Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-10-10
WHY "CTHCK" EVANS, GOLF
SEEMS TO BE FALLING OFF
Appears to Have Lost Freedom of Swing That
Comes From True Confidence and Is
Endeavoring to Place Every Shot

pion's iron shot is that of most of the
western players, the tendency to neg
lect turf taking, or If 1t is to be taken,
It Is gathered at the wrong time The
same was true Of the southern players.
or at least those whom saw or played
with. They were weakest in the short
run-up clip shot. because in their home
country they had been accustomed to
pick the ball up clean.
One Of the Choicest Shots.
One of the choicest shots in the game,
according to my way of thinking. is
the little chip when just of the green.
for that wins more holes than any
other one stroke. It saves a putt when
done right: it. Is a shot which could be
cultivated by every golfer and ought
to be. The turf must be taken just
after the ball is hit and drag must be
! put on the ball, which differs from
cut in that the ball does not spin along
as II sliced. The toe of the club is al
ways turned well in. But in iron shots,
whether long or short, there is a
marked difference between the eastern
and the western players, with the odds
| Of excellence in favor Of the former.
The driving is a different matter, as
exception Of Jesse Guilford and Francis
Onimet, the east has no drivers OF
prominence. The west has several, with
Gardner the most prominent. But from
what have seen and heard, there are
| more chances for the westerners to go
into the smuggling game. We are told
| that golfers become what the course
they play on makes them-either good
or bad-and the figure can be carried
out In the matter Of driving. On the
eastern courses there is penalty for
bad pulls or slices and therefore the
thought In the mind of the golfer Is to
keep straight. He does not let himself
out. as he would do II the course were
always as wide as the one at Detroit
or other western links. Give a man
| hole 400 yards long and perfectly
trapped and he will endeavor to drive
| about 210 yards and trust to get home
the same man course with fairway
seventy-hve or a hundred yards wide
and he will whang away and probably
| get a 250-yard shot, about fifty yards
| will have to play another bangup
| brassy before he reaches the green.
Constant play of this sort Is not un-
common In the west and the habit OF
| reaching out, SO to speak. makes for
long ball, while. on the other hand. the
constant fear engendered by scientific
bunkering makes the other golfer hold
In. had a round with Eben M. Byars
in the four-ball match between the east
and the west. and remarked on tine
| wonderful straightness of his drives.
| Yes" he said, "I have been playing at
tie National Golf links for two wceks!"
That was the answer.
Has New Position.
Reverting to the question of Card
ner and Evans. it may interest those
who saw Chick last year to know that
he has got away from that horrible
crouching position which made him
look as IL he were trying to play squat
tag at Ekwanok, and has adopted
sounder style, with the ball fairly well
in line with his head and eye. He
crouches a bit too much as it is. Last
| year it was said that the angle at
which his eye met the ball before
putting was quite pronounced; a great
| Improvement has been made this year.
Still, even now, he is at fault In this
! over the ball, perhaps couple OF
| inches, which again makes slanting
glance necessary.
Gardner has a good putting stance,
well over the ball, but seems bit
wary of hitting firmly a four-foot putt.
However. he is in the majority class
/ In that respect. II any player wants
! to become a hero in the eyes of his
| boldly and hit four or I'VE foot putt
| for the back Of the hole. We do that
only in our dreams.
| It might be pertinent here to say a
| few words about some Of the long
| shots which were made in the recent
championship. Although Guilford was
beaten in the first round. he lost to a
] grand player. Max Marston. and in the
! course of the round made few drives
which will not be forgotten soon. The
i second hole measures AT yards. and
| the green Is on a rise. Marston got
what he called a long drive, and Gull
ford came along. with a ball which
landed where Marston's drive had
stopped rolling, and for his second shot
he went over the hole with a mashie
niblick. Then at the tenth hole, where
the bunker is $50 yards from the tee.
Guilford drove into the trap in the
] afternoon to play safe he took his
heavy iron. Again he went into the
trap, shattering smite. He was home
on the Seward hole in 2; the only
trick. We must still look to him as
the all-powerful wielder of the driver.
Never Sure Of Club.
| I have been asked on several occa-
stions why 1t was that the Boston
player did not go through farther in
the tourney, since he had such an adj
| vantage to start with in the matter
of his drive and was very proficient
| In the playing Of his other shots. The
| reason is simply this: Guilford was
unable to gauge the distance because
Of the fiat ground and never was sure
of the club to use. When you get in
| that state. then 1t Is time to shut your
| eyes when you make a shot or ask
advice from your caddy. This Jesse
did not do, and the outcome was just
| what would be predicted in such a
| case. The play the first three days had
the golfers teeing on from different
tees. back. middle and front, and do
not believe Guilford had had enough
experience in determining what club
| to use. nor do feel that he yet real
| ICES his own power. But that will come
| In time.
| Just word about Francis ouimet.
| He would have liked to win, OF
course, but now that 1t is over he ,is
| about the happiest man in the land.
| For two years he has been q national
| champion, and the calls for his serv-
Ices from friends for friendly matches
ana from new clubs being opened and
All the other addlation which goes
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