Evening star., 1940-12-22
Pros and Amateurs
Struggle Nightly
For Half Dollars
No Distinctions Drawn
As 'ChiseIers' Bottle;
Weather Is Ignored
BY WALTER McCALLUM.

nc Hdy uOt lldVe d SHINY SeG OF
golf clubs, or next weeks board bill,
but your run-of- the mine public
links golfer cat Rock Creek Park
anyhow will not miss his daily
round of golf.
When the private courses around
town are congested with four four
somes on the course these pre-
Christmas days, Rock Greek Parks
stalwarts turn out nearly every day,
big crowd of sweatered linksmen.
bundled up against the cold, and
shooting hot golf on that little par
68 layout.
No holds are barred and profess
sional golfers are welcomed into the
circle of regular Rock Greek course
habitues, as they pair off in best
ball foursomes and two-ball four
somes for quarters and half dollars.
You won't find the names of many of
them in the social register and some
according to Course Manager Tom
my Doerer, will give up the chance
for a square meal to wager six
bits on a golf match. while others
will pass up new pair of shoes for
the same thing.
"These fellows really love golf,"
said Doerer. "Of course all of them
do not play every day. But we can
count on about 20 every day the
weather is even passably good. ANA
teurs and pros are all jumbled up
In these games, and some of the
amateurs have become so good and
have such knowledge of the tricks
of this course they'll take on the
pros even.
High Grade Golfers in Group.
"We've had Cliff Spencer. a good
golfer; Mel Shorey. George Diffen-
baugh, Levi Yoder and Al Price in
these matches, playing for half dol
lars like any one else All of those
fellows are pros, and do OK. in any
competition. But they're all alike
here" The more or less regular
players at Rock Creek Park include
Louis Pagan, Volney Burnett. Ernie
Garlen, Leland Abrams, DR.. Thomas
White, AL Miller, Arthur Mess. Ar
thur Carroll, George NARROW, AL
Williams, Charles Williams Bob
Leapley, Don Sullivan, Thomas
Cook, Len Blubond and John Lever.
Others drop in from time to time
and play even with men you never
hear about in tournaments.
"It isn't any joke about some of
the lads betting their dinner money.
Or their board money" said Doerer.
''They don't play for much dough.
but those half dollars mean a lot
to them. I've known some Of 'em
to go without new pair of shoes to
bet on a golf match"
They call themselves "chislers"-
with laugh. They admit that their
stakes wouldn't hurt lot OF people
blessed with more folding money.
But they get a great kick out OF
those matches. They happen to be
the towns most rabid links fans.
Cold, biting weather doesn't halt
their daily excursions. They laugh
at rain and their knowledge OF the
kicks and bounces on those tricky
putting green's would bring blush
to the ears of Snead or Nelson.
"The National Open champ
wouldn't be a cinch to win up here"
said Doerer. WED be glad to have
him. And there are lot of men
around here who couldn't break 80
on a harder course who would be
glad to play him even here. We
don't bar anybody in these matches
And so the fun" wakes fast and
furious. But the boys aren't making
any important Christmas money
betting half bucks.
Skinker. Bogart Face South.
Earle Skinker and Ralph Bogart,
Washington's pair of promising
amateur youngsters. are planning
trips south in February. Bogart ex-
poets to graduate from Wilson High
School, and If he grabs that diploma
he says he will play in a couple OF
the tournaments around st. Angus
tine, among them the championship
of club champions and the amateur
pro best ball affair. Many OF the
local club champs have been invited
to play In that one.
Virgil CBuck) Worsham. the
smooth swinging youngster who won
the Middle Atlantic P. G. A. as
sistants' championship and became
q COB in the Navy last month. hasn't
vet gone to sea. Buck is at the
Philadelphia Navy Yard. His golf
clubs are slowed away.
Leo Walper, Bethesda pro, is on his
way West for the California tourna-
men season. Leo plans to play in
all the Pacific Coast events, starting
with the $4,000 Los Angeles Open
That is, if you can play golf under
those conditions. The program for
the L. A. event has pictures of some
luscious movie eyefuls in bathing
suits billed as scorers for the pros.
A couple of shifts in the pro golf
picture around Washington next
year are in the making, according to
the usual backstairs rumors, which
haven't yet been verified. One OF
them involves reigning pro cham
pion.
Another hearing in the seemingly
endless legal moves to reorganlze the
Congressional Country Club will
come Tuesday at Baltimore, when a
Federal court will hear arguments on
the petition of second trust note
holders. Final hearing on the pro-
posed reorganization plan for the
club will be held early in January.
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