Evening star., 1938-12-29
Duncan Turned Trick
Is Years Ago, but
On Short Course
AbnormoIIy Low Cards
Are Development Of
Recent Campaigns
BY WALTER McCALLUM.

ny "AL1Eh MCCALLUW.
Steadily increasing standard OF
skill among the topnotch pro golfers
convinces Witty Cox-himself one OF
the best-that the day when 60 will
be broken in big tournament isn't
very far away. It hasn't been done
yet in any sanctioned tournament
in this country, but Wilfred insists
that one day In the not distant
future some pro is going to start
rapping in puts from anywhere
and post a 50 or better on the
scoreboard.
But of course it won't be on a
golf course like that No. 2 at Pine
hurst. It'll be on some layout where
there are a lot Of drive and pitch
holes says Cox. And it'll be In
the middle of summer when the
green's are watered and the fairWays
are fast"
Some years back Owen johnson
wrote a delightful little fantasy on
the unpredictable game of golf de-
scribing the adventures OF R. N.
Booverman, a good golfer who al
ways had a bad hole or two to
spoil his card. But one day Boo
verman had the dream round when
everything went right and he played
the course in even IS for 81.
Like a 4-Minute Mile.
There aren't any Boovermans
around nowadays, but there are
some gents like Sam Snead, Ralph
Guldahl, Byron Nelson, and flock
Of men who might burn up any
track any time they start.
Nor is it fantastic to imagine fairly
good golf courses like Indian Spring
and Kenwood might be played in
better than 60. You don't have to
go further than the twin 62s at
Indian Spring made by Roger Pea
cock, or the Gas recorded at Ken
wood by Al Houghton and Witty
Cox, or the 81 made by Houghton
at Washington, when the former
Maryland champ bagged nine par
nine birds. But a score below 60
In tournament would be like A.
minute mile by Cunningham or
a Lovelock, or l.31 mile by War
Admiral or Seabiscuit.
Mark what I say" continued
Witty. Some day one of these
long hitters like Snead is going to
get that ball rolling and snap
around some short course in SO or
better. He'll have to do some putt
ing, but there are lots of guys
around who can do it. 1t isn't un-
usual nowadays for good golfers
to roll around in % or % puts.
Consider that men like Snead and
some of the others whack those
pitch shots so close and make par-5
holes into easy Is and you'll see
where it's possible. Those short
par-5 holes around 435 yards are
too easy for those boys, if we take
par as a fixed yardstick of scoring"
Duncan Cards a 50.
twenty-five years ago George
Duncan scored So in a tournament
over little course in Switzerland.
But the layout was short and the
score was -poohed. They didn't
laugh so heartily when Aubrey
Boomer posted a 81 in the French
open few years back. The record
score for the United States open
championship today stands at 66.
Hagen did it in 1888 at North
Shore, Chicago, the same course
where next years amateur cham
pionship will be played Gene Sar-
azen did it to win in 1882. and Tom
Creavy tied it at Merton in 1884.
But the record for the open cham
pionship winning total stands at 281,
which is a shot over an average of
level 70 to the round. And the
record of 286 stood for 20 years, from
1916 when Chick Evans first did
it at Minikhada, to 1886, when Tony
Manero busted it by four shots at
Baltusrol. The next year at Oak
land Hills. Detroit. Ralph Guldahl
knocked a shot off and set the
present record of 281. And only a
little less than 10 years ago, at
Winged Foot, Bob Jones won his
third open championship with 294.
Low Scoring New Development.
Fast scoring in major golf tourna-
ments has been a development only
Of the last five or six years. But the
scoring isn't as fast as it is going to
be, If you take WHY'S word for it.
Its been only few years when the
man who broke 70 in the open
championship was labeled the super
golfer said the gent from Brook
lyn. But under-7O rounds are
common nowadays. To win you have
to have round or two below that
score And it won't be long before
the hot boys start showing that score
below IS, and when somebody knocks
it down to below so. It probably
won't come in the national open for
long time, but it will come"
I wonder what that makes of the
fellows who call it a good day when
they bust 100? Or whether the
United States Golf Association some
day might not establish a real par
standard that will stop all the low