Evening star., 1939-01-03
Storthed Links Keep
Major Golf Meets :.
From Capital ~
U. S. 6. A. Rejects Other
Than Wotered Courses
For Title Journeys
BY WALTER McCALLIM.

Prospects of Washington gettin.
a major mems championship within
the next few years are pretty slim,
although the National Capital may
we'll become the venue of the wor1i-
ems title tournament within a space
of five years.
At the same time one of the larger
links events of 1910 may come to
this area, if the bid of Baltimore
Country Club for the Walker Cup
matches in 1910 is accepted. The
bid already is in and the Baltimore
club has good chance of obtaining
the international classic, provided
the United States Golf Association
does not go back to the old proviso
in the deed of gift of the Walker
Trophy that all matches played in
the United States shall be staged
over the National Links on Long
Island. -
Two factors initiate against
Washington getting major mems
championship. First and most Inn
portant of these is that the United
States Golf Association, while it has
not said so in any public declaration,
Is committed to policy of playing
the big title tournaments on courses
which are artificially watered. 80
Two Clubs Spurn Journeys. 80
Only two golf courses around
Washington have systems for fair
way watering. These are at Chevy
Chase and Columbia, and both clubs
are reluctant to turn over their
courses for the considerable period
of time which major champion
ship consumes. They have been ap-
preached several times on these
matters and have consistently said
NO" although if they were directly
asked by the U. S. G.. A. to take g
major tourney undoubtedly they
would accept. The last major golf
affair held around Washington was
the Curtis Cup matches, between
womens teams from the United
States and Great Britain, in 1894.
The national open championship
was played at Columbia in 1921.
Under the new policy to be adopt.
ed by the U. S. G.. A. for the 1899
tournament, of holding the wom.
ems championship in. August, there
isn't any chance of a Washington
club getting the tourney as long
as that policy holds. Washington
is too hot in August for a major
affair and the courses are not at
their best. A major title affair in
Washington in August would be
out of the question. -
Judged by every precedent. the
U. S. G. A. has put the South
(Which means the Washington
area behind the eight ball in the
matter of major championships.
Baltimore marks the farthest south
for the amateur and no move has
been made fer the open since Walter
Harlan brought it to Columbia in
1921, and for the only time in his
tory President of the United
States (Warren G. Harding) passed
out the prize checks. r.
South Eager to Get Meets.
There are plenty of golf courses
in the South where a national cham
pionship would be welcomed and
where the folks would go to town
for such an affair Among the re-
sort courses you could name would
be such fine layouts as the No. Q
course at Pinenurst, the Cascades
course at Hot Springs or the Green
brier course at White Sulphur
Springs. Atlanta would go wild
over national, and Washington
would take big tournament to its
heart, in a big way. Probably the
tournament gate here would be as
big as that at the open champion
ship at Denver in 1888, which was
one of the biggest since 1880.
Championship golf as it is played
nowadays is a big gate attraction
and the U. S. G. A. properly picks
its spots with an eye to the poten-
tial gate. But with the situation
as it is around the Capital it looks
as if it will be long time before
Washington gets major affair.
Congressional Country Club would
be a great spot for big tourna-
ment, but the Congressional course
is not watered. That in itself tosses
out Congressional, although that
club is equipped in every other
way to do an outstanding job as q
tournament sponsor.
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