The New York herald., 1922-02-12
lADY FOR WESTMINSTER SHOW IN THE GARDEN
CHAMPIONSHIP AT
TRAPS OPEN TO ALL
Association Removes Bars of
Eligibility for National
Event.

IL was not until yesterday that Sec
retary stoney McLinn of the American
Trapshooting Association consented TO
make public any OF the details concern
ing the trapshootirg contests for the
North American titles. which will be
Grand American Handicap at Atlantic
City, N. j., September ILLS. His reason
for not Immediately divulging the re-
suits Of the recent meeting or the pro-
gram committee probably was baseo
upon the fact that several changes in
the conditions Of the races are OF such
Importance to trapshooters as to war
rant careful study over the method OF
shooting these events.
Four new points were developed at the
meeting Of the program committee,
which was composed of George S. Nc
Carty of Newfeld, n. j.. ]. Leonard
CIarks of New York city and Stoney
McLinn, also Of New York city, and the
following changes in conditions of title
races resulted:
The Inauguration OF class cham
pionship event.
Increase of from 100 to 200 targets in
the doubles championship.
Increase of from SO to 100 targets in
the junior singles championship.
Discarding OF the IS yard champion
ship title.
New Event in Spotlight.
To sum up the work of the program
committee 1t must be admitted that the
Grand American Handicap, for many
years the biggest feature event of trap
shooting, will be forced toward the
background, according to this years
program. and the North American
championships will occupy the spotlight.
This new condition of affairs was
old method of crowning the singles
champion. In former years no man
was eligible to shoot for the highest
honor in trapshooung-the singles
ampionship-unless he had first won
his State championship in the United
States or his divisional championship
in Canada and the Canal Zone. This
put the entire race on an elimination
basis and the contest actually became
a match OF champions.
Some OF the trapshooters who have
opposed this event for years called IT
the champion of champions race"
And so it was. 1t was not democratic
enough TO meet the desires and demands
of to-day, so at the annual meeting OF
the general committee In January it
was decided TO throw the singles cham
pionship wide open so that any man.
woman or child on the North American
continent, IL he or she met with other
requirements of the American Trap
shooting Association, could compete for
the championship.
Then came great demand for class
championships so that shooters Of abili-
ty. yet lesser ability than the stars.
might have some incentive to work
their way up to the top rung OF the
ladder. and. incidentally. obtain some
reward which would lie in n victory over
certain class of shooters. At first 1t
was believed that the shooters should
be classified in the regular contest for
the singles championship. but the pro-
Gram committee decided to make sep
arate event for the class tests. The
shooters are classed according to their
averages made on 500 registered targets
at shoots sanctioned by the a. T. A.
Harvard to Register Shoots.
Whether or not the intercollegiate
trapshooting championship of Ameri-
ce will be shot this year under sanction
OF the American Trapshooting Associa-
ton Is still in doubt, but 1t is known
that Harvard University will register
its shoots. A recent letter from the
Crimson varsity indicated that several
events would be scheduled In the spring
and already many of the nimrods who
wear the "H.G.C." around Cambridge
have become affiliated members of the
American Trapshooting Association.
Among the first to affiliate was Ber-
nard NJ. Baruch, Jr.. who is president of
the Harvard Gun Club.
IT is believed that Yale, which has a
very strong trapshooting organization,
soon will put in registered events, be-
cause several of the Blue trapshooters
row are affiiliated with the A. Il. A..
but do most of their shooting with the
New Haven Gun Club. There likewise