Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1920-08-10
DAVIS CUP PLAYERS
TO USE SPIKES ANY TIME
1920 Team Wore ''Rubbers"
Out of Difference to Famous
Wimbledon Center Court
BY SPICK HALL

THERE has been lot of talk about
the shoes that the American Davis
Cup team used in their matches at
the Queens Club. London. the world :
championships at Wimbledon and tho
cup ties in which France and Great
Britain lost all their matches to Bill
Tilden and Billy Johnston in both
singles and doubles.
The Americans wore rubber shoes in
every match except one. but they didn't
have to do il.
The only time that one Of our players
donned spikes was on the day that Til
den played KingsCotc. 1t had rained
hard before the match and the court
was very slippery. While they were
playing rain again began to fall, 50
Tildcn took out time and started to put
on his spikes. After he had them on
he saw KingScOte was not doing like
wise, 50 he took them off. However
when KingScOtc saw what Bill was do
ing he put on his spikes. Eventually
both used them and finished the match.
Have Heavy Soles
Most of the British players in their
matches against tho Americans used
very heavy, suction sOpd shoes. about
the same weight aS basketball shoes
The Americans 'rubbers' were much
lighter.
In general the Davis cup team Nom
bcrs said that they worc not inCOn-
vonicnced by wearing rubber shoes. al
though they admitted that with spikes
their games probably would have been
little faster. 1T was rs fair for
one az the other" Captain sam Hardy
said, land we made no attempt to use
spikes except the time Tidrn used them
against KngScote, then both men had
TO use them in order 10 stand up on
the water logged court
Question Arose in 1913
1t was back in 1913 that the Ques- =
/ tiOn of spiked shoes came up as real
issue, Harold II. IIackHtt, who won
the doubles championship of the United
States with Frederick h. Alexander in
1907, 1908, 1909 and 1910. was cap
tain of the American Davis Cup team
that year Incidentally it was Hack
ptt's team that won the cup from Great
Britain in 1913, the captain playing
doubles with Maurice T.. MCLOughlin
willie Mac and X. y. Williams, I'd
played the singles.
When play began in the challenge
round the Americans were told that
they would not be- allO%"d TO use SplkeC
shoes. IIHckott protested, and he wa'
upheld. Later it was made definite
uing for Davis Cup play that a mar
could use any kind OF shoes he desired
Therefore it was only out of COnsd,
Grafton for the famous center court a.
Wimbledon that TildPn, Johnston, Will
, liams and Garland used rubber shoes in
stead of the spikes to which they wer
, accustomed on grass courts.
Big Crowd Expected
When Bill Tilden appears on the cla
courts at Strawberry Mansion, Fair
mount Park, August %, 2G, the larges
crowd that ever saw lawn tenni
match in Philadelphia is expected.
Recently when Wallace johnson an
} Carl Fischer played on those courts il
an exhibition match over 1000 say
I them. With the worlds champion
! playing against Johnson and "A possibl
: doubles match with Garland and Tide
: paired up, it is likely that many thou
/ sands more will see the cOnqueror q
: Gerald Patterson.
AS Garland. and Tilden will play to