Evening star., 1920-02-05
BIG FACTOR
IN TENNIS POPULARITY
Eliminating Love" and Deuce
in Scoring Strikes Many Rack
eters Unfayorably.
BY WALTER CAMP.

Just q few words about the changes
in tennis rules. They do not seem
to have attracted as much real seri-
The committee was a strong one and
went seriously to work TO improve
the code. That some of their sug-
gestions would be improvements Is
beyond question. There are others.
particularly the one relating to scor-
in rather because they wished to do
thorough, hard-headed. practical
job. When one takes sentiment out
Of any game there Is something
missing and in tennis this is par
ticularly the case. and that is why
love" and deuce" struck almost
every one unfavorably.
There is one other point to be
considered. and that is one which
comes in with golf and boxing rules
as well. We shall have a greater
countries where golf. tennis and box
ing bulk large il we harmonic the
codes.
We have plenty of experience also.
so that we should know that we
cannot ourselves dictate, or. rather.
we can dictate if we like, but others
will not follow that dictation.
British Netnea Outclassea.
The defeat of England's long dis
tance tennis cruisers was practically
assured before they even left the
shores of the British Isles. There
were no English tennis players who
could match up against the Aus
traiians- They picked the best they
had. and the match won was about as
much satisfaction as they could ex-
pect to get out OF 1T. The Australiana
won four out of FIVE matches. twelve
out of the eighteen sets and 102 out
OF the 119 games.
However, it was good sports
manlike thing to do to make the
trip. ard it has really stimulated ten
mis-. for there is now a belief that
several other nations will put teams
in in the future.
Ges. Wood and Feot Ball.
Gen. Leonard Wood was always an
ardent foot ball enthusiast, and play
ed the game we'll past the age when
many a man gives it up. He played a
capital game on the Olympic Club
team in San Francisco back in the
nineties, and was a pioneer in intro
ducing it wherever he went. An in
teresting incident occurred while he
in the south, in which the captain of
the Auburn team objected strenuous
ly to decision. and as he was leav-
ing the field. as Gen. Wood puts it,
'threatened to give me sound lick
ing the next time he saw me-"
Later this Auburn captain entered
the Army and became an off1cer in
the 18th Infantry. and one day as
Gen. Wood was inspecting our most
southern command in the Philippines
on the Island of Rongao, he saw this
youngster standing in front Of his
company. which constituted the gar
rison. and as the general strolled
along the line each recognized the
other To quote the general. "He saw
good deal Of me afterward. but the
promised licking did not take place"
intercollegiate Bsxing.
This column commented upon the
difficulties attached to the adoption
of boxing as an intercollegiate sport
Evidently the same questions are
arising now that the subject is
squarely faced at the universities
Manager Berry, has adopted it, but
Harvard and Yale have turned II
down. The college organ, the Penn
syivania. at the University OF Penn
sylvania, comes out with q number OF
letters from graduates and undergrad
yates protesting strongly against such
adoption, and the Pennsylvania Ga
zette. the organ of the alumni, is very
, strong in its opposition. Until we get
all sides of this discussion from the
various colleges IL is Impossible to
state whether the recommendation OF
! the National Collegiate Association
has any chance of being generally
followed. but the opposition seems
now very strong in many quarters.
Copyright. 1920.