Evening star., 1940-01-02
The
SPORTLIGHT
SPORTS Events Run
To Form-UsuoIIy
BY GRANTLAND RICE,
Special Correspondent Of The Star.

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BY GRANTLAND RICE,
Special Correspondent Of The Star.
LOS ANGELES, Jan. 2 (N.A.NA).
Breaks in luck-curious twists
and turns of fate-these decided
many sports events and the
courses of the competitors-human
and equine-along the road that
stretched through 1899. But mostly
they ran to form-the ballplayers.
the fighters, the horses, the football
players, the golf players and the
tennis players.
In baseball the preseason dope
was that the Yankees and the Reds
would win the pennants-that the
Yankees would win by wide mar
gin, but that the Reds would have
to extend themselves to win.
When they had won and the
World Series was about to start
the Yankees were favored to win in
six games at most, with many of the
experts voting for four games.
Joe Louis, defending his title in
three major engagements-against
John Henry Lewis, Tony Galento
and Bob Pastor-was top-heavy
favorite.
Horse Rocine ond Polo
CIossics Were Forecast
Johnstown was picked to win the
Kentucky Derby. AS the campaign
wore on Challedon became recog-
nized as the best of the 3-year-olds.
AS such he was the choice over
Kayak II in the Pimlico Special.
The English polo team, presuma-
bly, the best mounted team that
Great Britain ever had sent to these
shores, prepared for nearly a year
for the matches at Meadow Brook.
Yet the Americans had the call in
advance of the matches.
The Ambers Armstrong fight
looked to be tossup. Armstrong
had won the first fight, with Ambers
closing fast. Nobody ever had beaten
Ambers twice. In this second en-
gagement the margin of Ambers
victory was five low punches thrown
by Armstrong.
AS the football season loomed a
Nationwide scanning of the out
look led to these conclusions:
Cornell in the Ivy League, Holy
Cross, Georgetown, Duquesne and
Carnegie Tech among the other
Eastern teams, Tennessee in the
Southeast, Texas A. and M. in the
Southwest, Ohio State, Northwest
ern and Michigan in the Big Ten;
Missouri and Oklahoma in the Big
Six and Southern California on the
Pacific Coast. Long-range predic-
ton on the Rose Bowl called for
Southern Cal to meet Tennessee.
Look that overland see how the
percentage ran.
lmponderobIes Are Couse
Of Upsets to the Dope
The answer is-and always will
be-that, in the main, men and
horses run to form. Not always, of
course. If they did, there would be
no fun in sports. Breaks-injuries
and other sorts-must have their
part in sports, where the results
hinge on a running horse, punch
or bounding ball.
When the upsetS come, the pub
lie likes to laugh at the dopesters
and mock them. Well, that's easy
enough to do. And the fellows
who are picking don't mind-or
shouldn't.
They've done the best they could
with facts and figures and past
performances-which are all that
they have to 60 by. They can tell
only what each competitor has done
in the past and, on that basis, can
predict only what he may do in
the future.
They can't foreSee the breaks-a
pitchers arm going lame, horse
getting pocketed at the start, STEP
ping into hole or tearing a
muscle, a fighter getting hit with a
stray punch or displaying hither-
10 unrevea1ed weakness against a
given opponent, forward pass
thrown too long or too short or
intercepted, a blocked kick or a
tumble.
First Louis vs.. SchmeIing
Fight Upset Is Explained
Take one of the great upsets Of
sports modern era-the first Louis
schmeling fight. When it was all
over it was easy enough to see why
Schmeling won. Louis had no de-
fense for a straight right hand and
when he was hurt his lack of ex-
perience helped to befuddle him.
He had come up too fast. He had
won his fights too easily. When
he was in trouble he didn't know
what to do.
But look at the men again as
they were before the fight. Louis
had the edge in youth, speed and
punching power. Schmeling had
been in virtual retirement a year
before that. At his best, he hadn't
been q great fighter. Louis had
knocked out Primo Carnera, Max
Baer, King Levinsky and Pauline.
True, there were no great fighters
on that list, but the manner in
which he had disposed Of them
indicated that he was a great
fighter.
Would you-or did you-bet on
echmeling that night?
woMENs COUNTRY CLUB LEAGUE
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