Evening star., 1939-06-13
Great Deuce on No. 4
Real Crusher Thai
Gets Byron Title
Loser Often Plagued by
Rivals OutIundish Iona
Shots in Big Meets
BY GAYLE TALBOT,
Associated Press Sports Writer.

hSooSidIcu 1Icoo 0poItS VTltcI
PHILADELPHIA, June 13-When
the final history of golf is written by
the great official scorer. there should
be somewhere near the front spe-
cial section devoted to Craig Wood,
the man who came closer to winning
more big championships than any
divot digger who ever lived. And
who continued to smile as he went to
the next tee
Craig completed his reverse grand
slam" yesterday when he lost by
three strokes to young Byron Mel
son in the second 18-hole playoff
for the national open title at the
Spring Mill course For 70 holes
of the tournament proper and
through Sundays sun-scorched
round the 37-year-old "never won"
battled the new champion stroke
for stroke. Finally, as Nelson
pounded out 70 yesterday, Wood
went down fighting to the last ditch
and bunker.
Cheerful in Defeat.
Wood now has lost playoffs for
the four greatest titles in reach OF
professional. Denny Shute out
lasted him in the British open. Paul
Runyan beat him in a 38-hole final
for the P. G.. A. crown. Gene Sara
zen shot his famous double eagle"
to tie Wood in the Augusta Masters
and then trim him in the playof1.
Yesterday Craig must have drained
the last, bitter dregs, but he en-
tered the locker room with a quip
on his lips.
Nelson, of the youthful "royal
family" of American golf, was ex-
planning exultantly from an adjoin-
ing bench that he thought he had
won the playoff on the 14th hole,
where he sank 10-footer to go 3 up.
Nope, it wasn't there" said
Wood. TT was those holes in one
he shot into me right at the start"
He was right. Nelson practically
stiffened his man before the battle
was well under way. A brilliant
birdie 3 on the third hole and then
sensational eagle 2 on the 453-
yard fourth-a one-tWo punch that
Joe Louis would have envied-put
him four strokes ahead of Wood
and virtually erased any doubt of
the outcome.
Not that Wood didn't fight back.
For the remaining IA holes he actu-
ally outscored Nelson by a stroke.
But Nelson knew he had his man,
and he never left him real open
ing. He declined to blow"
Wood seems doomed to be plagued
by the outlandish long shots his op-
ponents sink in the final stages of a
tournament AS most will remem-
ber he already was in the clubhouse
celebrating his victory at Augusta
when Sarazen holed his famous
double eagle" on the 18th to catch
him.
Deuce Is Real Crusher.
This time it was in the third
round on Saturday morning th"t
Nelson, apparently running we'll OUT
of the money, holed his second shot
on the 384-yard third. With that
he suddenly caught fire. came back
with 68 in the afternoon to land
in three-way tie with Wood and
Denny Shute at the end of 72 holes,
and then went on steadily through
two tense extra rounds to win.
Nelson's deuce on the fourth yes
terday was real crusher. Wood
had outdriven him a good 40 yards.
Byron cranked up and hit beau-
tiful iron that stayed right on the
pin 200 yards away, landed at the
green's edge and rolled on up to
nestle against the pin. Wood walked
onto the green, gave the pin a rap
with his putter and the ball clunked
into the hole.
Nelson Great Iron Player.
The crowd around the green let
out roar heard at the clubhouse
over a mile away and Wood walked
of the green again a beaten man.
Nelson was heavily backed in the
tournament at 10 to l. He is
long, tall ex-Texan, inclined to be
sober, but pleasant enough. His first
professional job was at Texarkana,
Tex, and then he was taken under
the wing of George Jacobus, presi-
dent of the P. G. A., at Ridgewood,
N. j.
Last February he set world rec
ord for P. G.. A. tournament play
when he won a 54-hole tournament
at Phoenix with rounds of 68-65-65
on par 72 course. Tommy Armour
says he is the greatest iron player
in the world today. He was men,
ber of the American Ryder Cup
team that invaded England in 1887
and shot the best score of any of
the Americans in the British Open
L.. O.