Evening star., 1915-09-12
SUGGEST SEVERAL NEW PLANS
FOR HOLDING NATIONAL GOLF
Contestants at Detroit Feel That Tourna-
ment Took Up Too Much Time-May
Try Medal Play Scheme.

L y x'xSudx j
John G. Anderson. runner up to Rob
ert 4. Gardner in the 1915 national golf
championship tourney. writes as fol-
lows OF that big event in the New York
Sun:
Every national golf championship az
fords opportunities for reflection. ana
the amateur championship when came
to close recently was far from being
an exception to the rule. one very
much treated subject was the iens,h
of the championship event. l spoke
with at least fifty golfers concerning
this point and almost without exception
they felt that there was waste OF
time somewhere. that no championship
should last more than one week.
Besides the qualifying round, which
began Saturday. two other events tne
east vs. west team match and the
American Golfer trophy. took up Two
more days, and if we add to this day
or two absolutely necessary, SO II
seemed, for practice and the incidental
travelling. we find that the better part
of two weeks is used up. Many VINO
do not qualify return home. 1t is true.
but if they are not in business TOT
themselves the trip breaks up the week
Many Favor Medal Play.
The question then arises as to how
the tournament can be shortened. Two
theories were offered. The play might
be at eighteen holes medal play on
Wednesday, 81 to qualify, and then
medal play at seventy-two holes. This
would be very much after the plan of
the national open championship Not long
ago Jerome ID. Travers came out in
signed statement advocating this plan.
and when I mentioned it to many OF
the golfers l was quite surprised to find
that they were in favor of giving such
a scheme a one years trial.
1t might not be bad idea to have
the golfers who finished first and sec
ond play off for the championships on
the Saturday at thirty-six holes match
play.
1t is unlikely that any medal winner
would have a pronounced lead over the
second position golfer, and this combi-
nation. while appearing freakish at first
thought. has some real merit in select
ing the best all-round player.
Then there is the other theory that
the qualifying round could be held
Tuesday at eighteen holes, with sixty
four to qualify, and have eighteen-hole
matches rule until the finals. In the
last ten years there has been only
very small percentage of change in the
afternoon from the results of the morn
ing round, this year being one of ok
ceptional upsets in the case of Quimet
and Travers, who were both up in the
morning and lost in the after-luncheon
play. If the qualifying were held the
Tuesday the field would be reduced SO
that the semi finals could be played
at thirty-six holes as we'll as the finals,
but it would be much better perhaps
to have all contests except the finals
at the same number of holes. This
would permit of a day and a half for
qualifying purposes il necessary.
No Traditions as Yet.
Golf is still in an experimental stage,
and no lasting harm can be done by
devising and trying some system of
play which will make the players more
inclined to enter and the event less
drawn out. There are no traditions
built up as yet.
While on the matter of qualification
might speak of one rule which I un-
derstand the L. s. c. A. executive COM
mittee is going to frame. 1t concerns
the playing out of a ball in medal play
with no lifting and replacing, as is done
SO frequently nowadays. One reason
given for the change is that there will
be no chance for any player taking ad'
vantage of the rule by scraping mud
Off the ball or. when replacing it, put
ting it is a more advantageous position.
These are very petty reasons, accord
ing to my thinking, for golfers in cham
pionships who do these things cannot
number one in hundred. But it is
more in accord with the spirit of the
game that the bali shall be played from
where it, lies. All the time needed is
afforded to the golfer nearer the hole
and it may be that such rule would
make him more careful and thus i'm
prove his score.
stymie Justly Criticised.
The stymie came in for just criticism.
In the East against West match Max
Marston was shut off from the chance
TO tie up the match on the home green
by being stymied. Francis Ouimet had
three stymies laid him in his contest
with Standish: Whitney and myself
had no less than five between us. An
account of the number of stymies in
the whole tournament would make
very interesting reading. In the five
matches | played there were fourteen
Etymies and less than half were neso-
tiated. In the matches between all the
players there must have been fifty and
perhaps hundred or more stymes
When speaking about these things in
the clubhouse it was hard to find any
golfers who were in the tournament
proper who believed that stymies
other than those one set himself
should count In my match against
Whitney on the seventh hole l lay a
few inches away on my second. Whit
ney was ten feet off on the other side
OF the hole. He putted much too
strongly, ran five feet over and laid
himself dead stymie. The people in
the gallery and the officials following
round spoke of the incident as one
where there was some real penalty on
the green for bad shot.
We have traps to catch the sliced o.
pulled mashie shots UP to the green.
and while on the green the opponents
ball may be looked upon in the same
way. 1t is just another hazard which
must be avoided by taking extreme
care. But unless we set ourselves a
stymie they never should count.
q. S. G. A. Will Not Act.
There is no possibility. SO l am told
on good authority, of the L. S. G. A.
officials doing anything on the stymie
matter They prefer to wait until ac-
tion is taken abroad on this condition.
There were many expressions of
pleasure among those who followed in
the gallery of the Ouimet-Evans match
in the East VS.. West team contest
when it was seen that no stymies were
heinp played But as have re-