Evening star., 1938-06-08
CALLS MITCHELL
BEST WOOD SHOT
cLeod ExtoI|s Old British
Golf Star-Touts caddie
at Columbia Club.
BY WALTER McCALLUM.

who Is, in your opinion, the finest
wooden-club player you ever saw?" We
asked Fred Mcleod the question and
then ducked, because we knew, from
old experience in asking Fred questions
like that. 1t probably would be Mac
Smith or some other Scot. But sur
prisingly enough Fred ducked the Scot
tish angle, forgot racial differences and
went across the border for the guy he
claims to be the finest wooden-club
player he ever peeked at.
ABE Mitchell, by long way" said
Freddie. With Tommy Armour right
around the top and Bobby Jones not
far away, and Harry Vardon pushing
them all for accuracy and distance
when he needed it. But Mitchell had
1t all-dlstance such as no man of his
time achieved, and with that distance
the most astonishing accuracy"
But right here at Columbia we have
a boy who would push Abe to the limit
Tor distance, and not be too far, away
from the accuracy angie. Billy King.
a colored caddie here, is the Longest
hitter OF golf, ball around today and
you can toss in Jimmy Thomson and
Sam Snead against. him for my dough
any time you want"
Mitchell Almost a Myth. -
To most modern, golfers Abe Mitchell
Is more or less a myth. But around
1919 and the five years after that Abe
was hot stuff with the archaic Ito us)
wooden clubs of that era, before steel
shafts came out of the fertile brain
OF Allan Lard, the Chevy Chase in
ventor. Taciturn Abe came out of
the collieries of central England to
astonish the British with the power
and straightness of his wooden-club
play around 1917. He turned pro in
1920 and Immediately became a power
in the language of swatting golf ball.
The old timers who watched the
open championship at Columbia in
1921 still recall with awe the big
poke Abe cut loose on the 18th hole.
Abe thumped the ball right over the
17th green out of bounds and took
on the hole. But the weather was
too hot. Abe stuck to his qalluses
and heavy shirts and the heat wore
him down. He didn't finish anywhere
in the championship and he never
did much in America. That carry
to the 18th Is exactly 292 yards, from
hilltop to hilltop" said Freddie. And
it's all carry. You can't roll I'D there.
But saw Billy King playing the 18th
one day, knock one over onto the 18th
green, 40 yards beyond
Jones Gobbled Distance.
Around 1927, when he won the open
championship, Tommy Armour could
make a wooden club talk. You hear
of Tom being the iron-master, but
Tom himself says in those days he
could play the woods much better
than the irons. Bob Jones slaughtered
the par 5 holes 10 years ago with
two distance-eating pokes, which, if
they didn't land the ball on the green
itself, left him within the chipping
area. Harry vardon, the old master
Of the years between 1896 and 1920,
was long enough and straight as
string. But Tommy Armour probably
was the finest wooden club player in
the world around 10 years back. One
day Tom was playing Congressional
with Jack Gilmore. The 18th hole
then was, and Is today, around 385
yards, with slight rise to the green,
But the old small, heavy ball was in
use and there was a little breeze
blowing from behind the tee. BET
you five can make par on this
hole and boot shot," said Tom.
you are on" said Gilmore. Par of
the hole is A.
Tom took that big 14-ounce driver,
pulled one in from the right side,
where the ball got long run up the
slope and whacked it onto the front
edge of the green, IS feet from the
cup. He booted 1t up within yards
with the toe of his brogan and putted
it in for bird 8. "Thatll be a lesson
to me- said Gilmore, mot to bet
this. guy on wooden club shots"
Tommy could make . wooden club
talk sweet music In those days. He
still can, but he isn't as good as
he was.