Evening star., 1926-02-04


With the possible exception OF
Bobby Jones, Hagen is the most con
sistent golfer the game ever devei-
oped, either in this country or Grear
Britain, and that goes for Harry
Eardon, Jim Braid. j. H. TAYLOR or
any other.
None of these had any better rec
ord than Hagen has made in mis-
career. None of that great trfum
virate faced the competition Hagen
has conquered in his 10 years Of golf
Walter Hagen, Bobby Jones and
Mac Smith are the class of present
day golfers, in England as well as
in this country,
Mitchell Strong Golfer.
Abe Mitchell might be added Ia
this trio, although the hard-hftting
Briton has not done as we'll in the
major tournaments as Hagen and
Jones, nor are his scores as con
sistent as those Of Smith. None the
less. he is a remarkable golfer and.
in the opinion of this writer, is the
greatest in Europe at the present
time. Hagen, Jones and Smith prob
ably will compete in the British open
championship.
This trio in itself will keep all
talent Britain can muster busy try
ing TO reclaim the title now held
by Jim Barnes. Add to the list
Johnny Farrell. Leo Diegel, Gene
SaraZen. Francis Ouimet. George Won
Elm, Jim Barnes and possibly one
or two others. and it can be seen
readily that the British golfers have
their work cut out for them TO keep
this invasion from mopping up com
pIetely.
Everybody admits Jones is wonder
full. But a number of. we suspect.
envious professionals criticize Hagen's
game He is supposed to have moth
ing in the way of golf skill but
putter Well. he may or may not be
the shot maker some of the others
are. but they can't laugh off the fact
that Hagen is a constant winner
Hagen may be erratic. but, oh boy,
how he can putt. and what tempera-
ment, Ideal for this or any other
game.
Jim Barnes and Jock Hutchison are
older and have had their share OF
glory, TOO. but they have not been as
consistent as their noted cotempo-
rary. AS for members of the younger
school. Sarazen, Farrell, Diegel and
the others. they must start soon II
they are ever going to take perma
nent rank at the top. Diegel, despite
an unorthodoX style that puzzles
them all, has great possibilities. He
is very aggressive. but highly excft-
able, and until he curbs this nervous
tension he cannot hope 10 win any
major competition.
Earell Improving.
John Farrell is a consistent scorer.
but his fault is lack of aggressiveness.
He will have To develop more bold
ness TO win. And it is this writer's
opinion that Johnny is doing just this
as his win over Hagen in the central
Florida competition showed. Once he
gets the confidence that comes with
a big victory he will be hard to beat.
Farrell has a very fine, compact swing
that has shown constant improve
ment. he has a good temperament, he
is a grand putter. he is young, and.
above all. he is exceptionally fntelli-
gent.
Sarazen shows disposition to re
gain the form and winning habit he
had in 1922. but as yet has not struck
his stride. He has one great asset
courage. And if he can start hitting
the ball again the way he was hit
ting il three years ago he will be back
again at the top.
Archie Compston and Arnaud MassN
have played enough golf in this coun
try to date TO furnish some line OH
their respective abilities MasSy, of
course, will never get any better. He
is about TO pass out of the picture
after a wonderful record extending
over 90 years. Never a really great
golfer, he is a remarkable putter
Massy's putter will keep him going
for a while.
/, Compston has wonderful possibili
ties. He is a giant in stature, pos
sessing great power and the most.
compact swing of any of the big fel
lows. Compston also has an excellent
temperament. But before he can
hope to be a winner like Hagen the
burly Briton will have to improve his
putting.