LAWN TENNIS

Evening Post, Volume XCIII, Issue 101, 28 April 1917, Page 12

LAWN TENNIS

(By "Huka.")' WINTER TENNIS.

At last the "dry" season has left us, and grass courts are a thing of the past— they will be resting and recovering until the spring time, but tho game of tennis will still bo played. The hard courts are a blessing to those who look for tennis exercise right throughout tho year. Some people fancy that there is no joy in tennis play during tho winter, but a real fast single, or, a good hearty doubles' match makes one's blood tingle. Without doubt the grass court on a hot suihmer's day is the ideal spot for tennis, but on a cold bleak day players on tho hard court have been heard to say. after a good five set go—"That sort of game is hard to beat."

H. A. PARKER.

Most present-day tennis players will remember H. A. Parker, the one-time champion player of New Zealand. He, when at his best, won his matches by accuracy of placing, and by being in condition. Before he went to England, Parker used to drive most furiously, in fact he held a reputation for breaking palings off the surrounding fences, by the force of to hurricane drives. When he came back, he had dropped, the hard driving-—not that he had lost it—for the more heady and paying game of placing. Time and time again he showed now. he could run players to death almost, by simply prolonging the rallies. After going to Australia he became champion of every State in the Commonwealth, and it can be safely said that only Brookes and Wilding have had greater tennis oareers in Australasia.' Of late he has not played tennis to any great extent, but can still hold his own with some of the best. According to "Austral," in the Referee, H. A- has just returned with his wife to Sydney frpm a sis months' trip to the United States. He landed at Vancouver—then on to Chicago, through Detroit, and right on to New York by motor-car. He had no time for tennis on the East Coast, ■ except once when W. F. B. Alexander, the Davis Cup player of 1908, fixed up some games, and then the weather interfered. On coming back to Chicago the temperature waa abput eightyone, but in three days he landed in a town where it was six degrees below zero. At Los Angeles he met Bundy and • M'Loughlin, and had some ' tennis. M Loughlin was very sore at the Easterners trying to have him made a professional, and also laid before Parker a new idea, which, perhaps by now, seeing that the United States has broken with Germany, he has changed' his views about. It was re the next Davis Cup match. M'Loughlin said that many prominent Americans considered, that some arnmge,ment should be come to, as to where tho next Dayis Cup should be played. He agreed that according to the rules, the champion nation, Australasia, had the right to have the contest played in Australasia but he pointed out that after the war it -was not likely that a German team would consent to go to Australasia, and might not challenge if the match was played there. M'Loughlin wanted to see a, 'conference of nations which had a right to compete, and an agreement com© to for the matches to be played in the United States." That being arranged America would not challenge in 1917, but would challenge the'year after the war. H. A. Parker was not to be drawn and had very little to say on the suggestion, M'Loughlin's idea was, seemingly, a challenge, to hare the matchesin America after the'w*r, or they would challenge while the war was on, knowing' well that any of the Allied nations would not compete, «nd so ,the cup would go to America. ,

"Austral's" views are "HukaV and they are as followar-only "Huka" uses Australasia instead of Australia "Australasia will not consent for many a long year to meet a German anywhere save at the cad of a bayonet or apross No-Ma*'s-Land. '. After what was said at the United States Lawn Tennis annual meeting, there is little need to bother about M'Loughlin's BUggestion, and if the land of the Stars and Stripes gets to grips with Germany, Mac may be one of those "hopping over the top" instead of thinking about playing tennis matches against tbe enemy-