New-York tribune., 1922-01-22

A careful study Of past r...,..
the national ranking list, will s''' d. r.
to dissipate this belief. nv. 10 nut
t'at, it will show Williams to !. as' :.
most consistent "anisher" in fl. ''
ten ranks since and with f., IL. Dr. a'''
exception Of William A. Lar0ss ~, ''s s
won the national singles bonors rs'' '''
times. se7si
Larned was ranked in the Y.
sition in 1901, 1902, 1903, 1so7 ~ ~. p-
1902 1910 and 1911. and va, >.
2 in 1894, 1895. 1895, 1897 and Tone Ne NO. ~
was placed at No. 3 in 1899, 1907 ss' ,ss' ne
and 1905; at 30. ) in 1923 and >. ',9' ~
s in 1892. This is recors for ~ =. ~
s'stency that has never b.fors =" s's'
equailed or even approached and
probably never sijl be, IN tbsss "s
or frequent competition and hi,s .ss'
sion tennis. ''sa Nr'
Did Not Play FREQUENTLY
But it is we'll to renember
sidcring Larned's amazing record w. ~.
the Nestor" Of the American ...a 40
did not play in tournaments .. .'..+ 7.
quentiy as Williams has done !, y.
last nine years. He usualIv cnss.5
ms efforts 30 the more important t'r,, .s.,
court meetings, whereas Will;ams.
played through long seasons m h., ~ :
clay and turf, ard for every sSs.; .
tournament that player cornpstss
he increases MS chances of lovsy;,.
ms ultimate ranking by just that /.
gree
Dick Williams made his first sorsa.
ance in big tournament play n -.
country in 1912, on his return trn-
Europe. where ne learned his yams
That year. and in 1913, 1914 and 1oTs
he was ranked at No. 2. In 1915 he W..
placed at No. l. In 1917 there W.,
no ranking made and in 1918 Villa.
was overseas with the A. E. P. n
1919 he was at No. s, at No. 3 in lssa
and at No. 6 in 1921.
Here is record Of four seconds A..
first, one third and two sixthein eis:.
years of competition, and in cns {,
those years. 1914, when Williams rc
his first national single. championst,
by beating the mighty McLoughln !:
the Casino in Newport. he might vi
have been awarded the No posts-
instead Of being placed just below L.
"California Comet"
Surely there is not much that srss,
OF Inconsistency there. A closer :.....r
Of the tournament records viii .g
show that Williams, when he was x.
en-, generally lost TO players sn,a
ranked above him or in his own clsa
On only the rarest occasions viii ys
ind that the Bostonian has tasted da
feat at the hands 6 men he outciasei,
Shows Strain of War
Before the World War invclvsd Il.
United States in the struggle, betsn
Norris Williams volunteered and .ca |
MS place in the far-hung line Of ht /
lie, his consistency was remarkable
ne was either in first or second pha
for FIVE successive years.
After his return to this countr
1919. Williams plainly showed !.
strain Of war and was far from bis t.s
'n the courts. He rose again to tiz
place in 1920, but last season fell bsa
nto sixth place, though there an
many who feel that he earned the yes
position in 1921. Whether WiIaz,
will ever again win the champions.ip
md the No. 1 position is open to Tss-i
ion, but his past record is an sisua.s
'efutatlon of the statement ths. be 5
lot consistent tournament perfolnsi
When you consider the type Of gn'
Williams plays, with its extreme ds''
ng, as he aims directly for tie lines
without leaving himself any margin o.
safety, and the fact that his strokes
are SO delicately attuned that even tas
wavering on his part is sF'
20 lead to disaster, you wonder that }:
has been as consistent as he has, gsE
n and x-oor o,t