Evening star., 1923-12-16
STRAIGHT OFF THE TEE

EORCED to suspend outdoor activi-
Il ties by the snow of early Friday.
= mum Der of Washington golfers are
New Year, when they are planning
trips to the south. Notwithstanding
the blanket of snow, which still lies
over golf courses around Washing
ton, a few of the real bugs were out
Yesterday and probably a few still
will be out today. a little snow and
. biting wind will not deter all the
par chasers. However. little red
ball, cold fingers and binding clothes
90 not make for ones best game.
The middle OF January, however.
usually finds a small group OF Wash
iugtoniars scattered over the south.
OF Columbia members make thetr
annual trek TO Augusta. Washing
ton ordinarily does not have many
professiona! representatives in the
south. Leo Diegel will accompany
e. 3. Mclean south this winter. but
Fred Mcleod Will not go, except to
play in the pro tournament at Pine
burst the latter part of March. The
rest Of the Washin gton pros will stay
here.
Dave Thompson is the first profes-
sionsl attached to a Washington club
to write book on golf. The pro at
rhe Washington Golf and Country
Club has just received copies % his
Practical GoIf." The book embodies
many of tho observations and eX-
periences of the writer from the time
he was a lad in Scotland, and is got
ton UP III the most concise form. II
deals only with fundamentals of the
game, without embellishments or Sc
rious attempts at literary style. 1t is
a plain spoken, straight forward at
tempt to impart his knowledge of the
game by a. student who has proved
about the city.
Within three weeks the United
States Golf Association will be called
upon to legislate upon the matter of
the lively ball: the stymie and the
the association probably will discuss
it perfunctorily. but on the other
two points. both of which affect mill
hons Of non tournament playing golf
ers, il doubtless will take a distinc-
tive stand. Setting of new standard
for weight and measurement for balls
Is looked for and authorization of
tournament use Of the steel shafted
club is expected. One has been fore
cast officially by members of the gov
crning body, while whispers that
cannot be denied have told the story
of the coming legality Of the other.
Recently there came TO Washington
a few of the newest shafts for golf
clubs-of cocobolo wood-a tropical
wood which combines the strength
and elasticity of hickory with the
constant tension and uniformity of
steel. a leading sporting goods firm
spent thousands of dollars. and one
OF our amateur golfers weeks of
travel and research in the tropics to
hnd this wood. now commercially
available for shafts. Fred Mcleod
said nowadays he does we'll II he gets
FIVE first-ciass shafts out of a.
shipment Of hundreds of hickory
sticks.
Work on the second eighteen-hole
course of the Congressional Country
Club would be started within two
months If suggestion made by
DevereauN Emmett to the board of
governors was adopted. Mr.. Emmett
who laid out the present course. said
IL work was to commence on the new
layout, il should be begun not later
than February. He said the putting
green's of the present course are in
excellent condition and are compar-
able with those of any links about
Washington.
1t was good news that came by
cable yesterday quoting Henry Gull
len. secretary of the championship
committee of the Royal and Ancient
Club of st. Andrews. rs saying that
il IS entirely possible that a British
golf may be sent to the United States
next year to make another attempt
to lift the Walker cup. No more en-
ioyable affair, nor one more con-
duotive to general good feeling among
the players of the two greatest golf
ing nations of the world. has ever
been held than the annual contest
for the Walker cup. 1t bids fair to
become to golf what the Davis cup