Evening star., 1928-06-07
BY FRANCIS J. POWERS.

CHICAGO. June THE fellows who
wander far off the fairways and depend
upon the strength of their recovery shots
to snare pars will have little success in
the coming United States open golf
championship at Olympic Fields.
The number four at Olympic is the
pride and Joy of the Chicago district
and puts premium on straightness
such as few open championships have
done during the past 10 years. If a
player Is straight he will score well. But
if he is wild he soon will be out of the
running.
The fairways on the championship
course, which now is closed to play, are
for the most part narrow and on several
Of them sharp dog leg adds to the
difficulty in keeping shots in the alley
On many of the holes the fairways are
bordered on both sides with clumps Of
trees that add mental as we'll as
physical hazard A little singing brook.
which would bring joy to a poet but
hardly to golfer, cuts through six of
the fairways, and its banks are such as
to forbid an easy recovery.
Face Terrifying Ravine.
On three successive notes.-the thir-
teenth, the fourteenth and fifteenth
the player must face rather terrifying
ravine which attaches a heavy penalty
to any shots that may fall within its
NAV. There are four short holes de-
manding extreme accuracy, ana flom
stem to stern the course Is a terror to
players who make business of hooking
or slicing.
Olympia Field is considered rolling
by ChicagoanS. but would be called ex-
tremely fiat by those who are used to
{o 1.f
like that OF Fl0Ssmoor, where the 1928
amateur was played and which is only
| mile or so distant. However, all Chi
cago golfers declare Olympia is much
harder than its near neighbor.
The course has been heightened some
300 yards for the national champion
ship and will have stretch of some
$500 yards with par of II. The
! green's are we'll modelled and have a
carpet of bent grass. which. If the
weather is dry, will bring memories of
Scioto Valley. two 'years ago. where
many we'll hit put skidded away from
the cup.
Must Keep Straight.
But the fellows who can keep the
ball down the middle and execute the
| finer shots of the game are likely to
do anything to the course. Some fellow
recently wagered Fred Gardner, general
chairman of the Olympia Field cham
| pionship committee. that 81 would be
made during the three-day melee
In the Professional Golfers ASSocia-
ton championship on this course, two
years ago. Walter Hagen buzzed his way
around in Sc. The Haig was straight
that day and was holding his puts. It's
doubtful If there will be any Cos made
during the open. but it Is possible, even
with 300 additional yards tackled on
to the layout.
Olympia four is admirably suited to
the game played by Bobby Jones and
around Chicago they already have in
stalled him as the big favorite. Bob
gets off the fairways less often than
any of the headlinerS and he is play
ing his approaches this Spring with
the same deadliness that featured his
game in the last amateur at Minikahda.
Melvin Taylor, president of the U. S.
G. A. has seen the Georgian in several
of the Olympic fund matches this
| Spring. and declares Robert is better
| than ever. Those Olympic matches will
| do lot to keep Jones game on edge
| and he will not be the Bobby who play
ed so poorly at Oakmont in 1927.