GOLF HANDICAPS.

Press, Volume LXI, Issue 18332, 16 March 1925, Page 11

GOLF HANDICAPS.

PLAYERS WHO DO NOT RETURN SCORES. (specially trtrim to* "tbi rxiss.") (By Harry Yardon.) The importance of being hopeful is emphasised by a story which comes from the Jlallowes Golf Clnb, near Sheffield. It appears that any one of various players might have won the monthly bogey competition, only they thought their returns would be useless, and so failed to hand in their cards. In the end, two gallant souls, wfib had each put in a card showing nine down, tied for first place. The solitary other return was ten down. Meanwhile, people who had finished four down, or very little worse, were left to lament their diffidence in having decided not to return a score. Very much the same kind of thing once happened at the club to which I am attached, South Herts, Tottcridge, and, I daresay, it has occurred at many other places. In-the case to which I refer, the twelve winners of the monthly bogey competitions held during tho year played off on a certain day for such handsome prizes as a final merited. Tho event was over eighteen holes, and the conditions were that the qualified men could go out for their rounds in either the morning or tho afternoon. Nine arrived ill' the moruing, and duly played tlxKr rounds.' Not one of the'm handed in a card! The conditions governing such a competition being that the scores shall remain a secret locked in the box until the last player has finished, the three competitors who started in the afternoon were not informed of the negative result of the earlier players' efforts. Two weDt off together, and they, too, failed to return a score.

The last man went out a good deal later, partnered .by a member of the committee, who heard'well before they finished that nobody had handed in a card, so that his companion could" not help winning the competition so long as he returned a score, even if it showed the loss of every hole. If anything, this player was doing a little bit worse than anybody else, and he remarked several times that he thought he would tear up his card.'

The committeeman, did not disclose the situation, but there may have, been something in his voice that, indicated the importance of sticking to the task, for the competitor duly made his return —■ an appallingly bad one—and so won tho prize. A Professional's Experience. Here, surely, is proof that you never know your luck until the ball has done rolling, * and that it is sound policy to hand in your score, as a few players but only a very few —make it part of their golfing system to do. • One imagines that it would be a great help to the handicapping committees <*f clubs if competitors invariably returned their cards, no matter liow. bad or how good they proved to be. So far concerns amateur golfers, the professional is in the detached position of an onlooker who—according to tradition sees most of the game, and it must occyr to him very often that there is something wrong with t)ie. handicaps' of many of the players whom lie watches, teaches, or opposes in matches. It is an obvious defect of the present system, of handicapping that the ma.n who is not playing up to. his handicap and who, for that reason, fails time after time to return scores in competitions, seldom has his a.llowaneo increased, .owi.ng to the fact that the committee - has little or »no data on which to work. A professional has many -opportunities of forming Judgments in connexion with handicaps. He knows sonic playerg who are very good value indeed for their rating. He knows that, if he has thq temerity to reckon himself • as. a pltjp 3 man—which is, perhaps, about what a,professional ought, to be nowadays —he will have all hia work cut out to hold his own with- those men on handicap terms. On the other hand, he knows players who obviously are- nothing like the quality which their handicaps suggest. He. would like to have tho privilege of giving them the strokes every day, with £lO depending on the issue. Presumably, tho allowances have come down in runs as the result of low scores made front time to time under* th'e somewhat fluky conditions which prevail'wh'cn the ground-is baked in summer time,.but they do not live up to their reputations in normal circumstances.

Progress—And a Fresh Start. It would surely assist in the scheme of making handicapping more satisfactory —a matter concerning which both tjie Royal and Ancient Club and tho English Golf Union have been busy during recent years —if such players as tlies6 always had to return scores. Not long ago I was coaching one who had gone completely off his game. I.had to tell, him that in all probability he would never do well again unless he altered several fundamental features of his style, even'though he had gained a handicap of 4 without having ever previously taken. a lesson in the gaxne.. Ultimately, he resolved to make the changes in his methods, and when last I saw him, his form .was at least progressing towards that of a 4handicap player. So far as I have been able to judge, the system of handicapping adopted by the: Ladies' Golf Union must be very sound, -because ladies do seem, as a rule to play up to their handicaps—or, at any rate, to shape like the golfers that they ought to bo at their ratings. The reason is, I suppose, that they have a complete revision every two or three veajs, when old handicaps are scrapped and up-to-date estimates are made. I daresay this would wound the feelings of many male' golfers, who like to keep their handicaps at low figures pretty much, perhaps, as plenty of people like to feel that they are not bo old as their years. There are a few daring club committees who raisp the handicaps of players when, after a certain length of time, they.have failed to return a score in a competition, and evidence exists that they are not so good a? they used.to be, but the general practice is to loaye the deteriorating player alone —unless' he specially asks for more strokes and puts in cards-to show that he needs a higher allowance. That does not often happen.' And yet one would have thought it is important in the handicapping seheme to increase the handicaps of golfers who are not so good as they used to be as | it is to reduce the allowances of those I who are improving.

HORORATA CLUB. Ho annual meeting of tho Hororata' Goif Club was held on Friday night, Mr T. E. Pearson presiding over a - good attendance of members. The balance-sheet showing a credit balance w»s adopted. The report showed that the club had had a -very successful eeason. Of the eight matches played. against other clnbs, seven had been won and one lost. Matches, had .been played against Hagley, Christchurch Woolbnyers, Lake Coleridge, (Continued at foot of next column.)

and Ashburton. During the season ten home club matches had been decided. The chairman reported that the work of putting the links in playing order was be- , ing expedited. The greens had 7 been prepared aid tbo work on the fairways would be started immediately. It' was decided to open tho seaeon . on. March 28th. The retiring secretaries, Mr and Mre JCettleton, were elected life members of the club in recognition of the invaluable services they hid rendered during their term 3 of -office. It was decided to affiliate with tho New Zealand Golf Association." Tbe following officer? were elected:— Patron, Mr Godfrey Hal!; president, Mr H. M. Reeves; vice-presidents, Messrs L. G. D. Acland, and B. C. Rutherford; club captain, Mr H. Richards; handicappers, Messrs H. Richards and B. C. Rutherford; committee, Mesdames Jekyll, Pratt and McGarry, Messm T. E. Pearson, E. Sime, V. Owen, J. Oliver and W. Willsteed; honorary secretary and treasurer, Mr C. McGarry.