The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1918-01-11
CAMPBELL PICKS
four LEADERS
At GOLFINC

Considering what the country is
passing through any attempt to rate
the leading golfers appears trifle i'll
timed. yet occasionally some one
breaks out with selection A short
time ago Aleck Campbell, the versa
tile Scot who holds down the profess
siona1 job at the Baltimore Country
Club, selected the four leaders, or at
least, as he considers them
Those named by the "Nipper" are
Francis Ouimet, Charles Evans, Jr.,
Jock Hutchinson and Jim Barnes. Be
cause Ouimet is not eligible to play as
an amateur, according to United.
States Golf Association ruling, it may
be as well to discuss the players &C
cording to their ability, irrespective of
class We're the foSr to compete in
an open championship and were every
man on his game it would be reason
ably certain to develop a super brand
of golf.
| When going at top speed they are
apparently capable of almost anything
and the chances are that the one who
headed the list at the end of the sew
enty-two holes would be the chap who
had the most lucky breaks.
Campbell, it might be added, does
not rate the four in order, being con-
tent to bunch the quartet, and in so
doing he keeps out of trouble. He
fancies his selections because they
have more shots at their command
than any of the others.
In picking the leading four, though,
it would seem that such brilliant per-
formers as Walter Hagen and Mike
Brady should be given careful consid-
Grafton. Hagen has been national and
Western open title holder and he also
won the Metropolitan open champion
ship the last time it was held. In the
Western open won by Barnes last Sep
TENDER, Hagen was second and Hut
Gibson third, Brady played fine golf
all last season, and in the spring gain
ed the North and South title at Pine
hurst
Hutchinson struck great pace when
s. he won the patriotic open at White
marsh, while Oiumet got into the
lfmeight again by winning the West
ern amateur event Evans, present
amateur and open champion, who re-
nounced tournament play until after
the war, engaged only in Red Cross
matches, but his golf in most of these
appearances showed him to be the
same old master.
Apparently the golfers in the Metro
politan district aren't the only ones
to suffer from the loss of clubhouses
by fire, as both the Belmont Spring
Country Club and the Dedham Coun-
Z try and Polo Club in the Massachu-
. sets section were burned to the
ground within a few days of each 9th
/. Ter.
. Belmont Spring was the scene of the
!. women's national championship il
1916, where Miss Alexa Stirling wa:
4 the winner. AS is generally the cast
/ with a fire of this kind. a great dea
r more than the mere value of thu
s building was destroyed. There was
: Istcrerom full of crockery, each piect
: bearing the club seal and coat of arms
: all of which was melted down into
a mass three feet thick and fifteen fee
e square.
= At Dedham the plan is to build
" temporary golf house later in the yea
: for the use of members during tn
= 1918 season 1t is possible that mod
n ern building will rise from the ashe
q of the old clubhouse within the mex
n year. Among the prominent member
< at this organization is Joshua Crane
q winner of the national court tenni
: title some twenty years ago.