Evening star., 1940-04-25
New Site Likely
For Golf Event
AT Later Date
Old Point Comforts
Cancellation Result
Of Harper Bon
BY WALTER McCALLUM.

A group of dazed Washington and
Baltimore golf professionals today
tried without much success to piece
together the frayed picture of
tournament for a thousand bucks
that didn't come off.
Hastily cancelling travel reser-
vations that found some of them
en- route to the scene of the
scheduled Middle Atlantic P. G. A.,
championship at Old Point Com
fort, Va.-and few already on the
scene-the local pros still were all
at sea today as to the real reasons
for cancellation of the tourney
scheduled for tomorrow and Satur-
day. With only few exceptions the
Washington links mentors had
planned to play in the tournament.
The cancellation was announced
by the Chamberlin Hotel-sponsor
of the affair-late yesterday after
Bobby Cruickshank, Richmond pro-
fessional, had organized virtual
boycott of Virginia pros against
participation in the tourney unless
Chandler Harper of Portsmouth,
Va, was permitted to play.
Affair May Be Revived.
Meanwhile hope was held out to-
day that after all the fuss over the
application for P. G. A. membership
of Harper-already O. KID by the
Middle Atlantic Association and
awaiting approval of the national
body-has died down, the tourna-
ment sponsors again will revive the
affair and it may be held at later
date.
Ralph Beach of Baltimore, presi-
dent of the Middle Atlantic, P. G.. A.,
said at the Chamberlin last night
that the tournament will be played
at later date, but probably not at
Old Point Comfort.
Sidney Banks, managing director
of the Chamberlin, announced with
drawal of the $1,000 prize money
and cancellation of the tourney after
Cruickshank had wired leading Vlr-
ginia professionals urging their CO.
operation in boycotting the affair
unless Harper was allowed to play.
Beach Stands Pat.
Beach sat tight and said he stood |
upon the rules of the national body,
which provide, he added, that 80
days must elapse between the time
the application is filed and its final
Endorsement. Harper's application
was received by him. he said, on
April II, and was o. ks by the sec
tional body last Monday.
Leo Walper, 1887 and 1888 cham
pion, and Lewis Worsham, one of
the dark horses from Washington,
were at Old Point Comfort when
the cancellation was announced.
They hastily made preparations to
come back home as other local pros,
among them defending champion
Cliff Spencer, George Diffenbaugh,
AL Jamison and others, cancelled
travel reservations.
HOught0n HOneymOOning.
One of the unusual angles of the
situation was that Al Houghton,
former Chamberlin pro, now located
at Beaver Dam, who was married
yesterday in Alexandria, had in
tended to honeymoon during the
tourney, and had left for downstate
Virginia without knowing of the
cancellation. It was Houghton who
interested the sponsors in organiz-
ing the tourney.
Back of it all is the dour-faced
picture of Chandler Harper, good
rrn1for u-IN y,ojrI,t uyiy, |
claimed he was kept out of the
tourney by bias among the Wash
ington and Baltimore pros, who, ac-
cording to statement made by the
Portsmouth boy, feared he might
win the money, and thus kept him
from becoming eligible. Beach
characterized this statement as
ridiculous and claimed his hands
were tied by the rules of the national
P. g. A.
The whole situation amounts to
major rumpus within the sectional
association, and bears strange
resemblance to the incident at
Pomonok, N. Y, last summer, when
group within the P. G. A. refused
the entry to the national champion
ship of Densmore Shute because it
was a few hours late. The tourna-
ment pros threatened to boycott
the affair, the opposing group was
overruled, and Shute played. In
this case the Virginia pros threaten
ed to boycott the tourney.
Lack of Entries Given as Reason.
Wharton Pritchard, manager of
the Chamberlin Country Club, gave.
"lack of entries" as the reason for
cancellation of the tourney. He
(Coo c0yE Dooa con |