Free trader-journal and Ottawa fair dealer., 1922-04-03
GOLF ENABLES BALL
PLAYERS To BETTER
BATTING AV ERAGES
RUTH CLAIMS "PAsTuRE POOL
GAME is HIS GREAT AID IN
sWATTlNG THE PlLL--E%PECTS
TO PASS LAST YEARS RECORD.

Chicago, April 3 Golf helps Che
hating average Of baseball players
according to leading batters and Babe
Ruth of the New York Americans
thinks he may be able this season
IN enual or even surpass his rrco"
Of 80 home runs by reason OF the a-
crtness Of vision for the ball he H..7
gained on the golf links Carl Mays
also expects TO raise his batting a'-
erage from 343 having reached tht'
ratio from .320 since he took 10 i.N
links between diamond contests ON
er high average batsmen agree lH ''
while the golr stroke is different IRON
the baseball hit especially IN mat
the baseball is moving rapidly IN an
uncertain line the golf swing at sta
fionary ball less than two inches I'D
diameter with small ciu3 head on
an elongated shaft trains the eye TO
a greater keenncss to meet the W.ies
OF the most expert pitcher. In SOIL
the PLAYER must stand still and u,no
he twists the body and rOtateS the
hips, his eve must me glued on the
ball so that lis head cannot be moved
durini the upward and downward
ewing ii he hopes to get a long true
shot In addition to The immobi.ity
of stance aud head. the rightly timed
golf shot must be played with all On"
rest OF the army and the arms re-
laxsd between these two piyots. EF-
on the grip must not be too tisht,
and there must be a snap of the wrists
at the impact of the club with the
bail.
In baseball, the batter IS required 10
hi, rapidly moving ball OF consid.
erably larger size with bat that
has longer hitting surface ana is
thicker than golf club. altdo haF-
ing rounded face Many battora
stems into the ball and, grasDing the
bat tonaciously strike with all their
body as well as arms. There is LITTLE
uf the rather slow and deliberate back
swing OF golf but the forward stroke
in some ways resemble the well tiwed
Gweep Of the golf club, according tJ
men who have played both games.
Lack Of practice appears to be the
main mania why Ruth and other star
batters do not play par golf, but
they do not play wha, r. known rs @
duffer golf game,
Altho he has PLAYED golf regularly
only two years Babe Ruth has dtiF-
en- 250 yards many times, and once,
he declared yesterday after making
preseason home run al San Antonio
he sent a golf ball 325 yards whicn
is better than the average oi such
players as Francis Ouimet and Chick
Evans. In fact the record is barely
more than 400 yards On the dia-
htond Ruth said his longest hit was
507 feet or 1G9 yards.
Carl Mays the star pitcher Of the
New York Americans who has been
Elaying golf only a little more than
year said he made "midiron spot OF
273 yards last winter on his home
course at Springfield, Mo.
Waite Hoyt, another Yankee pitch.
or drives longer golf ball than any
other baseball player hi,
friends say. But as to scoring
on the golf links where accuracy
counts even more than distance base
ball golfers merely say they have not
the time for practice which makes per
foct On these finer shots such golf
ers as Jesse Guilford and Chick Evans
practice for hours at a time. Yet the
baseball golfers do not do 50 badly, fol
Ruth boasts q score Of 7G, unOGicia
on a Los Angeles course and a mum
Der Of rounds in 80 his average wa!
about 80, eighteen holes, he said
Mays has memory Of a round il
73. which would be close to par OF
most courses, altho his average il
considerably higher Conditions woul,
answer for much OF tho difference il
scores. many Of the professionals a
Pinehurst yesterday in the north an,
south championship taking more tha'
so on a heavy links.
Ty Cobb, premier batter OF Amer
ca for several seasons. is rather el
rat'c at golf, althO he hits a fairl,
long ball on the links and is fairl
accurate at approaching.
"ThC home run swing does no
bother my golf stroke, Ruth said, cl
cept insofar as il keeps me off tn
golf links b. its Obscasion during q.
baseball season.