Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1917-10-23
MRS. G. H. STETSON MAY PROVETOR RE
REAL GOLFING SURPRISE OF YEAp
IN BUMM MEMORIAL CUP TOURNEy
Mrs. Fox, Mrs Barlow, Mrs Vanderbeck and
Miss Caverly Have Long Been Supreme Among
Women Golfers of PHILADELPHIA
By PETER PUTTER

THREE or four years ago, and even fur
i ther back than that with reference to
three Philadelphia golfers, most stories
about womens golf matches in this city
read this way:
"The ------ golf tournament today was
won by AGrs Barlow, Mrs. Fox, Mrs. van
derbeck. Miss Caverly) Fill in name to
suit yourself.
For years the finalists in nearly every
big local tournament were Mrs Caleb FOX
and Mrs. Ronald II. Barlow. Between them
they have won eleven Of the twenty local
championships and they have been run
ners-up in eight tournaments for the title
For stretch of twelve years the title in
every instance has gone to either the one
or the other, with the exception of three
times when It was won by Miss T. Noblet,
Miss Frances Griscom, the first Philadel-
phian to win a national championship, and
Miss Mildred Caverly.
While Mrs. Clarence II. Vanderbeck has
won both the national and eastern title she
has never won the local championship.
The Triumphant Four
But the time seems to be coming when
new faces will be found in the finals of our
big matches For years all the big tourna-
ments other than the local championships
have been won by Mesdames Fox, Barlow
and Nanderbecll and Miss Cavery. one
might as well have put these four women
in the Semifinals and let them fight it out
for the chief honors and cut out the qualify
ing round and the other match play rounds.
This has been due, of course, to the supe-
rior golf Of these four women.
The same has been true of medal play
contests. We could usually depend upon
one Of the four to win the medal for the
low score, and in cases where the event was
medal play affair throughout the same
was true. The Gest Cup is an instance in
point, for 1t is a medal play contest. It has
been won outright by Mrs. Barlow, who has
won the event either four or five times At
any rate, no other woman player has ever
had a leg on it.
This has not been true of the men, A. II.
Smith first won the local title years ago,
and since that time at least dozen differ
ent men have won It, Where we have
three or four women outclassing the rest of
the women, no one could say, except in the
days of Harold b. Mcfarland or Howard
w Perrin, who would win the mems after
the qualifying round was over.
Sensible Change Made
When it was originally announced that
the Belle Steelman Bumm Memorial Cup
was to be medal play event groan went
up from the great ma jority of the women
for it was universally felt that not one of
them had look in against the four women
who have been mentioned. The women
wanted a chance for their white alley
for there was a likelihood that one of them
N''ulu VIII llle7 llldl IOunO even II the
chances were more probable that one of
the four would win It,
All of which brings us to Mrs. G.. H. Stet-
son, of Huntingdon Valley. We have not
heard so much about her, for while she
has for several years been i'm the first flight
she has usually gone down to defeat before
the day of the final round. She is a pupil
oi Dave Cuthbert and Dave has been boost
ing her for some time as coming cham
zion. She has been the finalist at Shawnee
once and possibly twice She has won the
championship at Deland Florida many
times. But beyond that she has done moth
ing to bring her into local prominence.
The ranks of the women golfers are
filed with temperamental golfers They are
playing a wonderful game one week and
giving an entirely different brand of golf the
next. But according to Mrs Fox the best
feature, or one of the best features. of Mrs.
Stctson's game is her splendid golfng tenn
permanent, which, she says, is almost ideal.
In the local golf association last year she
had < handicap of nine strokes. This year
it is FIVE, and this speaks volumes In itself.
Mrs. Stetson Surprises Field
The women, greatly to their surprise yes
terdRy at Whtemarsh Valley when they
turned in their scores, found that Mrs.
Stetson was low by two strokes. and with
the best players in very early there was
not a chance in the world of any one beat
ing her very excellent score of "a, and
sure enough it was not beaten
Any woman who can play the difficult
and long Whtemarsh Valley course in that
number of strokes ought to win most of
her matches, and the women believe that
she will reach the final round If the draw
Is at all favorable. OF course, If she has to
meet such players as Mrs Fox, Mrs. c. Bar
low, Miss Caverly or Miss Chandler she
will have a hard time of it. otherwise