Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-07-02
GOLF BALL BURSTS
AFTER TEE WALLOP
British Ryder Cup Captain
Ordered to Bed-Voigt,
KirkWood Out.

INVERNESS COUNTRY CLUB,
Toledo, Ohio, July 2.-"The
fellow who can knock the ball
around in 900 strokes will win.
An average of 721a strokes"
Freddie Mcleod Of Columbia,
the oldest ex-open golf champion
Of the United States, was speak
ing. Freddie won the champion
ship back in 1908, and as he drove
on early today in this thirty-f1fth
national open championship his
mind must have strayed back to
the days when the championship
was more than a set of timber
lads trying to get ahead in the
world by winning themselves a
golf championship.
THE fellow with the thickest head
and the strongest pair Of wrists will
win" Thus spoke j. Monro Hunter,
the big hitter from Indian Spring to-
day Is he poled out his opening tee
shot In this torrid little chase that
every one admits is as open as the tenn
perature Is high. Leo Diegel, the human
Jumping jack Of golf thinner and
thinks the winning score will be below
200, and he may be right. But a real
look at the scene Of the championship
and the ensemble Of perspiring brows,
heated nerves and jumping muscles
would lead any one to believe that the
guy who can break 295 will win the
hottest championship on record.
It's Really Warm.
They talk about the heat at Inter-
lachen last year and the heat at Wor-
cester back In 1928, but they haven't
Yelt anything like this Middle Western
heat, which bears down and in and
around on all Of the competitors and
spectators alike until the wariest neo-
phyte In the gallery Is convinced that
any man who can play u holes OF golf
In weather like this should have the
championship without further argu-
ment.
The field had narrowed down to IA
hardy gents as the open championship
started over 1verneSs' parched fa1rTays
today, 80 parched that We saw q golf
ball, hit straight and true from the tee,
70 into mushy rubber half way down
fts course and finish 100 yards down
the sun-scorched fairway a lop-sided
CI1AuB OI uoPPIlS suIOd PSLCLto oIIu ~
Der string. You know it's hot when
golf bail goes bolshevik to that degree.
Charlie Whitcombe. the British
Ryder Cup team captain, has been
ordered to bed by his doctor-to keep out
Of the broiling sun at all costs George
Voigt, former Capital amateur, will not
play. Neither will Joe Kirkwood. And
II you think the rest Of the British are
enthusiastic about the heat that en-
velops Iverness today you believe in
fairies too.
DlfRcult TO Breathe.
washinfton in its hottest days never
knew such enervating heat as this
Crowds gathered on street corners
searching for breath Of breeze that is
not to be had. Water was shut off from
the golf course for drinking purposes
for fear Of typhoid. Contestants
keep the perspiration up. using resin
On the grips Of their clubs to prevent
them from flying out Of sweat-moist-
ened hands far down the fatrway. At
4 o'clock yesterday the thermometer on
The exposed side Of the locker room
read ia In the sun: The Official tenn
pNgature was 80. And II you like to
play golf IN weather like that you must
have q thick skull
Nevertheless, there are IA men, some
with thick and some with thin skulls,
out there today trying to win this ma
tional open championship and our guess
Is that II one of them manages to
shoot four rounds of 70, he will win.
Jumpy nerves are bad enough under
the ordinary championship strain. and
when you combine them with heat like
this, when every man feels like snap
ping at his best friend, anything may
happen. That is why, in a few words,
this championship is strictly an open
Our bunch IS that some comparative
unknown Is going to knock the dope
for row Of ice cubes and win. Some
one like Billy Burke or Denny Shute
or Whiffy Cox. Not Horton Smith or
neat OF this variety, although he treats
It with his usual nonchalance. Horizons
game has gone hooey, and If he wins
ne VIII have to come back to shape
mighty fast.
Saraxen Formidable.
Gene Sarazen looks good to win, and
II the little Italian-American from New
York displays today, tomorrow and
showed in a friendly round late yester-
day. he will romp home Gene likes
clustering last rounds, but he will have
them here from first to last II he wins.
Sc far he looks like the single best
bet in the field. Tommy Armour?
Well. Tommy has changed his putting
stances and has gone back to that old
mallet-headed wooden putter he used
three or four years ago He Is knock
ing them in the hole fairly well, but
Tommy doesn't like heat
Fred Mcleod looks like q boiled lob
eter after two rounds of golf in this
atmosphere. Freddie doesn't string along
with the boys who think 200 will be
broken. TOO much bad rough, too
many tricky places around these green's
and two much grief possible anywhere
along the route" so says Freddie. the
veteran Of rs national championships.