Evening star., 1933-09-27
World-Famous Strain.

BOUT IL years back the late DR..
n C V. Piper discovered on the old
fourth green at the Washington
Golf and Country Club new kind OF
grass, which he carefully transplanted
in the nurseries OF the Arlington experi.
mental farm. where so much work OF
value to golf course in the United
States is being done.
Out of these few blades of grass came
the now world-renowned washington
strain of bent, one of the two favorltes
of the greenkeepers both for its resist
ence to brown patch and its generally
excellent qualities as putting green
surface. The other favorite Is the well
established and long-known metropoll-
tan bent. If you pinned the green
keepers down they would propaoly
agree that metropolitan bent, II kept
clipped closely and well top-dressed,
makes the best putting surface Of all.
One after another, sir green
keepers in charge OF 10 clubs in
this section admitted that metro
politan and Washington bents
make the best putting green
grasses to be found dny,ohere.
bermuda? They scoffed, politely. to
be sure, but nevertheless they scof1ed.
''It has too short season. they de-
clared in chorus. 1T makes bumpy
putting surface. It terminates TOO
fast. it is too coarse and 1t Is this ana
that which no good putting. green
should be-" No man can doubt, after
talking to a group of them. as did,
that they are strongly "agin' Bermuda
and very much in favor OF bent.
Likes Metropolitan Bent.
= ISTEN to R. P. Hines, the hkeable
little chap who is in charge OF the
- courses at Manor and Congress
sional. "I have had more success with
metropolitan at both these courses than
with any other kind Of grass, Hines
SAYS. 1--WE all have our troubles with
brown patch, but If We watch oent
greens carefully we can keep 1t down
to the point where it doesn't interfere
with putting. Metropolitan bent, IN
nv opinion, is the easiest grass to keep,
and 1 regard a seeded green as a better
green than one planted by the stolon
method. for the reason that 1t doesnt I
have a bad grain. Metropolitan is the
strongest grower and Eelieve the best
grass"
O.P. Fits, greenkeeper at CO.
Iumbia, saws he has no choice be-
tween Metropolitan and Wash
ington, but he holds up his hands
in horror at the mention Of Ber-
muda.
"You can't have good Bermuda greens
here" Fits says. "The season Is 700
short. it makes too stubbly a surface; I;
in other words, 1t can't be done. At Co
lumbia I have had the usual brown
patch trouble this year, but only one
of my greens has given me any serious
trouble. That Is the sixth, where at
mospheric conditions make 1t hafo 70
L frnn nj YlQfnh
Reginald P. Giddings. who takes care
of the courses at Gibson Island and
Annapolis Roads, said both his lay.
out are planted to metropolitan, ano
he wants no finer grass to propagate
and keep in condition. Metropolitan
Giddings finds. Is most resistant to
brown patch, and all in all makes the
best putting surface all the time.
Produces Fine Greens.
OWN at Belle Haven where Tommy
Ryan holds forth as gree2keeper-
- professional, the big gent with the
Irish name, who has gained quite q
reputation as a greenkeeper, says MS
green's have been dcwn for 10 years
without trouble with single one.
They are mostly metropolitan" Ryan
said. But I find I must keep 1t well
mistake for greens committees to spare
top-dressing. Good putting green's need
plenty of 1t, for grass feeds at the top,
and after all, the roct layer is not
very thick"
Bob Scott, the affable Caledonian
who did such a fine job in preparing
the Five Farms course for the national
amateur championship last year, casts
his vote in favor of bent. of either OF
the two strains. But Bob also believes
that Poa Annua makes fine putting
arface in the Spring and Fall.
j The old course of the Baltimore
Country Club has a lot OF Pod
Annud on its putting green's ana
ne kno,u OF no better green's in
the Spring than those.
Dick Scctt CT Polling Road is lucky
His greens have let of velvet bent
in them-undoubtedly the finest grass
of them all, but q grass particularly
hard to keep in this climate. That DICE
has been able to keep the Rolling ROAD
velvet bent greens in good condition Is
tribute to the men who built the
course and the care Scott takes Of them
"But think Washington and metro
politan make very fine green's" Scott
said. when reseed or replant,
use one or the other of them"
Several other greenkeepers aroune
Washington did not attend the SYM
postum at which the greenkeepers aired
their views on Bermuda, notably Dick
Watson of Chevy Chase, and Charles
Lettingham of Indian Spring But they
alsc, according to the others, would vote
in favor of Washington or mstropoli-
tan bent.