GOLF

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXXVIII, Issue 19959, 17 November 1934, Page 19

GOLF

FORM OF ENGLISH AMATEURS LAWSON LITTLE’S WIN The English golfing season of 1934 has produced many remarkable results. Enthusiasts not fortunate enough to attend these meetings, probably felt just a tinge of the excitement that was so apparent where seemingly impossible feats were accomplished in quick succession, writes . E. Horak, in the “Cape Times.” Of these sensational performances the final of the amateur championship of Britain between James Wallace and Lawson Little will go down as one of the most historic of all time, not only because of the inspired golf played by Little, but also because the match ended thirteen holes from home. At that stage Little’s score card was ten under 4’s, or thirteen over 3’s for twentythree holes played. Lawson Little is a powerfully-built University student in his early twenties—quiet and unassuming. His style of play will not suit many golfers unless they are endowed with the physical power of a Little to carry them through. When you handle his clubs you realise that it requires considerable force to manipulate them at the speed and accuracy that Little is capable of imparting to a clubhead of such weight. His driver, for instance, weighs 14i, ! 0z., whereas the driver of the average golfer (as you know) weighs round about 13 to 13ioz. only. His Nos. 1,2, and 3 irons weigh 15i0z.; Nos. 4 and 5, 15'30z.; Nos. 6,7, and 8. 16i0z.; and j niblick 16 *oz. In addition to these, he also carries ! a few others, among which is a small- | faced club with decided loft and speci- ! ally weighted with a chunk of lead soldered on the back; this he uses primarily to extricate the ball from impossible places. A Flat Swing With these clubs he swings decidedly flat, with great force and determination; these are the three main characteristics of his golf. His length is prodigious, and it was considered that he was the longest off the tee at the meeting until he played against Leslie Garnett, a young amateur from Addington. when he had to bow before Garnett’s tremendous tee shots. Talking about this match, which was the second qf the two semi-finals, and therefore a battle royal, it must be said that if ever a match was played that £ad the spectators all keyed up. Law- j son Little and Leslie Garnett provided 1 it. To see those two master-hitters drive ; ball after ball in the neighbourhood j of 300 yards was a thrill that those ! who have ever dreamt about driving a ball that distance will be able to i imagine. Length, however, was not the only feature of their play. It was com- j bined with great accuracy both off the tee and to the pin. The eighteenth hole in this match I | am sure will not lightly be forgotten by those who held their breath while Garnett was studying his putt from all angles—with a perfect carpet of turf eight yards in length, and as wide as the whole world (to the putter) separating ball and hole —and only one stroke to save the match. After his decision regarding the line Garnett struck the ball firmly, and as it rolled into the hole it roused a mute, solemn crowd to a wild outburst of applause, increasing the tension of a strenuous match—strenuous to spectators and players alike. Anti-Climax Unfortunately for British golf, the anti-climax was at hand. At the nineteenth Garnett failed to lay his 20foot putt dead, missed the return of about three feet, and left Lawson Little to play Wallace in that dramatic final. By this amateur championship the list of American winners of the title was increased to four. It was exactly thirty years since the first American won the title, the first be ng Jerome Travers in 1904. The other : wo occr-s----ions on which the amateur title crossed the Atlantic were when Jess Sweetser and Bobby Jones won in 1926 and 1930 respectively. The other great amateur event in the programme of the season was the Walker Cup match at St. Andrews. This wjs won bv the American team by 9H> matches to 2-1. It was the eighth consecutive victory for America, which has held the cup ever since its inauguration in 1922. The Americans are now leading by 70 matches to 19 in the whole series of individual matches won in the Walker Cup competition. In this match, as in moJ events of this nature, the failure of the side was laid at the door of the committee responsible for its selection. Someone always seems to know of somebody in a particular sport who is far superior to the players chosen to do duty. I did not know of anybody superior to the players chosen for the Walker Cup team of 1934. To me the-/ were all household names in "he world of golf, and I accordingly thought it the best team; but from subsequent play (at the amateur a week later) it was ! immediately apparent that promising younger players should have been giv- | en a chance to gain exneuence. It. is j doubtful whether the result would j have been different, as the American ! team was a very formidable one. but I came across at least three players— Wallace, Garnett, and John Neal of Moore Park—whom I would have car in the team instead of some of the old stagers. Fine Iron-Player Neal is perhaps unknown to many, but he was beaten by Garnett in the quarter-final only on the seventeenth green. If his practice (he has jus: qualified as a doctor) does not interfere with his golf I can see him as a master iron-player of the future. The finest amateur golfer in the British Isles to-day is Jack McLean, the young Scots champion. He has a very solid style, a controlled swing on a good plane, and comparatively short, but the distance is exceptional for such a controlled swing. He hits the ball very decisively in the way all the best professionals play their shots. He is capable of producing golf of a standard that compares very well with the front rank of professionals, which he proved by coming in on the last round of the open at Sandwich with a 69, to be comfortably the leading amateur Having seen the best of the amateur golfers in the British sles and also the cream of American amateur golf, I am afraid the future does not hold very bright hopes for British supremacy. The Americans play the game in a spirit totally different from the English players—there is far greater concentration and determination apparent in their play. This is most probably due to the greater amount of competitive golf the American enjoys. But it also may be partly attributable to the higher standard he sets himself to achieve. The American never plays for bogey. He sometimes thinks in terms of par, but invariably he strives after 4’s, and if you inquire how he stands you will hear him reply “one over fours” or “two under

fours” and so on. Only rarely will he say “level with par,” except when par is level 4’s. Thinking of golfers whom I had the opportunity to see and to play with at the last South African open meeting at Port Elizabeth, I am of opinion that two or three of our leading players would give a very good account of themselves in any company. Let me especially single out our national amateur champion, Clarence Olander, with his great accuracy off the tee and controlled iron play. Accuracy of tee shots is one of the first essentials on the great championship courses; every shot has to be placed so as to get the best results with the next. This opinion is supported by the showing of Sid Brews in the English competitions, for it will be remembered that up to the final round of our last open Olander gave Sid a great deal to think about; and to my mind it was only Sid’s indomitable courage and determination, and two unfortunate holes of Olander’s that widened the gap between the two scores at the end. In any case, he brought the best out of Sid in the last two rounds, and that is enough to make me belive that success awaits Olander and other of our leading amateurs if an opportunity is afforded them to join battle in the front rank of world golf.