Evening star., 1927-10-25


to an end. as icy winds
~ roister across Drowned fair
ways and hoar frost brushes
velvet putting green's. finds Bobby
Jones. the Atlanta wizard. again head.
ing those who iouSt in the Sanded
troughs and battle the hazards of the
rolling terrain.
In the amateur field the passing
season found Jones playing the best
golf. of his brilliant career. Standing
in the close-formed ranks behind
Bobby are seen the other tried mas
ters of the game. for the year was
not overly prolific in the production
of youngsters ready to take their
places among the first flight
So long as Jones wields the putter
Il never will he hard to name the
leader of the amateur brigade. but in
selecting the remaining of tn" hest
10 players in that field there i. some
0ifficu ty and always there will he "A
considerable difference of op MON. In
choosing the la leading amlteurs ut
the 1927 campaign this writer has
considered principally the efforts nf
the players in the national amateur
championship, although success in
other competitions also is allowed to
carry weight.
Jones Tops AL
Jones finished the season holding
the amateur title of the United States,
the open championship of Great
Britain. and of his own beloved South
land. He made history in each of
those events and proved himself one
of the greatest scorers of all time as
we'll as master of every phase of com
petitive play.
His rally in Great Britain after fail
ure in the United States open only
further accentuated his greatness
Having smuothed out the one fault
in his game--the short approach
Jones can look to the future with
greater confidence than ever before.
Second place among the leading 10
Is given to- Chick Evans. The come.
back of The old Edgewater stalwart
was one of the most brilliant of all
time. Like Jones. he failed sadly in
the open at Oakmont and then went
out quickly in the Western amateur
But against one of the finest fields
of all time he fought his way to the
flnalist of the amateur Mt Minikahda
and his defeat at the hands of the
wizard took nothing from the bril-.
lance of his comeback. Chick played
sound golf in the amateur and later
where he was one of the leaders
There have been few more popular
players than Evans. and his return
to. the peaks of the game was crafty
ing to every follower of golf
Ouimet Helds On.
Francis Ouimet is placed next to
Evans. Like Chick. the Bostonian is
veteran campaigner. a willy con-
testanf and the master of every shot
He is one of the most consistent play
ers in the game and has reached the
semi-finals in four of the last five
championships. In three of those four
years he ran afoul of Jones i'm the
semi-final round, otherwise he might
have heen a finalist.
Roland Mackenzie af Washington
fs rated fourth. He has been coming
at a swift pace. with a few re-
versals. since his sensational battle
with Won Elm at Merton in 1924. At
Minikahada he was the fourth semi
finalist. and in the national collegiate
he was only beaten by round of
wonder golf. A long hitter and
good putter. Mackenzie is acquiring
the seasoning needed to make him a
great player.
George Won Elm. the 1925 cham
pion. takes fifth place in the ratings.
George not only was beaten at
Minikahda. but more recently he was
defeated i'm the California amateur and
southern California oren-two titles
he won year ago; Won Elm is no
less the golfer than he was in 1926.
but his tournament record does not
permit him a higher ranking.
Did Well This Year.
Then in sixth position comes Har-
rison Johnston of ST. Paul, who never
played better than last season. For
So holes he led the national open field
at Oakmont and stepped fast pace
I'm the amateur until he crossed the
trail of Jones. Johnston has been one
of the leading amateurs for many sea-
sons and is a splendid sportsman as
well as golfer.
Winning the national collegiate title
with a furry of golf that broke the
long standing course record at Garden
City, Watts Gum is entitled to a good
rating among the best amateurs and
is placed seventh. Watts encountered
a lot Of misfortune in the national
amateur, but withal he is a clever.
capable golfer and it is only matter
of time when he win climb again to
the heights of the amateur field.
Eddie Held, who is rated eighth, of
st. Louis, comes in along with Gum.
The Missourian enjoyed fine sea son.