Evening star., 1927-05-24

the country picked Bob Jones
i as the greatest driver. brdsSie
and spoon player among them;
the best maker of chip shots; and the
best at playing run-up from bunk
er. His fellow golfers also have voted
him the best performer under windy
conditions. or on baked course, ana
the greatest recovery artist.
It is significant that the poll on
these questions taken by the writer
reveals that when Bob is not regarded
as the best in a certain department OF
play, he is very apt to rank second
best. Thus he is second to Mackenzie
as a long driver, to Ouimet in putting
and exploding from a bunker, to Gull
ford at playing in the rain. and to vet
eran Frank Hoyt in the matter OF
headwork. He also is voted fine long
iron and mashie player
The only department of play in
which he got no votes was at mashie
niblick pitching. But then this was
something at which Jess Sweetser was
unanimously agreed to have no equal
Wins Titles in Wind.
Bob's efficiency in a wind is notable,
of course; for instance, he battled wind
in England. when he won the British
open, and there was wind to he al
lowed for when he captured the
American open at Scioto. That is,
there was wind during every round
but the third.
His ability to play a hard, baked
course we'll lies in the fact that his
accurate wood shots attain their max
imum distance, while at the green his
delicate touch keeps his chip shots and
puts up to their usual standard.
Bob undoubtedly is great recovery
player. Traps, for instance, have
slight terror for him.
Dick Jones pushed Bob very hard
in the first round at Baltusrol. For
time it looked as though the open
champion was going to he dropped
from competition in the earliest stage
of the struggle.
At the twelfth hole, 100 yards, Dick
Jones made the green, but was 40
feet short. Bob. on the other hand,
played so strongly that his ball was
more than pin-high. Being off the
line, too, it went into trap at the
left.
Dick played first and was three feet
short of the cup. The hole looked to
be his, but Bob exploded his ball 10
feet from the hole and then sank his
par three.
Dick missed his putt and lost the
hole. Winning at this point would
have made him 2 up. and he might
have stopped Bob from winning even
tually by l up. But in the crisis Bob
was at his best.
We have heard a great deal in the
past about Bobs hotheadedness--
something which he long ago learned
TO control-but not enough about his
courage. Undoubtedly he has the
stoutest of hearts. Otherwise he
IyafN ,a1y -ft-n tIF1.
ishes in open championships. This is
an axiom.
Nor would he be rated by the anna
teurs as their greatest recovery
player.
At Scioto, in the second round, Bob
hit a very bad drive from the tenth
tee. His ball went into rough at the
right, and not only lay in long, tough
grass, but was behind two tall trees,
each at least so feet high. In addi-
ton, q creek near the green, had to
be crossed.
Now the second round at Scioto
was the worst of the four for Bobby.
It was not a championship round, for
he took 10. Going out, he had done
poorly, and the bad shot off the tenth
tee seemed portentous, indeed.
Bob thought the situation over
fully. If he shot for the pin, it would
be easy for him to miss and take a
seven, particularly if he played into
the creek. But it wasn't in the book
for him to play safely into the fair
way He aimed for the flag. He
stroked a full mashie shot that lifted
his ball over the trees, cleared the
creek and dropped it on the green 25
feet from the cup. He got a par !,
kept his score from mounting past
the so mark, and, as he had shot a 20
in the first round, remained in the
running.
1t was a great recovery. Bob re-
garded it as one of his most impor-
tant plays Of the tournament.
Unique Recovery Shot.
One Of the best recoveries Bob ever
made was also one of the most unique.
On the way to st. Louis for the
national amateur of 1921 he stopped
off at Louisville, KY, to pair with
Bobby Craig in an exhibition match
against Abe Mitchell and George
Duncan.
On one hole, 360-yard affair, Jones
topped his drive and it rolled only
about 100 yards.
Bob walked up to his ball, still
carrying his driver. and before his
caddie could offer him a brassie took
his stance and swung angrily.
A low screamer resulted. carrying