Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1928-10-04
D|EGEL LANDS BIG
CHANCE At HAGEN
Pro Title Holders Is Heavy
Favorite to Beat Former
WaShingtonian.
BY WALTER r. McCALLUM.

~ ALTIMORE, October A. Lee
- Diegel, the lad with the ire
pressible disposition and the
H. oueerest putting style in golf
has his great moment today
Diegel, who used to cavort around the
Washington courses and is now attach
ed to the Fenimore Club of New York,
played Walter Hagen today in the
match that overtopped all the other
third-round contests in the Profession
al Golfers Association championship, in
progress here Hagen is an odds-on IA
vorite to win, for he has the Indian
sign on Diegel in match play. But If
Hagen skidS q notch or two he may
find himself with his back to the wall
fighting hard to keep the professional
match play crown on his sleek head
just as he did late yesterday over the
last four holes against young Julian
Blanton of Toledo.
Diegel is right for Hagen, primed to
win, and should he continue the streak
of golf he showed yesterday to snow
George Christ under by and 4, he
may blast Hagen out of the tournament
with holes to spare. Leo played the last
IA holes of his match with Christ in 2
under even As, while Hagen, playing
sloppy golf, dropped a four-hole lead
he had amaSsed on the lantern jaWed
Blanton and went to the last hole to
beat the stock lad from Ohio So Hagen
has one tough match behind him, while
Diegel has had easier sailing.
EspinOsa Hutchinson Struggle.
Only notch behind the Diegel-
Hagen match in interest was the strug-
gle between AL Espinosa and Jock
Hutchinson of Chicago. Espinosa seems
to have cooled off from the bliStering
pace he set over the first two days of
the championship, and only disposed Of
Bob Macdonald yesterday on the thirty
seventh hole. Gene SaraZen should
have little trouble with Ed Dudley of
Los Angeles. and Horton Smith should
beat Perry Del Vecchio without being
pushed to the limit. Sarazen came
through yesterday to beat Jim Barnes,
conqueror of Tommy Armour, on the
sixteenth green, winning by 3 and 2,
They were each around in 10 for the
first 18 holes of the match, and hung
close together over the first nine of the
second round, with Sarazen having a
two-hole advantage through the elev-
enth. Gene picked up the twelfth and
fourteenth to become dormie up. but
lost the fifteenth when he missed four
footer and Barnes jumped his ball over
Genes ball to win the hole. Gene ended
the struggle on the sixteenth.
The real surprise of the day came
in the Horton Smith-Willie MacFarlane
match. where Smith outlasted the FORM
er open champion to win on the thirty
sixth green, after turning up on the
professionally gent from Tucka-
hoe. Meanwhile Perry Del Vecchio,
former caddie from New York, was
Of DO rNN
easy nut to crack, for the long-driving
Baitimorean, performing before his
home folks, staged grand rally in the
afternoon to overcome Del Vecchio's s.
hole lead and carry the Italian Amer
lean TO the thirty seventh hole. Espi-
nosa, far below the form he showed to
win the medal and his first-round
match, also went to the thirty-seventh
to beat the long-hitting Bob MacDon-
aid. On the thirty-seventh Espinosa
caromed his ball of MacDonalds ball
to win the hole and match. Hutchinson
nosed out Pat Doyle on the last green
by / hole and Dudley downed AL
Watrous of Grand Rapids by 8 and 2.
Hagen Furnishes Thrills.
But Hagen was the lodestone of the
day. The smiling title holder, striding
over Tie COuISc Will VIC uplOHiU All
which he Is famous, found tartar in
Blanton. Hagen was 8 up on the Ohio
lad at the end of the eighteenth and
seemed to be coasting to character
istic Hagen victory. But Blanton, after
winning the first and dropping the
next two, suddenly Came to life and
was only down at the turn in the
afternoon. Hagen raped In putt
for a birdie at the tenth, but dropped
the eleventh when he hooked his iron
second and blew a 10-foot putt for
the half He won the twelfth with