years! His handicap is
twelve at his homo club and yet Mr..
| Harold Hilton. one Of tho best players
Of the age. has only made ono hole In
! one and that was nearly thirty years