Evening star., 1939-04-02
Golf King Of Capital
Rated Best Player
Ever al 6. u.
John to Tune His Game
In South for Defense
Of College LoureIs
BY WALTER McCALLUM.

BY WALTER McCALLUM.
That chunky red-headed kid who
holds the District amateur cham
pionship-Johnny Burke by name-is
going down to Pinehurst this week
to play little golf before the open
ing of the college competitive sea-
son. With him will go Billy Shea
the tall Congressional kid, and
Charley Pettijohn, who is a pretty
fair golfer in his own right.
John Burke hasn't played in a
lot of golf tournaments around
Washington. AS I recall it, he has
played only in two or three. In one
of them he won the qualifying medal
In another he won the District
championship. He holds the ma
tional intercollegiate golf cham
pionship. which means he is the
top golfer among all the college
boys of tthe land where there are
some very good club swingers.
Some day Johnny Burke is going
to win the national amateur cham
pionship. He holds the Rhode Is
land amateur title and he has won
everything else to be won around
the Boston-Providence sector. where
he assaults par during the summer.
But around Washington John hasn t
played lot of golf. They keep him
pretty busy with his studies at
Georgetown University and he
doesn't have the time.
THEY'LL Be After John.
Burke will play No. l for the
Georgetown University golf team
this year. which means that every
youngster from Princeton, Cornell,
Penn, Penn State and the other COL
leges in the Southern" half of the
loop will be burning for a crack at
the scalp of the intercollegiate
champ. That means that John had
better be on his stick, for he has
pride, too.
But Johnny Burke is no links lily,
born to have season or two and
then fade away. Around 81 years
of age. he is just about at the crest
OF a golf career that sooner or later
will find the Providence sorrel- top
rated as the top amateur golfer of
the land. For I'm going to step out
on the limb and predict that before
many years have passed John Burke
is going to win the amateur cham
pionship.
The kid really is terrific. If you
haven't seen the distance he mauls
those tee shots you haven't any
idea how good he is. He would not
be a long way back of Snead were
those two to hook up in a driving
duel.
Best Hoya Ever on Links.
Years back they used to put
Maurice j. Mccarthy on a pedestal
at Georgetown for his golf deeds
Maurice also won the intercollegiate
title and has piled up quite a record
of links victories. But I think John
Burke today is a better golfer than
Maurice Mccarthy was in 1927,
when Maurice was at his best.
You couldn't prove it because even
though Maurice still is good enough.
he is II or 13 years older than
Burke. And they still pay off on
youth in golf tournaments.
Maybe putt John blew on the
18th green changed the course of
the amateur championship of 1888
for Johnny Burke and Willie
Turnesa. They met in the first
round up there at Oakmont, and
Willie was 2 up playing the short
18th. There John had putt to
win the hole and blew it.
Had he made it he might have
licked the present amateur cham
pion and changed the entire course
of the tournament. But John won't
admit that He's taciturn red
head who doesn't say much about
his golf or himself.
Leads District Field.
So John Burke will be the target
for a lot of college golfers this
year, long before they get the inter-
collegiate title tournament itself
under way Any kid who whips him
in college competition will be a big
shot. You can hear them on the
campus: There goes Jimmy Nc
Swat. He licked the intercollegiate
champion"
But I don't think it will happen.
Johnny Burke has more on the ball
than any college kid playing the
game today. And if he defends his
District championship this year he
probably will win again.
Just now he looks the best amateur
golfer we have around town, with
Bobby Brownell, Roger Peacock and
Billy Shea about the only men who
could push him down to the last
putt.