BRITISH GOLF TITLE

Evening Post, Volume CII, Issue 34, 9 August 1921, Page 3

BRITISH GOLF TITLE

CAPTURED BY HUTCHISON

FIRST AMERICAN TO WIN OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP. \

Tho New York Times correspondent, under date 25th June, wrote regarding the winning- by Jock Hutchison, an American, of tho British Open Golf Championship. He 1 said: —

Jock Hutchison, of Chicago, won the British Open Golf Championship" to-day for America, beating Roger Wethered, tho young Oxford amateur, by 150 to 159. At the end of the first round, Wetheredj with 77, was only 3 down, but after that experience began to tell in decisive fashion. . ,

Hutchison placed magnificently in tho final round, while Wethered seemed to suffer from nerves. Ho had>a chance to got up at tho 6econd hole, but threw it away by poor putting, and then Hutchison made the fifth and longest hole in a splendid 3. His play from then on aroused the greatest enthusiasm among his 'old friends at St. Andrews. Ho was a caddio there before ho went to America, and it was generally admitted that never." had a finer performance been "Been on the historic links than his last round..He was actually twelvo strokes ahead at the fourteenth hole, but Wethered cut his lead down by three at the end.

It was tho first time that an \America.n player has won the British open, and the feat was accomplished only-after an exhibition of great bril.lia.ncy'and a struggle that, was fought to tho extreme in the earlier stapes. Rarely has a more, thrilling exhibition been seen on tho famous Old Icourse.

Hutchison was a 5 to 1 .favourite when the replay for tha open championship be«an at St. Andrews this morning, but ho had to produce his very best game to lead at the end of the morning round by fhreo strokes, 74 to 77. Wethered, after being four strokes behind at the tenth hole, rallied wonderfully, Against' anyone less skilled than Hutchison in playing the low-running approach, which St. Andrews rewards so handsomely, or the high-pitch-ed approach, when, tho occasion made it appropriate, the young English amateur would have held his own.

The only'marked difference between tho men was that, whereas Hutchison showed he oould play either kind of approach, Wethered always got up to tho hole with a. hiffh patch. That he dropped behind at one stage- was due to the fact that ho oould not always prevent these shots from running over, tho g^reon.

HEAT FAVOURS AMERICAN. It was a day of glorious sunshine, although the heat was likened to that of Chicago in midsummer, and people thought that Hutohison would feel at home, in tho doublo sonae that ho was playing on tho^ course where he learned the game and in the temperature to which he has become accustomed since making his homo in America nineteen years ago. The players shook hands heartily before starting, and it Was a fine sporiing game, with Hutchison's efforts making the hearts of his former fellowtownsmen palpitate. The American gained a lead of two strokes at the third hole with a. great 3. A beautiful shot with the ribbed mashio niblick; which he used very effectively all day, and a 4-yard put Wethered level at the fourth, 427 yards, with an equally brilliant 4. Hutchison took- a six here through mining his drive and Sliding tho bunker with his third. . .

A remarkable hole tho seventh. ..Wetherod after a bad drive bunkered his second 'and made a. , recovery shot that rolled down the slope. He holed out from fifteen yards for a 4; then Hutchison holed a 9-yard putt for the same score. Then began a isequenco of 3'e. Tho American did the short eight in that figure and aIEO the ninth, where he got down a 3-yard putt. At the tenth ho raised .a. great cheer by laying an. approach of ninety yards to within two feet of the pin. Wetherod was now, ?-/Ur strikes V-elund, but he began to recover them at the thirteenth with some brilliant shots.. At the next two holes ho reduced his deficit to one. Going to-the seventeenth he pulled his drive and, using his spoon for the second shot from a bad lie, he missed it and had to struggle for • a 5 while Hutchison had a beautiM 4. Going to the last' hole after a long delay in marshalling the crowd, Wethered hit a rolling mashie niblick shot which finished rolling on the grassy slope beyond the green and ho took a's; 'Hutchison played a correct St. Andrews shot, running his approach to within three yards of the pin, but just missed the putt. "Oh, Jock!" one of his old St. Andrews friends wailed in anguish, but Hutchison had made few such slips as this. The scores were:— Hutchison— . .. Out . 4 5 3 6 5 4 3 3 3—36 In .'. 3 4 4 5 5-45 4 4-38 Wethered— Out ... 4 5 5-4 5 4-4 4 4-39 In .4 4 44444 5 5—38 There was a quick 1 and dramatio turn lin the afternoon. For two. holes Wethored seemed to, be continuing his great fight, and he had a fine chance of reducing his deficit to two strokes at the seci ond hole. / There Hutchison was bunkerI ed from the drive, arid only just got out ! with his next. Wethered was on the knoll at the corner of tho green in tho same number of strokes, but instead of playing his long putt dead he ran two yards past, and missed the return putt, each man taking 5. If Wethered could have regained his stroke hero he would have been dangerously close to Hutchison, and that in itsolf would have given him heart. But Hutchison having had a-narrow escape saw to it that his rival had no further opportunity.

BEACHES.TURN IN 33.

From this point on his,golf was simply magnificent. None better has boon seen in any championship. He reached the tufrn in 33, which has been clone by only two men in the whole week —Tom Kerrigan and Arnaud Massey.. Hutchison began to forgo well ahead in the second round. At the fourth' hole he had a 4 against ■■Wetliered'is 6. The lattery paid too much heod to the cross wind here. He played* his inashie approach into a wind blowing from left instead of going straight for the pin. But ths ball did not come round.' It dropped into a bunker to'the left of the green. Then Hutchison applied what was almost the finishing touch at the fifth, tho longest hole on the course, measuring 530 yards. He got down for a, 3, while Wethercd had only an ordinary 5, and so lost another two strokes, which made«him altogether 7 behind. Hutchison now ' was playing lik<s a machine. He followed up a perfect approach to tho sixth by holing a fouryard'putt for a 3 against 'Wethored's 4 and holed » two-yard putt for » 4 as the seventh. Here Wethered, his confidence shaken, frittered away an opportunity by taking three putts in four y»rds and a 5 for the hole. Trie amatdur waa letting himself go at hi« hardest from tho too and was outdriving Hutchison by thirty yards. Now Wethered drove to the ninth and tenth greens, 506 and 312 yards respectively, but could not. putt, and Hutchison, playing with his head, held his own.

The American led by 9 strokes at the turn. He took two shots in the formidable bunker to the left of the eleventh green, a short hole which has been the grave of mitny hopes, but lie secured a 3 against a 4. Wotbered then had many misadventures, having to play back at the twelfth and taking two strokes in a bunker at the fourteenth. He was twelve strokes down then, but recovered three in the last three holes, which was all lio could save from the ruins. The cards: \ IlutchismiOut 4 5 443343 5—33 Tn 4 5 5 4 5 4 5 6 5-43

Wcthorod— Out 15465453 3-39 In r. 4 4 7 4 7 4 4 5 4—43

Hutchison' was greeted -with a great round of applause by iho 5000 onlookers when ho holed the last putt. He was presented at once with the championship cup, and was carried shoulder high from the green, waving the cup aJoIt and calling for thrstt diCßfs for the British r>U,*. era.. . ...