Evening star., 1925-03-01

smooth-roliing river of green
between solid banks of people
L held in line in the gallery
ropes
1t was late afternoon of the first
day of championship play in the
national open championship at the
Indian Head Club. Matt Harkle, the
playing g-through champ, and Red
MacClosky, an unknown young pro
from small town club in Michigan,
who was paired with him, had driven
from the eighteenth tee on their
second round of the 72-hole grind.
Harkle, the champ, the king of the
pros, the hard. handsome. colorful
hero of the golf world, who looked
a multimillionaire, big-game hunting
lover, and who played golf with all
the intent, cold, concentrated saw
agery of Dempsey in the ring with
an opponent sinking under his at
tack, was playing the game of his
career and for the first time in that
career was experiencing the sensa-
tion of being a figure of secondary
interest in the gallerys eyes.
MacClosky, the Slim wasted. heavy
shouldered, red-headed unknown
from Michigan, had stolen the
crowds fancy from the champ and
held it. Hole after hole, throughout
the grueling day, the red-headed
young nobody much from nowhere in
particular had held the veteran
world known Harkle even. answering
skill with skill, courage with cour-
age, and, what was the more remark
able, manner with manner. Harkle
whose acting was nearly as good as
his golf, had at last met a real con-
testant in the art of the easy smile
that denied despair and the goat
getting pose of tolerant superiority.
Harkles manner said:
Well. Well! This is a bright,
clever young infant. I hope he keeps
up the good work long enough to
make an interesting contest"
The unknown MacClosky's manner
said as plainly:
THE champs making a nice fight
of 1T. Too bad he has to take
licking. but he's going while I'm
coming and, Of course, youth must
be served"
Steadily, hole after hole, all day
long, MacClosky had outdistanced
Harkle off the tees. AS the players
marched up the fairway between the
roped-off gallery lines it was seen
that the champ was again short of
his adversary by at least 10 yards.
A stocky, white-faired man kneel-
ing in the front rank Of the gallery
near the green broke out in an eN-
clamatory rash of amazement and
delight.
.'Red'n show 'emr' he declared to
no one in particular and the world
in general Hes from my club, that
boy MacClosky. Watch him CO.
X x
A TALL, bronze6. elderly man
~ squatting nearby took his pipe
from his mouth and looked at the
first speaker. "You from the Big
Elm?" he inquired
You bet 1 am" said the white
haired man. president of the club.
What do you think of our boy,
MacClosky?'
The long man smiled. Il think he's
changed from the first time l saw
him" he said reminiscently. He
was about IL years old then and just
about the dirtiest, raggedest little
red-headed barefooted youngster
that ever hit our caddie master for
a lob toting clubs. If you're presl-
dent of the Big Elm, I reckon you've
heard Red speak of me. I'm the one
who recommended him to you peo-
ple"
Long Jim Loughborough.' the
white haired man exclaimed. sure
thing! / ought to have known you
name, Tom Degan. My, yes. Red s
told us a lot about you. Says you
taught him everything he knows.
Loughborough shook his head. Il
taught him everything ! know he
said quizzically. He learned that
much young, and then went on from
there"
He took his pipe from his mouth
and pointed down the course to where
the champion was preparing to make
his second shot. 'Harkle's beginning
to wear under the strain" he said.
You notice he's using an iron for
his second2 It's a wood shot If he
wants to get home and he's playing
1t safe"
'T'I lay you odds Red uses his
wood" said Degan.
Loughborough nodded. mo bet"
he said dryly: That's one thing l
taught the boy, if 1 do say it myself.
He plays his shots for what they're
worth, with the club the shot calls
for, win or lose. He's learned many
a. thing a bout the game that / never
knew, but that's one thing / knew
and taught him that he's never for
gotten"
The fairway approaching the home
hole at the Indian Head Club was
narrow sloping, bordered by traps
and heavy rough. The green itself