The Birmingham age-herald., 1923-03-14
Tee, Fa;irway and Green
By CHICK EVANS
GREENS THAT FEED FROM
 MELLOW

A golf clubs greens keeper need not be an expert golfer to qualify for hls job, bat ne is required to Know a good deal about botany. ge- elcxy, mtneralosy, road building, coa- crete work, bridge construction. pipe fitting, sinking Of wells and seuae chemistry.
 And John Frances. who has de- signed 2 rather remarkable now de- velopmens in the building of greens, adds that the more the greens keep CT knows about all these branches oi knowledge, especially Of botany. the better for him. Frances has ae- ouainted himselt with technical knowledge of all these things. and out of this special study, revealing as it does how intensely some mon attach themselves to golf, has come h!s new method of constructing greens
 Frances has nearly completed his work of building the greens for the Oakhurst Country club of Tulsa. Okla. and the greens of this coure bid fair to make Frances famous. They are duplicates, largely of the e of Tulsa, which Is one of the really wonderful golf courses of America. New Moisture System.
 Frances method of building greens Is a blessing to clubs which seek to keep expenses down and still have flrst-class course. He installs an absorbent at certain depth and tai inc not water. By this method the Oak hurst greens. which. am informed, have become the talk of that part of the country among students of golf. grew during the hottest weath- CT last summer. without drop of rain for three straight months dur ing which the temperature often at tained 104 and was seldom lower than SS in the heat of the day. No water system was provided on the course.
 The water used was drawn by wagon from stagnant pond a mile or so from the course. The original irrigation was the only water the greens ever received, living and flourishing in this way, the greens attained very readily the character istics of their cousins, I might say, at the Tulsa Country club, and were playable in all weather, did not make foot marks, never picked up with the feet and in severely frost weath- CT this winter have proved that they are adapted for play in all extremes of weather conditions. These greens, l am informed. maintain a beautiful green, messy appearance and grow rapidly and luxuriantly Because of the moisture system, they cannot be flooded and do not get spotty from impure water, which are added ad- vantages to the one of doing away with piping systems for overhead watering.
 Greens Cost Little.
 The cost of installation for these frances greens, the Oakhurst club Informs me, was in no instance more than s100 per green, which makes such greens possibilities immediately attractive to clubs where conserva- tion of funds for such purposes is a necessity.
 It seems to me, in view of this enthusiasm, that Mr. Frances has de- veloped something that will command the interest of greens committees S everywhere, especially since l an in formed that these superb greens re- qulre no attention whatever, once they are built, other than keeping them clipped
 MT. Frances came to America from England in 1902 and has been identi. fled with golf ever since.
 Copyright, John r. Dille Col