Evening star., 1940-08-16
Divoteering Crusader
With Radical Ideas
Wakes Practical
Layout on Leo WoIper's,
Catering to Neophytes,
To Have Sond Greens
By WALTER McCALLUM.

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Carrying forward what up to now
has been a publicity barrage rather
than a direct attack, William r.
Stone. author Of American golf, in
ventor Of two-hole golf and other
methods Of playing the game in
tended to popularize it for the
masses. has started small links unit
near Washington. Stone has begun
installation of small course on
Leo Walper's driving range on the
East-West highway near Bethesda.
At the same time Stone issued an
other bulletin" introducing what
he calls sand green's" golf, a low
cost installation intended for begin
ners' play.
For several years now Bill Stone
has been issuing series of informa-
tive bulletins attacking golf as 1t
now is played as a wasteful and in
competently handled game. Among
other things Stone claims that Is
holes is too much; that elaborate
clubhouses are not necessary: that
night play is necessary, and that a
game played now by five million
Americans would be played by
double that number If his theories
we're put into practice. But Stone,
wealthy retired businessman, is
not willing to spend his own money
to try out his theories, or not enough
of it to demonstrate to the full his
radical ideas.
Has Own Swing Theories.
He is a member of at least three
private golf clubs around town, has
his own theories about the swing
and is a competent player at the
age of 60 years. I am convinced
after many talks with Bill Stone
that even though his ideas-or some
of them-may differ radically from
the ST. Andrews form of golf, and
in that way will be sure to find
opposition from many, he is sure
in his own mind that with his
night play, two-hole golf, and pos
sible formation of intercity leagues
for night play, he has the solution
for advancement of the game. 9th
ers are not so convinced, but Bill
Stone goes ahead putting in vast
amount of time and some money
into promotion of his pet project.
He has had some nibbles of in
terest from the United States Golf
Association and from the National
Golf Foundation. an organization
founded by Herb GRATIS and his
associates in Chicago. But in the
main Bill has padded his own
canoe. He is strictly an individual
ist. with the firm conviction that
out of his plans will come the saliva
ton of a game which he claims
now is too expensive for a majority
of people.
Perhaps Bill has something there.
So far his demonstrations have been
somewhat meager. They consist
only of an attempt to stage a team
match between amateurs and pros
at Indian Spring in the spring Of
1899 and the new layout he is
building on the restricted acreage
at Walper's course.
Sports people happen to be static
about new ideas. The inertia Of
the masses is something that can
be overcome only by complete
demonstration of something better.
That seems to be the main reason
two-hole golf, league play. night
play and the other schemes for
broadening of the game broached by
Bill Stone haven't swept the coun-
try as Tom Thumb golf went over in
1928, when a couple of Memphis boys
made million out of standard Tom
Thumb courses.
But I'm not interested in making
money" says Stone. Nor do I
want to undertake the superin-
tendency of construction and op-
Grafton of a lot of courses along
the lines l suggest" II Bill has
something in the various schemes
he proposes-and all of them are
feasible and practica-he might
form a company to promote some
construction work. Otherwise Bill
is wasting a lot of ftime-apparently.
That same inertia Of the golf masses
demands a demonstration of some
thing better.
Is Completely Sincere.
No crusader attempting to make
a complete change in anything ever
has been more sincere than Bill
Stone. The man is sure that in his
ideas he has the salvation of a game
which he claims is saddled with
burdensome debts. gaudy clubhouses
and much too elaborate facilities.
Furthermore, he isn't satisfied with
the fact that golf isn't now great
spectator sport Among his other
ideas would be seating arrange
ments for immense galleries to
watch night play and teams OF
professionals from many cities COM
peting in leagues patterned after
the big leagues of baseball.
But. after all, why do we have
l8 holes as the standard length
golf course? And why are traps
and green's built after standard pat
terms? Why are such elaborate and
expensive clubhouses built to sup
port memberships which find them
selves in the red after a few years?
These are the questions Bill Stone
would like to have answered.
Bills demonstration at Walper's
range is a two-hole unit with sand
greens, intended as a minor exam
pie of what can be done for mass
golf.