Evening star., 1925-06-27
VIII Visit Old Home.
By the Associated Press.

By the Associated Press.
LONDON, June 27-Long Jim
Barnes, American professional golfer,
was bound for his old home in Corn
wall today to receive the congratu-
lations of his mother as newly crowned
open champion OF Great Britain.
He finished the grueling competition
at Prestwick. Scotland, yesterday with
two rounds of 79-74, which. added to
Thursdays 70-77, gave him an even
800, or one stroke below the two Brit
ishers on his heels. the veteran Ted
Ray and the rising star, Archie Comp
ston.
Macdonald Smith, the American,
who had been favored for the title
after his record 50 Of Thursday after
noon. broke wide open in the last Is
holes and took bad SO. to finish
third with sos. Abe Mitchell, long
| driving Britisher. was fourth with
305. and fifth place was divided among
five Britons, including the veteran j.
H. Taylor.
Joe Kirkwood. the third Of the in
| vading American pros, managed to
land among the first 10 with 314 by
| doing two 76s after his poor start of
162 for the first two rounds Thursday.
The British golf experts seemingly
| are impressed more by the fact that
Smith lost than that Barnes won. Be.
| fore yesterdays play began 1T was
evident, experts agreed, that nothing
short of a miracle could bring back
the championship. won last year by
the American free lance, Walter
Hagen, but Smith was the favorite
| and his collapse yesterday is termed
as one Of the most astonishing ever
seen in any open championship. He
| was worried by the dense crowd that
| followed.
Bothered by Gallery.
Some critics declared he had to
| fight rather than play his way
| through. A number of writer's even
| contend that Prestwick should never
again be the scene of the champion.
ship because of the difficulty of pre-.
venting interference by the gallery.
Barnes victory, nevertheless, is cor.
daily commented upon. The experts
concede that he Is one Of the greatest
golfers ever, and laud his personality
| Consolation is found in that he is
not yet a fully naturalized American
citizen and still nominally an Eng
lishman.
There Is natural disappointment
among the British at the failure tc
return the title to these shores. but
the defeat Is taken philosophically
with such salvings as the Daily Mails
comment: Great Britain still Is able
to produce. II not always able to re
tain. the greatest golfers"
Barnes plans to stay at Cornwall
while before returning to America
at a date not yet definitely fixed. He
| does not intend to participate in the
Gleneagles tournament.
Jim Barnes now has captured all
| the major titles open to a professional
golfer. His feat in lifting the British
puts him on an even footing with
Walter Hagen and Jock Hutchison,
the only other Americans to capture
| this highly 'honored title.
Yesterdays victory was his first
important one since 1921, when he
won the American open at Washing
, ton. He has held the American pro.
fessional open championship twice
and the Western open three times.
He was the North and South open
champion in 1915 and 1919.
Like Hagen, he is virtually free.
lance professional. He has a small
daughter whom he is training in the
rudiments of the game with the
object, his friends jokingly remark
of developing another Joyce Weth.
cred. He makes his home in New
York.
| TAMPA. Fla. June 27-Long
Jim" Barnes. who won the British
open golf championship, Is under con.
I tract to a Tampa club for three
months service as professional, be.
ginning January /. 1925.
He signed the agreement before
| leaving the club last March after
spending three months here.