The New York herald., 1920-01-11
GOLF SHOULD SET
NEW COMPETITIVE
RECORD IN 1920
International Play viii Make Coming
Year Biggest in History of Game
in United States.
By KERR N. PETRIE.


OF golf competition was set with the Season
OIL 1913. 1t was great year for the royal
ana ancient sport, but by all indications
1t Is to be only drop IN the bucket in
comparison with the year plans for which
are now being made with almost every
tick of the clock.
For one thing there was no internationa
competition to speak of last year. During
the coming summer there will be matches
ana championships galore in which the
stars of the old and the new worlds will
cross clubs, for it is on the cards that
Americans will visit England in quest Of
new fields to conquer, while Britons are
expected to attempt another invasion of
these shores in the hope and expectation
that they will do little better than in
1918. when two of their foremost eXponents
or the driving and approaching art were
detled and defeated by a youthful anna
teur In the person of Francis Ouimet.
In the coming contest or series of con-
rests the American lnksmen will have
certain advantage. They will go abroad
Knowing that they have everything to
gam and nothing to lose, while with the
British invaders it will be just the other
way around. The first and possibly the
most important event abroad on which
the eyes of American golfers will be TO-
cused is the British open championship
In which several of the leading experts of
the United States links are to compete
The recent dual meet between Cam
bridge University and the Amateur Ath-
letic Association of England gave every
evidence that the Light Blues alone will be
able to furnish a crack four mile relay
team this coming spring. This fact would
mean that the American colleges whose
trainers propose to send teams to the
Penrsyyania relay meet in May will have
their hands full to maintain American su-
premacy.
In the mile a beginner named w r. Sea-
grove won in 5:35 3-5, rather smooth NOV
ing on a winters day, and it was signifi-
cant that three other Cantabs in G.. l..
Birdwood. w. Madame and j. p. Yenk
were in front. In this approaching visit
Cambridge and oxford will combine and
as there few splendid milers wearing
the Dark Blue colors at present it is plain
that the Englishmen will be much strong
er than the experts here had figured.
The 100 yards at this same meet revealed
a discovery" in the sprints in the person
of II. NJ. Abrahams, of Cambridge who
beat the national champion, w. A. HILL by
six inches in 10 is seconds. AS the track
was said to be deep in mud and with
slight breeze blowing against the runners
the performance means that England will
cut some figure in the Olympic sprints
next August. The 200 yards was won by
c. M Butler of Cambridge, in 20 % Soc
onds, who beat Hill by two yards
The best performance of this meet,
which was won by Cambridge with seven
events TO fours. was in the running high
Jump, which was won by p II. Baker, of
Liverpool. easily with a leap of feet 2
in ches. AS the national English cham
pion never once displaced the bar it was
suggested that It be raised to feet
inches The ground was very soggy from
the action of the other jumper and Baker
lust missed clearing 1t was said that the
Liverpool man has crossed s feet inches
fn private.
So far no golfer from this side OF the
Atlantic has been able to humble the
Britons on their own native heath, and.
although Harry Vardon and Ted Ray met
a Tartar in Ouimet in 1913, Nardon won
the American open championship in 1900.
should the representatives OF the United
states fail abroad they therefore will be
on an equal footing with those from this
country who have tried unsuccessfully to
wrest the laurel wreath Of British golf
from the brow of the stars of Old Eng
land while I'm the event of Vardon Ray,
James Braid, j. III. Taylor. George Dun
can, Abe Mitchell or other of the foreign
stalwarts winning the American open
crown the home talent will have little or
nothing to be ashamed OF, seeing that in
tbis country British linksmen have always
7yeen considered pre-eminent. and that not
wfthstandfng the valiant stand made by
Ouimet at Brookline in 1918 the American
open championship cup went abroad in the
keeping of Harry Vardon as far back as
1900
That the professional golfers Of the old
and the new worlds are about to stage the
biggest series of international matches.
tournaments and championships ever be-
comes more apparent every day. Walter
Hagen. Tom Mcnamara and NJ j. Brady
ufn nrfn in n IYifigh
championship this year. and IL will be sur
urisng. indeed. il Jim Barnes. OF ST.
To,ris holder of the Western Southern
and Professional Association champion
shin titles. does not follow or accompany
these three abroad. The fact of tho mat
FER is Long jim" scarcely can afford TO
stay behind IL Hagen goes to England, for
even now tinksnen are still debating
whether the st. Louis man did not out
shine the Detroit homebred and this
despite the fact that Hagen holds the ma
tonal open championship.
That one great triumph by Hagen.
scored at Brae Burn Country Club. West
Newton Mass. early in June kept Barnes
hopping all season long as he never hoped
before Matters became even worse for
the ST. Louis instructor when Hagen came
down TO North shore Country club on
Long Island and carried off the metropol-
itan omen title About that stage Walter
the others OF his profession Barnes was
forgotten and his rival termed the golfer
OF the year It says great deal for
Barnes golf and his iron nerve that be-
fore the season had run It's full course
he had convinced the whole of golfdom
that there was more than one profess
sional in the United States
AS yet Barnes has. not cQpmitted him
self as to the English trio. but he is talk
ing about IT, proving that il is one Of
the things uppermost in his mind. And
Jim knows as well as any one else that IL
would be a fine thing for him after all
his hard work 20 catch mp with Hagen
last year to allow his rival to go across
10 England and steal a march on him
when he might be there himself with MS
good chance as any of winning the
British open championship and moreover.
with the weight OF his personality thrown
in as an added mental hazard for his
ono great rival to overcome.
There has been "a marked uneasiness in |
tho British camp ever since the dismal
failure OF Vardon Braid and Tayler in !
the News Of tho World tournament and
~ rs conceded on every hand that Amer- I
crr profcs sionals never had a better \