MEN'S GOLF TITLE

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Volume 81, Issue 7, 1 October 1937, Page 5

MEN'S GOLF TITLE

-lJreas ABsoelaUoii.)

Improved Conditions at - St. Andrew's SECOND ROUND PLAYED

(By Telegraph-

HAMILTON. This Day. Improved conditions were experienced at St. Andrew's links to-day, when the second round of the open championship aud qualifying rouuds for ihe professional and amateur iitles were played. Despite the steady rain of -yesterday and last evening), the course with its porous subsoil, had dfied out considcrably, while the strong wind of yesterday also dropped. Scores for yesterday' s and to-day's rounds, with the aggregate are as follows: —

E. S. DOUglas'8 71. While Hornabrook was still being showered with congratulations on his line round, his apparent command over to-day's field was quashed within ten minutes when E. S. Douglas holed his last putt for a score of 71. The brilliance of the open champion of 1913, 1914, 1919 and 1921, also eliminated tho belief that youth would reign in each round. Douglas had been driving poorly in recent" fnonths, but he flashed back to form to-day from the tees, where his strokes were briliiant. Not for six years — and it is only four years since he tied for the open and lost to E. J. Moss on-the play-off — has Douglas had better control over his putting, and even to-day a little more luck on the greens would probably have enabled him to break 70, for at three holes he slipped easy putts. At the fourth he missed a yard-putt and failed to get a birdie. At the seventh aud eighth he neded three putts to reach the cup, while at the 17th, despite the fact that he had a bogey four, he missed an easy putt, otherwise iiis round was briliiant.

His card read: Out : 343543654—37, Iu: 343435444 — 34, Total 71. Ew«n In second Piace. After dropping a stroke at tbe first hole I. A Ewen, who had one of tlie best cards yesterday, finisbed the first nine holes to-day in 39 and completed the round in 76, which gave him second place in the aggregate at 12.30 p.m, He was accompanied by N. Bell, who finisbed with 80, giving him an aggregate of 159 over two rounds. Ewen, at the third, made up for his early mistake by holing an excellent long putt, but was again unfortunate at the 6th, when he entered a fairway bunker. On the journey back Ewen played spendid golf, cliipping well. He needed three 4-'s for 73, but a bad lie at the 16th deprived him of this chance and he took three more. Those who have played with Ewen maintain that the Cambridge blue will be a hard man to contend with, and further good cards are expected of him. A formidable pace was set for today 's competition when the reigning amateur. champion, Hornabrook, re-' peated his consistent form of recent weeks and returned a card of 73 which, with a performance of 77 yesterday, gave him an aggregate for the first two rounds of 150. Very few players will be able to excell this. It ia usual for a golfer to experience one slack round in four of the open, and it appears as if Hornabrook 's 77 of yesterday might be his highest figure over the series. . If this is so, the amateur champion will have -bright prospects.

From the tees to-day Hornabrook was consistently aceurate, but his great round was inainly the result of accuracy witfi his fairway approaches. Hornabrook has been in better form on the greens, but despite an occasional lapse m this department he still kept his iigures down. The only blemish in an otherwise perfect round was a six at the fourth, but there he recovered well on the green after being in a bunker with his fairway shot, and he holed out in one over bogey. y . On the outward journey Hornabrook was one stroke better than yesterday, wxth bogey figures 38. It was on the way home that he picked up on tho stroke that gave him finai command over bogey. He was one under scratcli score at the long twelfth, bnt lost a stroke at tho ditiicult sixteenth. On the last hole he again beat bogev to compjoto a good round, His card read:— Out; 44464454 4—38. In; 34353454 4—35. Total: 73. H. A. Black, the previous amateur title-holder, played with Hornabrook this morning, but was again below his best. With 83 to-day following his 80 of yesterday, he did not appear to be in a position to present serious barricrs to other leading players this year,

I. A. Ewen 85 76 151 A. Dyke 76 83 169 J, P. Horn&brook ... 87 73 150 It. Harsant. ... *.. 77 83 160 M, Morrice * 78 78 156 T. S. Galloway ... 79 78 15? N. Bell ... ... 77 81 158 R* G. Holland *.. 80 78 158 H. A. Black 80 83 163 F* O. Hutchison ... 81 83 104 G. B. Thomas ... J ... 81 83 164 P.' H. McDonald ... ... 82 79 161 E. S. Douglas ... 82 71 153 J. Watt ... 75 94 169 B, J, Smith ... 87 84 171 J. R. Galloway 87 83 170 L. A. Reid 88 78 166 W. Monk ,... ... 91 82 173 B. Kiernan ... ... 92 90 182 K. L, Caldwel] 97 85 182