A GOLFER'S MISFORTUNE.

Taihape Daily Times, Issue 220, 2 August 1917, Page 2

A GOLFER'S MISFORTUNE.

Golfers will sympathise with. Tted Ray, the professional, in the misfortune which has befallen him. On arriving home after his all-night work in a London munitjion factory he discovered that his shop had been burnt out. This involved not only the loss of the whole of his stock, but his unique set of clubs. They were a remarkable collection, peculiar to his great striking power, and the possession of one at least was coveted by many professionals. It was a driver, with a shell-bolted face —that is to say, steel bolts rail through from the face to the back. Its characteristic was its "feci," and the way in which it adjusted itself to the ball. For years Ray had relied on it with implicit faith, and its shaky old age he had used it sparingly, only when some special shot wa;s needed. For most shots from the tee he took another driver, but' whenever he was two or three holes down, whenever he wanted to be sure of keeping dead straight, or a particularly long shot from a cuppy lie through the green was required, out came the favourite club. It is safe to say that most of Ray's important victories were due to this famous driver. Now it is gone, and he has grave doubts whether he will be able -to obtain one to fill its place. Vardon once said that you simply could not miss hitting the longest of second shots dead straight with Ray's club. Ray had another club a mashie niblick, which he used with wonderful skill, but in this case the steel head was rescued from the fire, and he is hopeful of getting the right sort of shaft to give to it its old "feel,"

With his new set of clubs Ray went last week-end to take part in a warcharity match with Vardon, Braid and Taylor on the Sidcup course. For over a year he has been engaged on munition work, and has had very little time for practice. Probably this rather than the new clubs was responsible for his erratic display. He, at any rate, did not blame his tools. Vardon, Braid and Taylor, fast passing up to the veterans in the professional ranks, retain their skill to an astonishing degree. Vardon has spent more thought over the cultivation of potatoes than golf recently, and his friendly rivals have had few opportunities for' play of a serious character, but if a championship were to be decided to-morrow one of the three would be favourite. On this occasion Braid was the most successful. Indeed, in the morning his score of 69 Avas two better than the record for the course. In the afternoon the honours fell to Vardon with a score of 75, Braid this time making 79.