GOLF

Taranaki Daily News, 5 December 1929, Page 4

GOLF

NEW ZEALAND ASSOCIATION. The monthly meeting of the council was held on Monday, December 2, 1929, when there were present: —Messrs.. W. E. A. Gill (chairman), L. 0. H. Tripp, W. A. Kiely. M. J. Crombie, Colonel R. 0. Chesney, Sir Alexander Roberts and G. O. Sutton (secretary). A finalised statement was before the council from the Wanganui Golf Club which had covered a remittance for the association’s proportion of the gate money received. An application was received from the Maungakiekie Golf Club, Titirangj, Auckland, for the 1930 championship. The only other application to hand was from the Manawatu Golf Club, and it was resolved to endeavour to have both these courses inspected as soon as possible. . , An application from the Professionals Association that the conditions of the professionals’ championship should be slightly altered, so that the first Id qualify instead of 8 as formerly, was agreed to. As the Professionals’ Association had not come to a definite decision as to where and when they would like the tournament played, the matter of fixing it was left to a sub-committee. With regard to the Hagen-Kirkwood matches, the dates at present arranged are Auckland (Titirangi) February 25. Wellington (Mirimar) February 26 and Christchurch (Shirley) February 27. Regarding the Kirk-Windcyer Cup and tournament, further correspondence was read from the Australian associations and with the Christchurch Uoif Club. It was decided to play the KirkWindeyer Cup on Wednesday and Thursday, April 16 and 17 (the- two days before Good Friday). The Christchurch Golf Club’s Easter tournament with whatever modifications in the usual programme as may bo thought necessary, will follow immediately after Good Friday, that is, on .Saturday, April 19, Monday, April 21 and Tuesday, April 22.

DUNCAN AND MITCHELL WIN GOLF PURSE OF £250. (From Our Own Correspondent). London, October 17. I do not think George Duncan has forgotten his hard struggle to establish his position in the front rank of golf. Indeed, for several years it seemed as if he were deliberately crowded out when, by his wonderful natural gifts and personality, he might have made a big public appeal. At the time Vardon, Braid and Taylor commanded the stage, and when it.might have.been expected that they would have chosen Duncan to complete the quartette for the purpose of exhibition matches they selected Edward Ray. In these circumstances, great player as he was, Dunean was left out and when he made his first trip to America he had to go alone. But his chance came with the end of the war. Just before the outbreak Abe Mitchell had turned professional, and, quick to realise his capabilities, Duncan entered into a partnership agreement with him and at once broke down the monopoly which Vardon and his three colleagues had held for almost twenty years. Indeed, for the past ten years Duncan and Mitchell have been the leading British pair, and to-day their supremacy is hardly challenged. i- Unfortunately Archibald Compston is in much the same position as Duncan •used to occupy. At one time it seemed •as if he would pair up with Aubrey i -Boomer, but though they went to together they did not prove a very successful combination and Comp'.ston is still looking for a partner. A ■ possible one is Harry Cotton, who, by the way, is going to spend the winter in the Argentine. Compston and Cotton have just played Duncan and Mitchell a thirty-six holes foursome for a purse of £250 on the Brockenhurst Manor course, which is situated close to the New Forest. At one point in the second round Dunean and his partner were as many as three holes up, but they only won on the last green. The match was a sort of wind-up to a Brockenhurst week, the chief feature of which was the English women’s championship, which was won. for the second time by Miss Molly Gourlay. Her opponent in the final was an eighteen-years-p'ld girl,' Miss ; . Diana.. Fish wick, who is a very .remarkable young player with 'a-'wonderful temperament. Considering . her inexperience she gave a great display, and I have no doubt that she . will gain. many honours. GOLF BALL STANDARDS BRITAIN AND AMERICA TO PART. (By Harry Vardon. —Special to News.) London, Sept. 20. There is a strange silence in official quarters in this country concerning the question of adopting the larger and lighter ball, which the United States Golf Association have decided to standardise from January 1, 1931. A lot of people, including the ball makers, felt certain that a statement would be given out on- the subject at the September business meeting of the Royal and Ancient Club, for this is the chief gathering of the year so far as concerns legislative affairs. Not a word has been heard'. ■lt looks as though' our governing body have resolved to keep aloof from any further measure, and let the Americans go their own way.- At any rate, they are virtually pledged to give long notice to the public and the manufacturers if they contemplate a change, and that notice would have been due by now if they had meant to co-operate with the United States Association.

It is a rather curious situation, considering that the Royal and Ancient Club began to discuss the problem long before the Americans bothered about it, and that their committee recommended the very ball which the Americans have agreed to adopt. I am told that the rules committee have dropped the proposal because they p ear its defeat by the general meeting of the chib. It appears to be a tradition that any motion the committee put forward must be accepted, and they do not like the idea of risking rejection. Could they not take the chance of a matter of such great importance which calle for an expression of general feeling? It..is known that nearly all the members of the committee favour the change. And certainly a large volume of public feeling is coming round to the same way of thinking although popular

sentiment was strongly opposed to it a few years ago. AUTHORITY. At any rate, it would be illuminating to discover the attitude of the general meeting of the Royal and Ancient Club, as the body who have the final say in the making or revising of rules. Surely • the question could be diseased and voted upon even if the rules committee declined to bring it forward? There are plenty of people who ask why the members of the Royal and Ancient Club should have the supreme authority in these affairs. I am sure I do not know —except that they always have had it; that they represent players of all grades in every part of the country; and that they have as righteous a regard for tradition, combined with the necessities of modern life, as., any nationally elected body might be expected to possess. It is all very well to say that a new and democratic government would meet the popular wish more readily. The palpable truth is that it would split the golfing world in twain, and that surely cannot be the popular wish. No other body in the world —not even the United States Golf Association—could command the same universal respect as is accorded instinctively to the Royal and Ancient Club in the matter of decisions on the many rules problems. If ever they approve of the larger and lighter ball, I think that the lure of the game will be enhanced in spite of the harum-scarum beliefs of the flighty people who are convinced that the sole desire of the average golfer is to be presented with a ball which will travel a furlong if topped really badly.

NOT A FLOATING BALL. , / This business about the larger and lighter ball could have been settled long ago if it had been given the benefit of much ventilation in the public mind. It has been discussed mostly .in secret. The objections to it are that the poorer players will not fluke so many long drives as with the present ball, and. that they will find it difficult to propel against the wind. Whatever may be its merits or demerits, these are surely weak criticisms. It is not so light as to float in water, as the gutta-percha hall did. Golf established its greatness during the reign of the gutta-percha ball. Yet the lightness of that ball was such that Mr. John Ball and Mr. F. G. Tait had to play it floating in floating in casual water in the Himalayas bunker in the final of an amateur championship at Prestwick. Players conquered at art of controlling it in its lightness. Such men as Mr. H. H. Hilton and James Braid could keep it so low against the wind that, even for a full shot, it rose little more than a yard or so from the ground. Braid was particularly skilful at this shot. I believe that the Professional Golfers’ Association once sent a resolution to the Royal and Ancient Club asking that a ball that would float should be standardised, so that skill rather than luck might be rewarded. It is too late now to go back to that almost prehistoric condition, but I doubt whether anybody would notice the difference between the ball which is proposed and the. type which is in popular use—except that he would notice how its size makes it 6’t up boldly and ask for a clean bit. The clamour for the long-driving ball has become rather absurd. In point of fact, the suggested ball would bring the ordinary golfer, nearer to the very hard hitter —or mis-hitter —than he has been for years in the full-blooded blows from the tee. On the whole, he would probably gain in length.