GOLF TOPICS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIV, Issue 19567, 21 February 1927, Page 9

GOLF TOPICS.

TIME-LIMITS ON GAMES. PRACTICE IN UNITED STATES* SPEEDING-UP SLOW PLAYERS. to? mblick. Two-and-a-quarter hours is the tim# allowed on some golf courses m America, for a golf match. You and your partner set out from the first tea according to the schedule, and there are rangers on the course who see to.it that no players are taking too long, or delaying the rest of the field. The. reason for; litis arrangement is to be found -in the fact that the membership of many American clubs is so large, that something of this kind has to be done in order that the greatest possible number of players may be able to get a game. One wonders, however,, that a timelimit is not set upon other occasions, and for the very ordinary reason that a single player, because of. ins slowness, may hold up scores of other players, exercising at the same time, a very harmful influence upon their gams. No doubt some of the others might have cause for complaint is a time limit were set, but many golfers would welcome it, especially when aliey take time to remember the occasions when they suffered at hole after hole because someone m front was painfully slow. It is not at all hke'y that a time limit of two and a-half hours a match will be set for any such reason as this j but we have all, at times, wished that some stimulus of this kind existed to galvanise the snaildiko golfer in front of us. It is quite possible that some more general regulation or practice may result from the experiences of American clubs in this matter of allowing a definite amount of time foe each game. The fact is that it is nearly always a poor or a nervous player who takes a long time over his shots, and consequently takes nearly, threo hours for an ordinary round. At the same time, one cannot help thinking that the man or woman who persevering!}' hinders others and spoils the game of a number o! people, must be rather lacking tn sensitiveness and imagination, as well as in ability as a golfer! In Britain there is more than one first-class player wellknown for hist painfully slow procedure, It is not an enviable reputation to have. Etiquette not to Delay, In the English close amateur championship lust year ona of the aspirants attracted the greater part of: the gallery because he took, between 30 and 50 waggles before lie could hit any shot. His opponent in the second round," having heard of this man's disability, took out a stool with him and jsat down during the performance. This calm attitude enabled htm to beat the waggle*. Another fate which brsfiUls tho slow golfer, especially if he has some idiosyncrasy of style, is that He becomes tho butt of the wit and ridicule of the others. I recall a good example: of this. A middle-aged and plodding golfer, with a painfully slow and jprky, style, invariably took at least' three hours for each of his two daily rounds of tho course at a much frequented summer golf resort. He was always referred to as "The' Curse of Scotland." Apart from nervousness and inability .to walk at an ordinary pace,; there is no reason why a round of golf on a 6QoQvards course should take more than two hours and a-half. Furthermore, it is part of the etiquette of golf that otitj takes care not to hinder of keep back those who are playing behind one, I remember playing a tio with Holderness over a 6400-yards course, in less than two hours. In playing off the tie for the New Zealand open championship last. October. Shaw and Moss completed the round of 1.8 holes at Minimal' in one hour and £0 minutes. And there waa no hurry. But there was oo waste of timtt; no* hesitation. Most good golfers like to executo their shots without delay, although they guard also against the fatal mistake - of hurrying, or of playing a shot before the mind is made up about it. A Banker Shot. Some time ago I played a tio against a man whom I should befit, on handicap, We were all square; I was on the last green in two; he was in a shallowbunker to the right in two. The situation seemed favourable to me. But my opponent chipped that ball dean out of the shallow bunker to within 4ft of the pin. Ho then missed thfi putt and I got my four. 1 want to Say a word or two about that bunker shot, which is not at ail an explosion shot. When the bunker is shallow, arid 'there | is no bank to negotiate, Uw' ball, •»«{>» 1 posing it is not. in a heel-mark, may bo j played out in tho same way as one pjay.s | a low-chip shot up to the pin. The | chip-shot is played with a short, rather j low, swing,' and•• usuailv .a rhveked • t'oilov. I through; the bail is bit-very firmly and ! cleanly, and gO'is away with a " low i trajectory. I In playing the ball out of fits "shallow j bunk'-r one bait" -to remember a few j points. Do not dig at the ball. 'll eve !is no need to ''dig or to (tsplode the \ shot. P'ay the ball as you would p' :i j | it' if;' ; it by : 'o ; fi'.:Vb«(r : :|:rt{iiKi, : : j casual sand. Secondly, fi>,> that {?}<' »ihort, swing back is kept very .low ; ibe. .df w» *, | ward or forward ir,nv« tin u. <,f tl» i hii j must also be low, This is peril# the j most important point to remember, 'i it t» not necessary to lift the d«b-head after striking the ball.' m ow- wisid do after a ma-diie shot. The dub head goes straight thtougb sfter the ialjMet, >/> that the complete trajectory of .el'uh*' b«ad is very nearly parallel • «i'h tf'» jrron.id rmWd thr' sbct mnh./fe « of a long putt, tn far aj 2be nt-v-- } ment of the club hi a 4 is ft I resembles also, very closely, thg ran- }' up shot whir?; some golftr- play -with !an iron, from five to fdtv vsnb, <,-*? the ! jarreen. The method, I rne*n. is atms!kr. One eosld sav twfat a boat saod but I tb.i»k f h&ve rnstttioiH'd the «s*eati*L(>otflt*. It u, Mlw out in pr ,r. tie*. ToumarrsftTstsi itst A®erici. January ha* fcesn a teonth of fgext, tournarnents in the .-Umtod Statea. especially in California,«rd FSftfifls., I» am of tonrnamefit« r at fy-s Angelthe j..r,«-mor«y tmoorded. to over This tournament was won last year by Harry Cooper who is engaged to m**' Ceorge Duncan in a great challenge match one of these days. On the. who; - the professioTMll golfers of the Ci-.f»-d States hare ratber a good lm» d«n"pg these months wrh.r-n little golf a p!s-. •• i :in jibe northern .States '-Tliey are ab*» then to compete in these attractive to- '- oawsent# in place# of th# wwtsr j States. Cp to the {truest «« 'have had ps-ae* ties% no news ah-owt these comp*'--tioefl. Lately, by calite, the r#w» 1-** j t&wbti its ih*t Joe *■*» c-nth I sn one iMrniMrit—(intenlril m the K» ■* • York ehamptonahip, in one ty<wrp«j»: j lion. aJthougb that mtsmii te at f 4 E tltl'j# of the year KTiray;rebate I wnt 143, whSle Jce Turwew M with 135, 'This rj thtf T.yrn.evji whofa P ; J I he4t hv one the- Areer.ea:: i clurpptrrtil'.jp iast Jtrfy, &S Sk»«*':e. On: | A ftv d*ya' ht#t *£ Hot %rsng» "tI like Morth < ar»4<tta, Ki*«»' ••••» ! was wventh with SC2, ! Cr.i"s -bank vim 35%, yt the s, i Central • Crs«eh*fc*»it H ofl# t,V »avmg the*», profwaiftwils, bsfern of the®., hie# .'Sisr# toftmS" ently thai he if 4fcMf«cg the *pea« lH*e of #r ' H* w«| »« who-'|rt- rrf:st}>stieo a-v a yofttu y.i*f ftiter. tf|-e V''!*>" fee is the Seat tea Ks the 1 rt'tc--!