Evening star., 1937-11-05
PUTT CLOSER BALL
IN CASE OF STYM|E
Will Prevent Cleaning of
Muddy PiII-Barnett Is
Envied Mentor.
BY WALTER r. McCALLUM.

n RITISH professional golfers are
x coming into line with the lat
est thought in medal play golf
in the United States.
The British P. G. A. announces that
IN all stroke-play competitions held
under its jurisdiction in 1888 no ball
may be lifted on the putting green.
This is in line with the new policy
OF the United States Golf Association,
in effect this year, which did away
with the lifting and marking of the
near ball. and also did away with the
possibility of unauthorized wiping OF
mud from the ball.
1t also brings the two major golfing
countries of the world into virtual
agreement on the mechanics of putting
IN so far as lifting the ball is con-
cerned, and does away with the con-
tinual lifting and markings of golf
balls, one of the more irksome and
time-loSing matters in medal play
competitions.
All through 1887 the United States
Golf Association recommended to Sec
tional associations that the near ball
be putted first in medal play events
Such procedure held good here dur
Ing the qualifying rounds for the anna
teur and open championships at Five
Farms and Chevy Chase.
Gets Line on Green.
IT WORKED out alright except that
in some cases the man putting the
near ball was required to stand on the
line OF the farther ball, and possibly
1t did help the man putting the farther
ball to see the roll of the green more
clearly. But over any stretch of COM
petition in works as well for one COM
petitor as another.
The whole procedure is in line with
common practice in friendly golf
matches, where A, having putted up
within or feet of the hole, knocks
ball in, or misses it, to get it out OF
the way of the farther ball.
The rule covering the case states
"The competitor whose ball is farther
from the hole may have the ball which
is nearer to the hole lifted or PLAYED
at the option of the owner. If the
latter refuses to comply with the rule
when requested to do so, he shall be
disqualified
Now disqualification would be a
rough penalty in P. G. A. champion
ship, for example. so it seems fair to
ask that the near ball be putted out
Barnett Is Fortunate.
nNLY one Washington pro will have
full-time winter club Job this
year Bob Barnett, Chevy Chase men
tor. will be the only pro from a local
club to spend the winter at one OF
the swankier clubs in Florida. He
will take Lewis Worsham, his assist
ant, with him.
Roland Mackenzie. Congressional
Country Club pro, has given up the
winter job at Ponte vedra which
he has held for three years and will
make the tournament circuit with the
rest of the topnotchers. So will Witty
Cox OF Kenwood, Leo Walper and
Cliff Spencer, the latter two without
club jobs.
1t there's one thing a pro would
rather have than the open Champion
ship it's q good winter job in Florida
at one of the more solid country
clubs. where he'll get out of the cold
and snow and be around some hot
spot like Miami or Palm Beach.
Mackenzie gave up the Ponte We
dra job because it didn't pay enough
money and because it didn't give him
enough opportunity to play in tour
naments against good opposition.
So now Claggett Stevens, the Rock
vile youngster, holds down the Job,
and it's good job for a lad Just
breaking into the pro game. But for
an established pro like Mackenzie
with a real future in the competitive
game it didn't sit so well.