Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1916-08-16
SECTIONAL TENNIS
DOUBLES TEAMS
POORLY BALANCED
Present Plan Of National
Doubles Event Could Be
Improved Upon
DAvIS-CHURCH FAVORITES

For years tho leading tennis players of
the land have been agitating the abolition
| of the present method of determining tho
| challcngers for the national doubles titles.
| Every year, in various districts, sectional
| doubles events are held. and the winners of
| these events meet at Chicago in an elimina-
tion tournament, to determine the chaleng-
| ers of the titleholders. This elimination
| tourney is now going forward at the On
wentsia Country Club, Lake Forest, ILL.,
The agitation for change Is due to the
fact that tho various teams which qualify
for the preliminary doubles at Chicago are
| not truly representative of the country's
| strength In past years this event has
| usually resolved itself into duel between
| the Pacific coast and Eastern champions.
| The winners of the other sectional events.
| Southern, Middle States, Southwestern. Mis-
sissippi Valley and Western, rarely figure,
| and IL Is safe to say that not one of them
| would get beyond the first or second rounds
of the Eastern or Pacific States events.
Davis and Church Strong
In the tournament now in progress
Maurice Mclaughlin and Ward Dawson,
| Pacific States titleholders, and George NJ.
| Church and Willis Il. Davis, winners at
| Longwood. are the real favorites, and the
| only two teams which may be counted upon
| to put up strong battle against William
| NJ. Johnston and Clarence j. Griffin, the
national champions
Church and Davis form one Of the best
| balanced doubles teams in decade. In
many respects II is a stronger team than
| Johnston and Griffin and infinitely better
| than Mclaughlin and Dawson The latter
| has not yet reached the form of a McLough-
| lin, Davis or Church. and Mclaughlin will
be forced to carry tremendous lead, as he
did in the last few years in which he
played with Bundy.
Although holding the doubles champion
ship in conjunction with the singles, which
is the English custom, would run the ma
tional event well into two weeks, this would
be far better plan and would result in
much keener competition than the present
idea. Az present 1t takes three or four
days to run off the preliminary doubles at
Chicago. and this time. added to the i'sek
or ten days already used to decide The
singles event, would not increase the time
for the two events by more than day
or two.
Too AnxiOus-Almost
A rather peculiar condition existed when
Davis and Church met r. Norris Williams.
I'd, and Theodore Roosevelt Pell in the
final OF the Eastern doubles at Longwood.
Neither Williams nor Pell was very anx-
ious to make the trip to Chicago for the
preliminary rounds. while Davis and
Church were not only keen to win, but
ready and willing to give up the time for
the trip.
In fact Davis and Church were so keen
TO win that they almost were beaten in
straight sets through overanxiety. So here
was presented the spectacle of an appar-
emily winning team almost ready to throw
up the sponge, and of team almost on
the verge Of defeat frantic to win. But
fortunately it ended rosily in victory for
Davis and Church.
The veteran" Bill Rowland has certainly
come into his own. Until recently tennis
players and fans5never though that modesty
was part of ROwlands makeup. But in a
roundabout way 1t was learned a short
time ago that Rowland was selected by the
powers that be" in national lawn tennis
affairs to hold down the service lines in
the Williams-Johnston match In the east
and west conflict You've gotahandlt to
him