The sun., 1916-08-27
COMET" LIKELY
TO REGAIN HIS.
TENNIS H0N0RS.
Mclaughlin Even FavOrite
With Other Luminaries
in National Singles.
TITLE QUESTION MORE
OPEN THAN IN PAST
NJ DANIEL.

VII t1e eve Oh tne tnlTty-SiNtu AIueT
jcan championship lawn ennis tourna-
Dent, to be opened on tho turf urts Of
the West Side Tennis Club at Forest
Hills tomorrow morning. We md our
selves In q rather anomalous position.
4hsre 10 no favorite.
In the light OF recent happenings Va
eAnnot concede any candidate for the
erown . tangible advantage over the
other leading a%spirants. The defeat o.
william NJ. Johnston. national cham |
pien. by 1chiya Kumagae Of Japan In
~ Newport final. the victories Of Claf
eocs J. Grimm over Richard Norris WILL
Sms I'd, title winner In 1914. the rapid
S9ss Of Joseph J. Armstrong and Watson
=. washburn and the uncertainty re-
easding the real condition OF Maurice
n Mclaughlin are only q few Of the
ACTORS that make tho championship
lnsstion . decidedly open one.
Prophecy Very Hasardols.
n one does take It upon himself to
tame the probable winner of the title he
must ret up a. q prophet or confess HIM
Nlf governed largely by sentiment. Per-
sonally. We are inclined to believe that
Mclaughlin will come back that he will
bat williams in the inal round after
having disposed Of Johnston in the semi
Gnals. This 10 not to be regarded as an
attempt at prophecy. 1t 10 nothing moro
than q bunch. born Of admiration for the
AA-A - A~r-l. ~ta,~I hv NhA CNr,at and
q view Of Mclaughlin in action at Forest
Aills last week.
Prophecy in tennis becomes more
hazardous every year. and doings of great
mao this season have oft reminded US
that trying to name the winner this time
wa even more dangerous than ever.
How many were there who supported
Johnston before the 1915 tournament?
Who conceded Kumagae more than half
q chance Of beating Johnston at Newport
or thought that Washburn would play so
brilliantly against Armstrong at South
ampton? Evidently there Is no telling
In tennis.
Doubles Match To-moPr0w.
Great as is ordinarily the incentive to
strive for the American title II Is doubly
20 this year. for the champion here will
be the only official leader in the tenni'
world. The great war has forced the
suspension Of championship competition
IN England, on the Continent and in Aus
trHlasia. Davis cup matches are In
allegiance. The American tournament be-
comes the world classic and the general
calibre Of the field OF 1913 makes 1t Ger
lain that the winner will be well worthy
Of the place and the honor.
Tho feature tomorrow will De tn"
challenge round for the national doubles
championship. with Johnston and Grit
IN defending the laurels they wreste
last year from Mclaughlin and Thoma
Bundy against Mclaughlin and Ward
Dawson. The match will be started at
$50 y. NJ. The Comet and his young
Partner. after winning the Pacific coast
ttis, emerged victorious from the recent
national Examinations at Onwents'a. de-
A>ating George NJ. Church and Willis l..
Davis In tho final.
In addition to the championship sim
naoo and the challenge round OF the
doubles the national tournament will In
dude championship singles for boys and
1uniors and an invitation mixed doubles
oumpetition. The boys and juniors
Gvents will bring together lads WHO have
xon various sectional tournaments Or
.anized this year as part OF the pro-
raganda Of tho National Association to
foster the sport among the younger ele-
ment. This movement has already
shown splendid results and Is bound e
prvye Of greater worth in years 10 come.
Reasons for the Revolt.
Tho tourney will be the second held
At Forest Hills. which received the ten
mis- hosts last year. Every ono OF the
xhirty-four previous national Journeys
had been staged at Newport and It took
uuite a struggle to get the classic away
from the summer capital OF society. Al
Ter two years OF non-champIonship ten
Ma. Newport Is again laundering aftei
thu big event, and indications point 10
its having already organized a move
ment TO bring the championships back to
the Casino courts next summer.
The revolt against Newport was thu
development Of years OF dissatisfaction
among the players with conditions a
Newport. Despite its having lost the ma
tionals, the Newport gallery has yet Il
learn its lesson. In the recent tourney
n. the Casino, while some OF the hes