Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-08-15
FIVE PLAY MATCH
BY SEARCHL|GHTS
Caddies Are Marks in Test
That Proves After-Dark
Game Has Merits.
BIZ WALTER R. McCALLUM.

reached Washington, and,
Judged by the enthusiasm
of a small group of club sWingerS
who tried it out at the Manor
Club last night, in the glare OF a
dozen searchlights strapped to
their chests, it may come to stick,
# bigger and better lights are
provided for the fellows who say
it with drivers and mashie nib
ticks.
Spurred on their nocturnal adventure
by an experiment proposed by j. L.
Powell, inventor of q portable electric
lamp, five golfers gathered at the Manor
Club last night and played nine holes
through one of the darkest harnesses
that we have had since the heat wave
started
Harry Pitt, j. B. Murphy. E. B. BaX-
ter. Al Treder and George Rlcharo-
son started of by crashing through
with a couple of pars on the tenth hole.
Just why they didn't play the first nine
at Manor has not been disclosed, but II
seems that they were afraid the trees
might grow a flock of new branches.
Far down the fairway--175 yards or
severe three red lights. They were
the tail lights of the caddies, for cad
dies in night golf are the tai !ightS ano
player shoots at the red light and per-
haps the man who sponsors this sort
of night golf will furnish the bag-toterS
with a suit of arrnor.
Ball Not Hard to Find.
It was not so hard to find ball. All
the players hit them fairly straight, as
the rays of a dozen lights concentrated
on the ball the caddies listened for the
thump of the pill and everything was
lovely except for a slight rain. The
players looked like a big flock of fire.
fies as they moved down through the
mist toward the tenth green, and they
looked more like it as they played the
eleventh hole, where pond bisects the
fairway.
Here it was that Baxter chose to
make his grandstand play, for he
thumped the ball on the green from
the tee and ran down a 20-footer Tor
a birdie q And at the next hole
caddie ran to the pin and Murphy,
shooting for the faraway dim light
on the caddie's chest, knocked his APP
proach shot within three feet OF the
pin. Then, in the bright light OF the
flashlights, he blew the putt.
From there, they went out into the
great open spaces. Silence draws
veil over their scores, but they agreed
that night golf has its compensations.
there is no temptation to do So,
Murphy said. For you can't see any
thing IL you do"
And think of the hot sun. You
get none at night" Baxter said.
Harry Pitt was more practical. yea,
and think of the mosquitoes" he ADDED.
Treder thought the idea was worth
while, but he pointed out that the rays
of the lights were hardly strong enough
To make hitting the ball accurately
much more than a matter OF wen
grooved swing.
Think of what the duffer would do"
he said, with these lights moving
around"
And Gene Golden remarked that
night golf has its compensations, Tor 1t
stretches out the playing time OF q
PLAYER. makes business for the golf ball
manufacturers, does not hurt the course
and might make business for the DOC
tors. with the dew and the possibility
of rain and so forth.
Those happy faces you see around the
golf clubs today are not the result Oh
the winning streak of the base ball CLUB
or the result of a hole in one, or any
thing else but the rain, which teu on
golf course and golfer alike yesterday
in lust the right quantity, softening the
ground to some degree and preparing
the way for the more extensive rains
that will surely come.
This rain Is just right" o. P. Fits,
veteran Columbia course supervisor, SAID.
s'Had one of those violent thunder
storms come along, with large precipi-
tation, in a few hours untold damage
would have been done to our course.
The ground was SO hard that the rain
would have run of as fast as 1t fell,
causing washes on the hillsides, tearing
our bitches and bridges and otherwise
causing untold damage"
Stewart Whaley, course supervisor at
Washington, said the same thing, point
ing out that the rains which fell yes
terday and through most OF last night
are iuEt what is needed to soften the
course and yet not cause washes. And
when 1t rains hard how the rain pours
of those hills at Washington. Great
washouts come after heavy shower,
bitches fill up and run awry and
violent Thunderstorm on any hilly
course, such as Washington, causes lots
of damage 1t may take two or three
days for the grass to come back, and 1t
may not come back for some time. but
there is no doubt that rain yesterday
and last night was just what the doc
tor ordered for the ailing golf courses.
Out at Columbia plans are in the
making for changing three greens dur
Clyde B. Asher chairman of the Greens
Committee, shortly. The greens which
may be changed during the Winter are
the ninth, tenth and seventeenth. The
last two have not been changed in
more than a decade, while various rea-
sons prompt the suggested change at
the ninth, where only a few spots on
the green will take a cup. It is pro-
posed TO make the tenth green pla-
teau green, where the second shot must
carry TO the putting surface.
More than 40 Washington Golf and
Country Club golfers are expected TO go
over to Columbia on Sunday for lunch
and golf, as guests of as many mem
bers OF the Columbia club. The party
is being arranged by Miller B. Stevin-
son, captain of the Columbia team, but
the contest will not be a formal team
affair. 1t Will be more in the nature
of q group of men from one club get
ting together with their ''buddies" from
another neighboring club. The WASH
ington golfers-are expected to be at Co
lumbia at $50 for lunch.
Kza nIhtgN nknHrrEnR NNE