The Birmingham age-herald., 1923-12-29
HANK GOWDY AND HOMERUN
 RAF<ER

In an old world series Hank GowdS made his name mean "Homerun ana the people of his home town in Ohio turned out with the band to enfold him in their hospitality when the Braves had won. In another world series. Franklin J. Baker came to be known as "Homerun Baker for a reason which perhaps will not have to be given in detail, now.
 In the series of 1921, ending his baseball .career with the Yankees, Homerun Baker was called on in the last half of the ninth. with one out and the winning runs waiting on the bases. He hadn't played much or hit very well that season but there was just a chance that Baker could rise a little bit above the flesh in in- spring circumstances and smack out a drive that would enable him to bow himself out of the game in a shower of posies He slapped to Johnny Rawl- ings at second who snapped the pail to third for double assassination and that was the rather sad finish of Homerun Baker.
 Hank Gowdy. of course, is not through with baseball by several sea sons But he isn't the kid that he was in 1914 and it isn't likely that he ever will again do anything as dramatic as the mighty deeds he per formed nine. seasons gone. John Me Graw called on Hank in the second game of this seasons series when the Giants were behind and the runs were on the lanes waiting to be sent home. Hank did lot of thinking in the moments he spent at the plate,
 In France he told reporter one muddy afternoon that baseball fame was pretty shoddy material. Let him knock a homer in the ninth to win a bal, game and he'd be a hero for a season. Let him lose couple of games though, and he would be, to quote him faithfully, "as big bum as anyone"
 Hank went to bat and after some fouling and waiting, looped one to the outfield for an easy putout
 Casey Stengels bat won two games for the Giants this fall. What will he great moment of a world series game seven or eight years hence?
 London's amateur foursomes have added another paragraph to 'golf tournament history. One players ball at the tenth hole overshot the green and ran under the locked door of a tool-house. The match was delayed while the gardener was summoned to open the door. and the players played from where the ball lay. By mixture of good luck and good placing, he halved the hole.
 The incident has revived arguments as to whether, in similar circum- stances, the ball should not be played back the way it came-thls time through crack between the ground and the door barely wide open to admit the ball.
 It is likely that there will be a ruling on the question soon, IS there are many authenticated cases of dis agreements over strange lies"
 Jim Barnes, in the open champion shin year ago, pulled his drive into a cowshed, and was permitted to mt it. Strictly, of course, it should have been played as it lay.
 At a recent tournament, a player hit his ball into a standing automo- bile. He was permitted to play it out through the open door of the tonneau. But the bugs" are still arguing that he ought to have lofted it out over the side.
 The most famous instance in Brit ish golf was in the 1904 Oxford and Cambridge match. when c. H. Alison drove onto the top of the club house A ladder was brought, and he climbed to the roof, disappeared to size up the situation, and returned to look at the green. He drove onto it.
 Perhaps the most freakish behavior of a ball was at the Romford course A player drove through the open sec ond story of a doctors house. He went to ask permission to play If out of the room. He found the ball at the door-mat at the front door, 1t had gone through a bedroom window, hit the door, ricochetted to the stair case and rolled down, and out on the front door