NOTES AND NEWS.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVII, 9 June 1928, Page 12

NOTES AND NEWS.

Notable events in the golfing world in the near future are as foilow: — June 21: American Open Championship, Olympia Fields, Chicago; August 30: Britain v. America, Walker Qup International Matches, Chicago Golf 01ub, Wheaton, HI., tember 10: American Amateur Championship, Brae Burn Country Club, West Newton. Mass; September 24: American -Ladies’. Open Championship, Virginia Hot Springs, Va.; October 10 to 20: New. Zealand, tip an and Amateur Championships, Baimacewan, .Dunedin. It has been a great help to young players to be able to secure the services of Air Lambie, the gob professional, who was brought out from Home by the New. Zealand Oouncii and has been in various districts. It is only occasionally that beginners have the chance to get a coach right at the beginning of the season and his visit has been very useful to the club. Dr. Kenneth Ross won the championship of the Otago Club once again last week-end. This was his sixth successive win but he has won it several years earlier in 1914 and 1915 and 192 u. Ross is in a class by himself in Otago, says a critic in the South. His superiority is such that he can win, and win comfortably, without practice—which is a pity, for if Ross: had opponents who could extend liinx in lias club events he would certainly do better in the Dominion’s open and amateur championships. He has Iliad both the open anti tiie amateur championship in his grasp more than once, but he lias let them slip chieliy because he is so seldom called upon to play under stress. E. S. Douglas, who has returned to New Zealand, won the New Zealand Open Championships four times—in 1913, 1914, 1919, and 1921. He also held the New Zealand Professional championship in 1914, 1919, and 3.921., His best achievement since he went Home was to win the professional championship at Coventry in 1926. Two years earlier, in the amateur and professional competition at Moseley, he was runner-up to Michael Bingham. In the following year he waS bronze medallist in the Northern Championship at St. Annes. He was also runner-up fot the Midland Challenge Cup, competed for at the professionals’ spring meeting, in 1923 and 1925, and for four years, from 1923 to 1926 inclusive, was one of the pair to finish second, in the professional foursomes.

An average of four for seventy-two holes is an excellent performance for the winners of the Irish open championship (Whitcombe), and would take beating anywhere. Compston was four strokes more and Jolly next four more strokes away again. It was certainly a, good win and one must 'assume -that, the course for so important an event would be difficult and. well bunkered. In his match with Hagen a month ago Oompston played a phenomenal nine holes, doing the inward half in 30—2, 3,3, 4,4, 3,4, 4,3, and he, went on to do the eighteen holes in 67. It was wonderful for a player to do a great round of 72 and be four down, and to continue for the next eighteen and to be 18 down with 17 to play. “You have been instructed,” says a golfing critic, “to keep your eye on the ball and to keep your head down. A still better tip is to keep your mind on the ball. The ball happens to be what you are hitting, or what you are hitting at. Few can project their minds to a bunker or a water hazard, or something else on ahead, and stall keep peering at the ball as the clubhead sweeps through. The mind or brain controls the action of the eye. Not so much thinking is needed in the process of a golf swing, but this thinking must be of the right sort, concentrated on the right thing, concentration and confidence are tlie ideal combination on the links and actually one begets the other.

Satisfaction was expressed last week at the improvements at some of the tees on the local course. The “Herald” critic in Napier says that “a point which the grounds committee would do well to consider is that of the tees. These should be at least four or six indies above the surrounding turf and what is more they should be flat.” He confirm's last week’s, notes when he adds that there is nothing that impresses visiting players more than! to have a tidy, well-cut and rolled tee to drive from, and it is most ahnoying for anyone to have to scrape around and perhaps stand half on and half off the

allotted space in order to hit tlie ball cleanly from tlie tee without first having to steer the club head aver a mound befiind it.’.’. At a recent tournament in England', a specially designed -ball was used. It was ox a larger size than that an gennut use. Some interesting facts have been revealed, as a result of the test. Ine ball under test has been specified to weigh 1.62 ounces, and to have a minimum diameter of 1.68 indies. The weight is the same as that of. the orthodox ball in common use. buit the utter, under the ruling of tlie It. and A. seven years ago, can be as small a.s 1.62 inches in diameter, an appreciable difference in size. Eighty players entered the test —the largest number ever received by the.Guilford Alliance compe-tition—-find the general impression was favourable to the larger ball, though some of the players were of the opinion that the larger size emphasises the penalties of mistakes. “Brassey” in the “Bulletin”: A returned traveller from America has been telling of a match played over there in which Joe Kirkwood _ gave Bobby Jones a perfectly good hiding. Tlie match was played on a 6000-yard course in Florida; the par was 72. Kirkwood won 5 up and 4 to play, his stroke score for the match being 65. Kirkwood never got into difficulties during the round, as his score evidences, and did not. fluke a hole. Jones is nothing like so good in match, as in stroke play., a.s has often been proved, but that cannot be held to detract from Kirkwood’s fine. feat.

A few months ago a team of British golfers, including such well-known men as Cyril Tolley, Major Hezlet and It. de Montmorency, visited South Afrioa. An effort is now being made by Herbert By mill, captain of the Kooyouga Golf Club, Australia., to induce a similar team .to. visit the Commonwealth in the near future, the idea being that the golfers should accompany the English cricket team which leaves for Australia in October. The project has been taken up with enthusiasm by many Australian of the game, and communications on the subject have been forwarded to tlie secretary of the Royal and' Ancient Club of St. Andrews.

To receive a golf ball an inch from the left eye. on a full drive was the unpleasant experience of a Mornington player recently (says the “Otago Daily Times”). He had played across the creek at the eighteenth, and was preparing to play an iron shot to the green when a cry of “fore” caused him to look round just in time to get the ball on the cheek bone. The offender, playing,, from the ladies’ tee, had called out only when, the shot looked dangerous. A very bad eye for a week was the consequence. In tfic annual match between the leading ladies and men at Stoke Poges, the men allowing a. stroke at every alternate hole, the ladies won handsomely, winning seven of the ten singles, halving two and losing one only. The men won four of the five foursomes. Are 'Englishmen beginning to take' their golf seriously? It almost looks like it (says an exchange). Archie Compston, the North Manchester pro., .hiais certainly slain the Goliath of American professionals in what is 'very like a

a match for the world’s professional championship. Compston iss a native of Wolverhampton, where lie was barn in 1893. He tied for second place in the British open championship of 1925, with a consistent series of cardls of 76, 75, 75, 75 —301, against J. Barnes (U.S.A.). 300. In 1920 he was eighth on. the list in the open. He was runnerup for the French open in 1925, and in the same year was; runner-up at the R.oehampton tournament, and won the Loads Cba.Fenge Cup. That was the year-in which he was beaten. 9 and 8. by Abe Mitchell in a 72-hole match for £4OO, played over St. George’s Hill and Wentworth. He was runner-up far thy? Leeds 1000 guineas in 1924.