GOLF.

Press, Volume LX, Issue 18238, 24 November 1924, Page 10

GOLF.

NOTES OF THE DAY. (By "Jigger.") local club fixtures. Shirley—Saturday, November 29th: Second round 'semi-fin;ils) Dsnniston Cup. Saturday, December 6th: Final Denmston Cup. Saturday, December 13th: Jubilee Foursome Bogey handicap. Tuesday. "December 16th: Aunivemiry Day handicaps: open to all amateurs.

The Tuson Cup match, which was played on Saturday on the ITeretaunga links, between teams of the Christehureh Golf Club and the Wellington Golf Club, resulted in a . win for the Wellington Club by 7-J games to 44. The Christehureh Club held the Cup, having won the match played at Shirley last April, and had hopes of beinc able to retain possession of it in this contest, but the Wellington players proved too strong 'on their home links.

The match consisted of four fourball matches played on Saturday morning and eight single matches played in the afternoon. The day was perfect, although very hot and close, and the course was in-almost perfect condition. The only difficulty experienced by the Christehureh players was their inability to get in.touch with the putting greens, which puzzled most of '.them, especially as to approach shots.

Christehureh won three of tlio four four-ball matches,, but . only won • one and halved one of the singles. The' individual results were as follows, the Christehureh players being named first, in each instance: —

E. M. Macfarlane and A. L. Cropp.lost to A. D< S. Duncan and li. E. H. Balneavis—4 up and 2 to play. H. W. Macfarlane and R. A. Wilson beat J, B. Parker and B. , O. Chesney —2 up. C. W. Hodsdon and G. W. Haverfield beat J. D. G. Duncan and 0. J. Wilson —4 and 2. C. E. J. Ward and C. A. Quanebeat E. O. Hales and A. D. Morris —3 and 2. E. M. Macfarlane lost to A. D. S. Duncan—3 and 2. H. W. Macfarlane beat H. E, 11. Balneavis —6 and 5. A. L. Cropp lost to J. B. Parker—s and 3. E. A. Wilson lost to E. O. Chesney—- • 4 and 3. C. W. Hodsdon lost to J. D. G. Duncan —5 and 4. G. W. Haverfield lost to O. J. Wilson—' 2 and 1. C. E. J. Ward was all square with E. O. Hales. C. A. Quane lost to A. D. Morris—l down.

A Veterans' Match'was also played under the same conditions, the players on each side being 50 years of age or over. Heretaunga won this match by 8 games to 4. The individual results were as foll'ows, Christehureh players being named first: — W. P. Anderson and L. Bonnington lost . to D. M. Morgan and W. A. Kiely—--4 up and 2 to play. W. T. D. Harman and T. W. Woodroffe beat R. W. Kirkby and A. E. Whyte—l up. W. B. Purchas and C. .K. Sams beat W. E. Eeid and C. E. Richardson—--1 up. / 0. Wood and H. H. Knight lost to D. M. Findlay and Sir Kenneth Douglas.—4 and 3. tW. P. Anderson ; lost to D; M. Morgan : '—2 .down.. -. .• L. Bonnington lost to W. A. Kiely—- - 4: and 2: • • W. T. D. Harman lost to. R. W. Kirkby . —5 .and 4. T. W. Woodroffe lost to A. E. Whyte—--2 down. W. B. Purchas beat W. E. - Reid—4 and 3. O. K. Sams beat C. E.' Richardson—7 and 5. 0. Wood lost to D. M. Findlay—l down. H. H. Knight lost to Sir Kenneth Douglas—4 and 3.

A. E. Conway, now of tlie . Miramar Club, and .well-known to many Christchurch golfers, has been elected to the New Zealand Golf Council to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Mr W. Horton, who has gone to New York to a position in the Union Steamship Company's office there. .

At the recent meeting of the New Zealand Golf Council, the chairman, Mr-R. C. Kirk, reported at length upon his inspection of the Shirley links, with a view to the next championship being played here. His report was generally satisfactory. The question of the condition of the links appears .to be only a matter of the time of the year when the tournament is played. It is considered that late in September or up to the middle of October would be most suitable.

Last Monday I mentioned the establishment of a" Golf Annual, under ■ the auspices of the Golf Council. • A copy of the first issue has reached me, and it is a credit to both the editors and the publishers. I agree with what: one critic has said that it would' probably be better in book form tlian as it is in magazine form, but it is artistically and beautifully done, and the articles .are well written and most interesting.

The publication. purports to be an official and' permanent record of the game in 1924. It contains the names of the champions of the various clubs, both ladies' and men's, and it supplies adequate . accounts of the Dominion championship events, illustrated by a number of excellent photographs and pictures. An article is contributed by the chairman of the New Zealand Golf Council on the history of golf in ; New Zealand, which makes very good reading. In order .to justify the publication/ every golfer should procure a copy.

The recent rains have brought on a wonderful growth of grass and nearly all clubs are having their troubles with lone grass in the rough or outside the fairways. '' Divot," in the'' Otago Daily Times," says that the players m a four-ball match at Balmacewen last Saturday week lost 16 balls between them. Shirley is very bad just now m this particular, and it causes delay as well as annoyance when a fairly straight ball with only a little "slice" or "pull" on it just reaches the rough at one side of the fairway and has to be searched for for a long time, and when found can only be played out with a niblick. Heretaunga has a good plan which should be adopted generally at this season. The fairways- are cut short for the regular width. The rough on either side for 20 or 30 feet is cut with a machine which leaves the grass about two or three inches long, so that a ball that is only slightly off the course can be readily , found, and while one is penalised by having to play out of: grass of this'length, usually an iron w ill ge reasonable distance. The rougi o.i . side of these medium cuts is leit

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tiger country, and no one can complain if they are tjiat far off the line. Most of the Cliristchurch players in. the Tuson Clip team at-Heretaunga on Saturday put up very creditable performances, regardless of -the. fact that the team lost so heavily in the single matches. In the morning E. M. Macfarlane and A. L. Cropp played good enough to more than win any other match, but Artlnlr Duncan and H. E. H. Balneavis made it too hot altogether. At one stage of the round they reeled off a 2, 3, 3. in and then went on. to hold their lead. H.' W. Macfarlane and R_ A. Wilson were down with four-holes to play, and they turned on a2. at the 15th and-a 3at the 16th, and another 3 at the 17th. E. M. Macfarlane piit up a very game fight against Arthur Duncan : in the afternoon. •He did a 75 to Duncan's 73: "H. W. Macfarlane made., the best showing of any of the team, being the only'one to win his single match. He played great golf to beat H. R. H. Balneavis 6 up and 5 to play. C. R. J. Ward Was. 3 down to E. 0. Hales, and put up a great struggle, and managed to get a half out of it, while C. A. Quane had all the bad breaks in his match with A. D. Morris. Quane's score was several strokes lower than his opponent's, but lie could never get the difference more than one in his favour, and went to the last hole square, but the breaks there were against him, and he had to be 1 down.

MAGIC BALL "DRIVES OF 600 YARDS." LONDON, November 11. Does anybody know the truth of the story of the wonderful golf ball haunting courses all over England, causing long handicap men to imagine vain, things? -■ It is asserted that the magic ball can easily be driven 600 yds, that it is grooved like a shell-band, and that it whistles in its flight. The inventor, an American, made'a dozen of them, but he was heavily bribed by golfing interests to carry his Secret to the grave. Some.pf the originals were smuggled into England, where they fell into , the hands of a wealthy amateur. Using this ball, he won,a bet by driving to the green at a par five hole.