WHY AMERICA IS SUPREME IN GOLF

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 1057, 22 August 1930, Page 7

WHY AMERICA IS SUPREME IN GOLF

Reasons for the Falling Off in British Standard — In Women’s Golf, Old Land Still Holds Its Own.

By ‘

“Slow-Back.”

IT is not so long ago that such a thing as international golf in its modern sense did not exist. Those who went to play golf in Britain went with humble hearts to pick up a few crumbs. The idea that anyone from abroad could make an interesting game for John Ball or H. 11. Hilton would have been as amusing as that a challenger in the professional ranks in the day of Vardon, Braid and Taylor could dislodge these champions from their pedestal.

The first shock to Britain came in 1904, when W. J. Travis came over from the States and, chiefly by the aid of the Schenectady putter, won the amateur championship. In 1907 Arnaud Massy, a burly Frenchman, astonished the natives by winning the Open at Hoylake. There were no further foreign successes' before the

Since the resumption of the championships in 1920, there has been a different tale to tell. In the amateur ranks Ball and Hilton, though still on deck, had lost the superlative something which means vicory and a new generation was knocking at the door. C. J. H. Tolley, E. Holderness and R. H. Wethered were the leaders of the new men and, in spite of an increasing foreign challenge, they and others held the fort until 1925.

But in 1926 a strong contingent of U.S.A. amateurs, over for the Walker Cup, made things look rather dubious. R. T. Jones was unexpecedly beaten, but Jesse Sweetser registered the first victory for America since 1904. And this year “Bobby” Jones’s success is fresh in our memories.

The Open since the war has been rather a happy hunting ground for our American friends. Duncan in 1920 and Havers in 1923 have been the only ones to stem the tide. Hagen, four times, and R. T. Jones, three, wih Hutchison and Barnes .as “fillers,” is the record since 1921.

How have the women fared? Before the war there was no one outside Britain to compare with such players as Miss Dodd, Miss Campbell, Miss Ravenscropt and others. Then in 1914 appeared Miss Cecil Leitch, who set a new standard in women’s golf, a which she and Miss Wethered advanced standard in women’s golf, a standard still further after the war.

The American champion, Miss Collett, has made several attempts and in the absence of Miss Leitch and Miss Wethered it was though probable that she would carry off the women’s championship. This year the comparatively unknown Miss Diana Fishwick saved the situation. Mdlle. de la Chaume and her friend, Mdlle. le Blan, are the only foreign players to win the women’s open title. A far better way of testing international merit than the performances of individuals is the result of teams' matches. Before the war these would have been rather one-sided. The oldestablished contests between England and Scotland were the nearest ap-

proaches to international teams’ matches. The extraordi nary development of American golf during and immediately after the war made international matches inevitable sooner or later. An informal match was arranged at Hoylake in 1921, advantage being taken of the presence of quite a large number of American amateurs ir. the country for the championship. The somewhat severe handling our people received was only too true an augury of what would happen later. The Walker Cup was presented in 1921 for international competition on

somewhat the same lines as the Davis Cup in tennis. The first regular match in the series took place at the National Links, Long Island, U.S.A., in 1922. Britain won one foursome and the last three singles against eight wins for America. St. Andrews housed the match in 1923, and we went to the States again in 1924. Since then the matches have been played alternately in the two countries at two-year intervals.

There is an unpleasing monotony about the results. In 1923 we won five matches to our opponent’s six, the result depending on the last putt of the lfist match, and in 1926, at St. Andrews the result was equally close. In 1928, at Chicago, we won one match to eleven, and this year at Sandwich we managed to get one more match. The professionals have had better luck, or there may be other reasons for their I success. As in the case of the amateurs, the teams’ competition began

with an informal match played ifi 1926. The match took place at Wentworth only a day or two after the Americans landed and the British had an overwhelming victory. America won 1£ games to the British 13J. and most of the margins were of the 6 and 5 variety. Duncan gave Hagen a severe drubbing, but that didn’t stop the latter from winning the Open a week or two later. The team that went to America in 1927, to play for the newly-presented Ryder Cup was disorganised by Mitchell’s sudden illness, but the margin of 9$ to 2£ in America’s favour was too decisive to let us harbour any illusions. Last year at Moortown Britain, after being one match down in the four-

somes. won most of the singles to win with 7 matches to 5. Again Duncan handed out to Hagen a hiding such as the latter doesn’t usually get. It is worthy of note that in both the Ryder Cup matches played so far the U.S.A. team has been confined to its own home-born professionals. The women have not yet started a formal international match, but probably some Davis, Walker, or Ryder will produce a cup shortly. This year Miss Collett brought over from the States a team containing most of the best American women, and a strictly informal match was played against a team captained by Miss Molly Gourla.y, the British champion. Again the match was played soon after the visitors landed, and the British team won by a narrow margin. Some of the critics, however. expressed grave doubts as to what might have happened had Miss Collett’s team had time to become acclimatised.

On the whole, however, it is fair to say that it is in the department of women's golf that the Old Land can still hold its own. We should like to believe that our amateurs and professionals are as good as the Americans, but it is too great a strain.

There must be a good reason why British golf has fallen behind. Either it has definitely gone back, or our foreign friends have made such progress as to leave us behind. Both are probably true.

Allowing for improved courses and improved implements, one can safely say that Vardon, Taylor and Braid were distinctly superior to Mitchell, Duncan, Compton and Co. Their consistency, as well as their skill in shotmaking, was definitely of a better standard, more especially their consistency. No post-war amateur has shown consistent form comparable with that of John Ball and H. H. Hilton, or F. G. Tait. Some of the scores are better, but conditions are better.

That extraordinary progress has been made in the States is a truism. There has been a furore for the game, and nowadays there must be quite 20 professionals and a dozen amateurs distinctly better than all, but a very few of our own.

The reason for the definite Tallin g - off in the standard of British amateur golf is probably the simple one that since the war our young men have had to work. The old extended week-end no longer exists, and golf of the highest class will brook no rivals. It is probably true too that style among our post-war amateurs has deteriorated, perhaps because of the craze for big hitting.

It is in these two points that the American amateur has the advantage. No doubt many of them work, but they seem to find time to take part in a good many tournaments. One of the spare members of this year’s Walker Cup team took part in 35 tournaments in 1929, and won 29 of them. The v critics have noticed a strong similarity In the styles of the best American players. There is an evenness and rhythm in their swing that seems to be lacking in our men. The standard style of America was set to a considerable degree by Scottish professionals, many of them from Carnoustie, and it is the traditional Scottish style which we see in Bobby Jones today. The Ryder Cup matches have shown that in match play the British professional can hold his own, but the open is pretty definite evidence ihat in medal play he is not in it. British professionals are usually teachers of the game and stick pretty closely to their jobs. The severe winter in the Northern States of America causes a complete cessation of golf activity, and a large and growing crowds of pros, makes the circuit of the southern and western tournaments. The experience gained by playing possibly 15 or 20 big money fourround medal matches evc#.'y winter, besides all the summer tournaments, must make a marvellous difference. It is little wonder that we cannot hold our friends in medal play. Of course it is not pleasant* to act as a chopping block for anyone, and naturally most people are hoping for a change. It can be obtained at too great a price. To hold the Americans at medal play we must develop a class of matchplaying professionals who do nothing else. Circumstances make them desirable enough in the States, but, for the present, Britain cannot afford them. With the return to pre-war prosperity, the Old Country will again assert herself, so we must wait with what patience we can muster.