The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1922-10-05
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In any other sport than golf the
player may safely take chances in
order to win. The good golfer knows
that to take chances means a ire
mendous risk. The championship
golfer can risk a chance now and
then If he is down, never when he is
upon his opponent. lie can figure
that il he wins he aecomplishes
enough to Justify the chance, while
il he loses he isn't much worse off
any how.
In this connection / can let out
little secret of my playing in the
finals at Brookline this year, which
undoubtedly was entirely lost to the
gallery crowds following our match,
and which at the same time may
serve to aid golfers who seek to i'm
prove their play through a more or
less critical analysis of championship
play. The chance / took, and which
shall tell of in this, was of conse-
quence in my defeat might almost
say 1t was the turning point in my
game.
Where Play Took Place
The play took place from the
seventh tee at Brookline. The hole is
some $50 yards. with the green double
trapped in front. nesting at the top
of a hill. The fairway from the tee
goes down, across an old creek bot
tom. then up the hill to the green.
About midway up the hill, and some
so yards in front of the green. and
well to the right, there is a sand
trap. Beyond the trap is rough fair
way, not bad rough at all. The green
has slope, generally, downward and
. Il 49, 10.
final the pin stood off the center and
well toward the tee side of the green,
giving approximately 10 feet of the
green for the approach.
How should the hole be played?
Par, four.
Obviously. here was a chance, with
good placement from the tee. for a
birdie three, and l should add that
Brookline offers few opportunities for
brides. The reader should under
stand that was down and thus JUS
titled In taking some chances.
The right answer. apparently. is:
Play the tee shot to the rough be-
yond and to the right of the trap,
thus having the down-sloping green
to chip to and letting the ball roll
back down to the pin.
That is how I played it-and the
tiioASC loph ipSt lilC hitc ActSt
took five,
Ball Fell Short
My tee shot was perfectly aimed
but II failed to carry by five feet,
possibly by only two feet, and into
the trap the ball fell. In recovering
I shot from the one trap into another
on edirectly in front of the green.
Sweetser drove to the middle of the
fairway, well up the hill. Clipped on
and took two to go down. In pre-
vious match with John Anderson 1
played to the rough beyond this trap
got the rough, and was at the pin on
my second scoring a birdie. I took
the chance then when I was up. and
didn't need to take chances. and won
with It, When I was down and felt
should force myself to chance-tak-
ing. the play lost for me. Such is
golf,
The week of championship play at
Brookline, taken as a whole. reveals
how wary the finished golfers always
are of chance-taldng. The eleventh
hole is a long one, some 500 yards,
with series of rolling hills we'll
ahead of the tee. creek beyond and
the green at the top of an incline.
On Sunday in a foursome for the
American golfer trophy. Sweetser
played to the top OF one OF the Hills
in front of the tee. then unwound a
magnificent brassie shot which nut
him on the green IN two for a five
par hole. He did not attempt 1t
again, however. and 7 did not hear of
any other player during the week
trying for that green in two.
1t takes a long time to learn what
to do with golf clubs and ball. but
after the player has fairly well mas
tered that part of the game his real
study of golf begins. He must then
begin to find out what not to do.
1t takes the average player longer
to determine In his mind what not to
do than is required to learn what to
do and how. The player who studi-
ously avoids taking chances will see
his game improve month by month
Copyright. John F. Ollie Coz