The Washington times., 1915-08-01
This Type Of Rivalry Has Never
impressed British Champion
as Being Popular Here.
Seventy-two Hole Match for
Side Of One Hundred Is One
Of His important Contests.
By HARRY VARDON.
British Golf Champion .


There Is one very excellent :orm
of contest which seems to me to
have contributed in disappointingly
small measure to the history CT golf
in the United States. 1t is the
professional money match.
I must confess that, during the
past ten or fifteen years In Britain
struggles between professionals for
staked sums have constituted hardly
10 distinguished feature of go)fing
affairs as in olden times; possibly
they have been robbed Of some OF
their traditional glory by the fire.
quent appearance Of the leading
players in tournaments and exhibi-
ton games. When the Morriscs, the
Dunns, Allen Robertson, old Willie
Park, Bob Ferguson, and other
celebrities of bygone age were at
their zenith, practically the only real
tests they received in match play
were in these contests for stakes,
which, consequently, were promoted
fairly often by patrons Of the men
concerned and which not Infrequently
found the players putting down
their own savings for needle
fight.
Still. the love Of the money match 10
by no means dead in my native country.
1t still asserts itself from time to time.
and, a. q rule. It gives rise to thrills
such as not even . championship excites
very often. So far a. have been able
TO Judge. this kind OF rivalry has never
appealed Particularly strongly to Ameri-
can professionals; at least. one cannot
recall many instances OF the Issuing
Of challenges. 1t 10 a pity. because the
money match Is splendid training for
young and ambitious golfer. Eten
with a lot more knowledge than he
possessed before ne went into It.
Personally. l have found the truly
strong wine Of golfing strife In contests
for :hsd and .Ssv the nsvs senss OF
the necessity Of making the effort OF
lifetime In order to be supreme-has
done my gamo no small measure or
good. Frankly. they are not handsomely
mans aioo. but tho engagements that
ono has to sacrifice In order to pre-
pare properly for the contest and the
expenses that are entailed mean that
shoW h for a hard earned triumph, And
there 10 always a loser as we'll as a
winner But although they are generally
called money Matches" am not con-
sidering them from the monetary point
Of view. 1t Is their influence which Is
I shall never cease to regard as the
most important event OF nv career tho
Ssventy-two holes match for fl99 a
PARK, IT,, over the North Berwick and
! Canton courses In 1899. I had beaten
| PARK by a stroke In the open champion
ship Of The prsv;oId' season ease az to rress est
on the last green to tie with mel and
he was soon out with a challenge.
| It took US the best part OF a year
to agree upon terms; we were both
part OF 1t to be played at Musselburgh.
| the home Of his famous family. and /
did not relish that Idea; / had always
been treated In a sporting way by the
in connection with money matches in
which Z local golfer was engaged was
such that one could not take the risk
that seemed to me to be involved. When
old Tom Morris met Willie Park sr..
there in 1855. the spectators interfered
90 frequently with Morris ball that the
referee had to stop the match: and
believe that J. H. Taylor had very
harasslne time OF 1t when he opposed
willie PARK IT, ,rer! a, Mssssl6Irsn anS ot5sr. in
the neishborhood are intensely enthu-
siastic golfers. but they are partisans
to the backbone. and the visiting golfer
who OPPOSES local favorite in a big
~A> - DNr Anr ,to, Nr
Of being worried completely OFF nj,
Weil, we agreed at last to play al
North Berwick-a links which Park
forget the condition of pent up hope and
expectancy in which ! approached that
contest. For days before II began people
seemed to be talking of nothing but
the solf match. and the limit Of EN-
barrassnient was reached when, on the
evening preceding tho start. I went 70,
walk with my brother Tom. Big
Crawford one Of tho best known ol
North Berwick caddies, and a rare char
aeter In his W. suddenly anpearec
shoe at me. / lodged and just miss
ed II: II It had hit my head, as It looked
like doing. ] am not sure that there
would have been any match at all. HI
his money on me and wanted to brnl
me luck. That. at any rate, was con
ISOLATION which subdued rising wrath.
For a long-drawn-out tension. re
member nothing quite like the firs
hour and a quarter of that contest w,
began by halving ten holes In success
sion: each OF us was on tenterhocks al
the while. wondering who would be tn
first to take tho lead.
At the eleventh hole. where the spel
was broken. a curious thing happened
Park had the honor. and when drov
{ my ball pitched plumb on top of hi
. and knocked II forward We did no
see the incient from the tee. but tn
. forecaddies witnessed 1t and reporte
' II directly we arrived on the scene
y had the next shot and missed It, The
he replaced his ball In the spot tina
II had originally occupied, and plave
' the like Park won the hole, but afte
. terrific struggle. I was up at the en-
. OF thirty-six holes.