GOLF IN BRITAIN

Southland Times, Issue 21774, 1 August 1932, Page 4

GOLF IN BRITAIN

THE OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP. HOW SARAZEN WON. SOME MAGNIFICENT GOLF. Gene Sarazen, American professional of Italian parentage, played such im'pi'essive golf in practice rounds before the championship began at Prince’s, Sandwich, that he was regarded as the most forriiidable of the three Americans in the field, though it was recognized that neither T. D. Armour (the holder of the title), nor Macdonald Smith, so perfect a player that he must always be near the top, could be ignored. Sarazen did not extend himself in the qualifying rounds. In the first round he had a 73 at Prince’s. “It was not an astounding score,” wrote Mr Bernard Darwin in the Times, “but the way in which it was done was formidable.” What was most impressive was the immense power of his strokes when exceptional power was required. A great s.poon shot was specially noted by Mr Darwin. The hole was the sixth, 436 yards, and Mr Darwin said that b.B would not forget it till his dying day. “Sarazen pushed out his drive and the ball lay horribly downhill and in thick grass. Many respectable golfers would have been glad to hack the ball out 50 yards with a niblick. Sarazen took his spoon, tore the ball out far over the bunker in the teeth of the wind and not far short of the green, played a lovely pitch-and-run and got his 4. That hole was an effort of genius.” In the second qualifying round at Royal St. George’s he was round in 76, and with a total of 149 tied for eighteenth place. The First Round. Once the championship started, however, Sarazen unmasked his batteries and went after it from the word go. The weather was perfect. There being no wind, the length of the course, 6890 yards, was not severely felt, and neither the rough nor the bunkers held the same terrors. To quote Mr Darwin again, Sarazen made the game and the course look childishly easy. Every hole was the same—a vast drive, an iron shot of sorts to within seven or eight yards of the flag, and a putt that shivered past the brink to finish one foot beyond the hole. Sarazen himself remarked pathetically, after some 11 holes of it, that never had he “rimmed the cup” so often in all his life. Every hole of the first nine was done in exactly the right figure except the eighth, where his second went over the green. That was 35 to the turn. Two 4’s that were nearly 3’s followed, and then the spectators, crowding in on him at the 12th teeing ground, seemed to hamper him, and he hit a bad hook into a bunker. That meant a 5, and a poor second at the 13th portended another five. It was a palpably critical moment: Sarazen rose to it, and laid a lovely run-up stone dead. At the short 14th (202yds), came at last the pull he richly deserved. He holed a difficult six-yarder for a 2 and laughed aloud with glee. He holed another nice putt for 4 at the 15th. and was within a millimetre of a 3 at the long 17th (516yds). Here he played a colossal spoon shot as it were through the eye of a needle, cut up to exactly the right degree. A more terrific shot was never played, and the crowd, which can crow over a common, plain, or lucky putt, seemed to take it as a matter of course. Now he seemed sure of his 70, but he hooked his drive into a nasty, deep bunker. He got his ball out, played a good pitch to within 10 yards or so, and holed the putt like a hero. His 70 put him at the head of the list for the first day. W. H. Davies, C. A. Whitcombe, Macdonald Smith and P. Alliss were all 71. The Second Round. The second day was again perfect from the players’ point of view, grey and windless. When P. Alliss carded another 71 it was thought, or hoped, that Britain had a representative who would beat off the American challenge. Let Mr Darwin tell the story again:— “Alliss was not destined to lead for long, for, half an hour behind him, Sarazen was on the war-path, playing the same tremendous golf as on the first day. His start was rather ragged and perilous, but he saved himself wonderfully. He hit a bad tee shot into a bunker at the second, but got his 4 by a fine pitch and a three-yard putt. He was on the edge of the bunker at the third, but got his 3. He sliced into the rough at the fourth, but heaved the ball on to the green with a mighty blow, and again got the right figure. Down went a seven-footer for 2 at the fifth, and that was three under 4’s. At the eighth and ninth he dropped strokes, one by a pushed-out second and one by a putt. Thirty-five out had lost him a stroke to Alliss. Two 4’s followed and then, when he was looking a little anxious, came an important hole. He saved himself at the 12th (456yds) by a beautiful curly run up laid dead. After that there was no holding him, and he had three 3’s in a row. The 14th is a legitimate 3. At the 15th (335yds) he holed a 12ft. putt. At the 16th (416yds), a glorious high iron shot covering the flag all the way left him only a five-footer, and down went that one too. The 17th (516yds) was a 4 with a second shot fully as good as that of the first round. That left him with a four for 68, hut he slightly hooked his second, failed at a six or seven foot putt, and took five, so poor Alliss, with a total of 142 for two rounds of a course which is nearly 7,000 yards long, found himself three shots behind.” The final Day. The third round is generally the critical round for an open championship, either making or marring a score. “If this be so,” wrote Mr Darwin, “then win or lose, no man ever played a better third round than did Sarazen. His score of 70 barely represents the splendour of his golf, which was the best he had played yet. He was rather unlucky than otherwise, for he hit the hole five or six times with his putts and the ball did not drop. To be sure he is a bolder putter than most and his ball is not very likely to drop unless it hits the very middle of the hole. But even so fortune was not overkind. Most of his holes may be taken as read, so perfect was his play. He made his first mistake at the fourth, where, from a hard, bare lie, he hit his mashie shot suspiciously near the socket, and took 5 instead of 4. Two flawless holes followed, and then he broke into 3’s. He holed a six yards putt at the seventh, 391yds., hit the pin with a dream of an iron shot at the eighth, 453yd5., and holed the ensuing six or seven foot putt. He was out in 33 and went on with three 4’s and two of them might have been 3’s, for he hit the hole twice. At the 11th (408yds.), the ball was travelling rather fast downhill, and perhaps justice was done, but the putt at the 12th (456yd5.), deserved a 3 if ever a putt did. At last there came a slip at the 13th, though I thought Sarazen unlucky in that his straight tee shot kicked into the rough. He got his. 3 at the 14th, but took a really futile 5 at the 15th (335yd5.) by means of three putts from quite close to the hole. That was a shock, but Sarazen put things straight again by a superb long iron to the 16th (416yds.) and a five yards’ putt which produced one of his broadest grins. The 17th (516yds.) cost 5, but he finished with the greatest of 4’s.” The 18th is 460yds. in length. That was another 70 and a total of 209 for the three rounds. Alliss cracked in the third round and a 78 practically destroyed his chances of winning. Arthur Havers, however, made a new record for the course with a brilliant 68 and with 213 was four strokes behind Sarazen. If he could do another

good round and Sarazen weakened he might win for Britain, as he did at Troon in 1923 when he headed off Walter Hagen by a single stroke. When the last round started the championship virutally lay between Sarazen and Havers. Sarazen began encouragingly. He was weak with his second, and a 5 would have been discouraging, but he played a perfect, long run-up from well beyond the green, and nearly holed out for a 3. Three faultless holes followed, and he seemed set for another record-breaking round. However, he pulled his tee shot to the fifth and took three putts at the seventh, and two strokes had slipped away. . As in the morning, he played the difficult, blind eighth (453yd5.) like a conqueror, and holed his putt for a great 3. A 4 made him 35 out and then, perhaps because he had asked and been told the news of Havers’ round, he grew a little restive. A pulled tee shot cost him 5 at the tenth (356yds), three putts meant 5 at the 12th (456yds), and a pushed-out iron shot looked very like another at the 13th (411yds). The ball lay in an ugly place, but he played a grand pitch, hitting really hard at the ball, and laid it dead. Down went a long putt for a 2 at the 14th, and that was one under 4’s, and his bad time, which is inevitable for any champion, seemed over. It was not, because he putted miles too far at the 15th and played a bad second to the 16th. The 17th cost him a third 5, and he was clearly tired, shaky, and anxious. He pulled himself together like a man for the last hole (460yds), against a light breeze, hit a fine drive, a still finer iron shot, and got his 4 and his 74. That made SarazerJs total 283, the best ever done in the British open, and Havers, who started two hours after Sarazen, had to ’> 70 to tie. He failed rather badly, and his 76 was the worst round he played in the championship. Macdonald Smith added a perfect 70 in the afternoon to 71 in the morning and played himself into second place, nosing Havers out by a stroke. Thus, with only three Americans in the field, British golfers could not get either first or second. The leaders and their scores were:—

A POPULAR WINNER. Sarazen was very popular with “the gallery” at Prince’s. He captured the crowd not only by his superb golf but also by his demeanour. The best golfer in the field won the championship, and a British crowd asks nothing better than that the best man should win. If he is also a likeable man as well as a champion—well, they take him to their hearts. Mr Bernard Darwin’s tribute to the new champion in The Times was characteristic. He wrote: —“If ever a man earned a championship, Sarazen did. No competent observer who watched the play could doubt that he was the strongest golfer in all that strong field. Naturally everybody would have liked a Briton to win, but since that could not be there could be no more popular winner, as there could be no more deserving one. He has been our faithful friend for years, coming back and back again to try for the prize which has constantly eluded him by a hair’s breadth. He is a truly great golfer in every possible sense of the word, and long may we see the delightful grin that spreads across his cheerful, olive face as a doubtful putt drops in. A. G. Havers made an heroic effort in the morning, and, if he tailed away a little in the afternoon, he had fought well for his country. He played as well as ho could, but he was up against a better player, and it is futile to deny it.” Sarazen was enormously appreciative of the impartiality and generosity of the spectators. Speaking to Mr George Greenwood, of the London Daily Telegraph, after the fight was over, he said:—“lt has been the ambition of my life to win the British title, the proudest of them all, and the only regret I feel is that my wife has not been here to share in my success. I was particularly honoured to see the Prince of Wales among the crowd. What inspired me most was the sportsmanlike behaviour of the spectators. Never once did they get in the way. and I played throughout the championship with the feeling that they only wanted the best man to win. I happened to win, and they cheered me just as if I had been an Englishman. It is a wonderful spirit, and I feel I owe a lot to the crowd. They were truly magnificent.” GREAT STRENGTH. PERFECT PHYSICAL CONDITION. There is no doubt that what helped Sarazen to win was his physical condition. Sarazen stands only sft. sin. in height, but, like Bobby Jones, is built on herculean lines. Possessed of exceptional strength he was careful to keep himself in the best possible condition to use it. He trained systematically. He went on a simple diet and took off 8 or 10 pounds. He swung a 30oz. driver fifteen minutes every day to strengthen his forearms and wrists. He played at every opportunity in wet, cold and wintry weather in case he should have to meet these conditions at Sandwich. He set up targets at 200yds. and hammered away at them in a cross wind with wood and iron so as to get control of the ball. “I’ve done everything I can,” Sarazen said before leaving America, “to be ready for this championship. My main point now is to see that my concentration stays on the job from the first stroke to the final putt. That is the hardest job of all. But I’ve been working on that side, for concentration can be developed and improved just as much as anything else.”

And he was amply rewarded for his self-discipline and self-denial. Describing the last few holes, Sarazen said:— “I was getting tired towards the end of the long fight, and I must confess that on hearing of Havers’ wonderful round I began to wobble. Fortunately I was able to pull myself together for one final and supreme effort. When I saw my iron shot reach the green, at the last hole I felt as if a great load had been lifted from my mind. I owe a great deal of gratitude to my caddie, Daniels, a shrewd fellow, who always carries for the Prince of Wales and who acted as caddie for Hagen when he won the championship at Sandwich. Dan’s help and guidance were invaluable.”

The explanation of Sarazen’s ability to pull himself together for a supreme effort after he had “began to wobble” is to be found in his strength and fitness combined with concentration. There is no question but that Bobby Jones won so often because he excelled his rivals in physical strength, physical fitness, and the power of concentrating an iron will on the effort to win. Both Macdonald Smith and J. H. Kirkwood have had the British open championship in their grasp with only half a dozen holes to play. Then they “began to wobble,” as nearly every competitor has wobbled, and will continue to wobble, in such circumstances. When they began to wobble they were unable to pull themselves together for the supreme effort and “blew up.” Physically or mentally they broke under the strain, and how great is the strain is realized only by those who have seen the leading competitors finish in an

open championship. Sarazen was astray for a shot or two but he did not break. He rallied and finished like a lion. SARAZEN’S SECONDS. AN INCURRATE STATEMENT. One of the statements cabled in connection with Sarazen’s win was that throughout the championship he used nothing over a number two iron for his seconds to the green. This statement was not correct. Careful readers of Mr Darwin’s comment on the first round, quoted above, will note the reference to a “colossal spoon shot” at the 17th. Sarazen himself, in speaking of the holes at which he thought the championship was won mentioned particularly the eighth, 453yds, with the second shot blind over the famous ridge of sandhills known as the Himalayas. He got threes in each of the last two rounds, and according to himself on the first occasion he hit the flagstick with a long iron, and on the second he put a spoon shot near enough to hole out the next. So Sarazen used wood for his seconds at least twice —and probably oftener. AMATEURS IN THE “OPEN.” PERFORMANCES OF WALKER CUP MEN. One point of special interest in connection with the British open championship is the showing made in it by leading amateurs. There are good golfers who are not “card and pencil’' men, but ability to score in 72 holes of championship play gives the stamp of real class to the golfer, whether amateur or professional. To play four stroke rounds without a crash—that is the real test of stamina and skill, and the amateur who breaks under it is not the complete golfer. Measured by this standard R. T. Jones of course stands alone among amateurs. But T. P. Perkins was first amateur in the last two British open championships in which he played, and he was British Amateur champion one year and English champion the other. He was seventh in the American open last year and 2nd this year. Lower down the scale we see the same all-round capacity in Ivo Whitton in Australia, and A. D. S. Duncan showed it in New Zealand golf in his palmy, days. This year, of course, special interest was taken in the performances of the amateurs because among the number were several members of the British Walker Cup team which will play America in the United States in September and participate in the American amateur championship. The scores of the amateurs and their places in the final list are shown in the following table: —

W. L. Hope played against America in 1923 and 1928 but has not been nominated for this year’s team. T. A. Torrance played against America in 1924, 1928 and 1930, and will captain this year’s team. W. L. Hartley was first British amateur in the open of 1926 and second amateur in 1931. He will play against America for the first time this year. Tulloch, Bentley and Sweeney have not been nominated for the team though many think Bentley should be in it. He won the French open amateur championship this year for the second year in succession, and shortly after the open championship won the Gold Vase, an open stroke competition at Royal St. George’s. E. A. Mcßuvie is regarded as the strongest player in amateur golf in Britain to-day. He qualified brilliantly in second place for the open championship, but never struck, his best form in the championship itself. He was first amateur in the open championship of 1931 at Carnoustie. John de Forest, British amateur champion, qualified for the open championship but failed to earn the right to play the last two rounds. His first round was 82 and his second 84, a total of IG6. The highest score to qualify for the 'final stages was 154. He is ‘in the Walker Cup team. Rex Hartley, brother of W.L., and also in the Walker Cur team, failed to get going and scratched. J. T. Bookless was so dissatisfied with his performance in the open that he tendered his resignation from the team. Eric Fiddian, J. Burke, L. G. Crawley and J. A. Stout, other players nominated for the team,. did not compete in the championship.

G. Sarazen, U.S.A. 70 69 70 74—283 Mac. Smith, U.S.A. 71 76 71 70—288 A. G. Havers 74 71 68 76—289 c. A. Whitcombe 71 73 73 75—292 p. Alliss 71 71 78 72—292 A. H. Padgham 7G 72 74 70—292 A. J. Lacey 73 73 71 76—293 W. H. Davies 71 73 74 75-293 F. Robson 74 71 78 71—294 A. Mitchell 77 71 75 72—295 T. H. Cotton 74 72 77 72—295 A. Compston 74 70 75 76—295 GENE SARAZEN.

15th W. L. Hope 74 79 75 71—299 20th W. Tulloch 75 77 76 73—301 20th T. A. Torrance 75 73 76 77—301 24th W. L. Hartley 76 73 80 73—302 29th L. 0. Munn 74 75 78 76—303 39 th H. G. Bentley 75 78 79 74—306 43rd R, Sweeney 78 74 77 78—307 46th E. A. McRuvie 77 75 80 77—309