LONDON SPORTING LETTER.

Star (Christchurch), Volume XLIV, Issue 190, 12 August 1931, Page 13

LONDON SPORTING LETTER.

Cricket Sensation—Davis Cup Tennis— Britain’s Golf Defeat—Armour’s Great Play—A Bold Policy

(Special to the “ Star.”) LONDON, June 11. Cricketers have been startled by an astonishing arrangement by the Yorkshire and Gloucestershire captains at Sheffield. Owing to rain on the first two days, no play was possible, and it was taken for granted that the game would have to be added to the many that have been abandoned this season through the weather without a decision even on the first innings. But it was evident that, during the tedious hours of waiting, F. E. Greenwood, the young Yorkshire captain, and B. H. Lyon, the Gloucestershire skipper, had considered the position, and they devised a way by which the match might actually be finished on the third day, and so enable the full fifteen points to be won. Yorkshire won the toss and sent their opponents in to bat. The first ball was well wide of the wicket, and the stumper made no attempt to stop it. It went to the boundary, and four byes were recorded. Immediately Gloucestershire declared, and the players left the field. Then Yorkshire went in, and exactly the same thing happened. They were allowed four byes, and declared. In this way the first innings was got rid of, and, in the event of the second not being finished, the points would, of course, be divided. It was from this point that the match really started. I need not carry the story of the play further, except to say that both sides went boldly for a win, and that Gloucestershire were successful, and counted the full fifteen points, i Brighter cricket! But I am afraid this sort of thing is too much for the old gentlemen of Lord’s, who sat back in their armchairs, and declared; “We didn’t do such things in our days.” They were rudely shocked, and began i to fear that there was something grievously wrong with a county champion--1 ship system that permitted the arrangement the two captains had carried out at Sheffield. It was never intended, it 1 was said, that the actual play should | be subordinated to the winning of i points. The two counties had made ' a burlesque of their match. Golf Cup Again Goes to U.S. Once more, and for the tenth time in the past eleven years, the British golf championship has been captured for America. In the event at Carnous- • tie, T. D. Armour finished at the head ’ of the field with a total of 296 for the four rounds. He was a stroke ahead of the Argentine professional, Jose Jurado, and then came the English player, Percy Alliss, who is stationed in Berlin. Though a naturalised American, Armour was born in Edinburgh, and for some time played as a violinist in his father’s cinema orchestra. In 1920 he won the French amateur champion--1 ship, beating Cyril Tolley in the final, ( and in the following year he played against America at Hoylake in the i Walker Cup match. Soon after, he went to America, and in 1924 became a * professional, at once achieving outi standing success. In fact, in 1927 he gained the American Open Championf ship and last year carried off the pro- , fessional title. The Prince of Wales has taken great 1 interest in the Argentine players, and, ( when Jurado looked like winning, he made a hurried visit to Carnoustie, > travelling through the night in order to be on the course when the players , went off. Under difficult conditions Jurado gave a superb display, complet--1 ing the round in 73, which placed him three strokes at the head of the field. I r——i r—t r—, . i i »—»

Could he last or would he break down as at Sandwich three years ago, when in a similar promising position? Going out on his final round Jurado reached the turn in 36. It was flawless golf, and the championship seemed his. But, on turning for home, he met the stiff wind, and he dropped a few strokes. Still, with three holes to play, he required 3,4, 5 to finish ahead of Armour, who shortly before had returned a brilliant 71, and the figures were really possible, though the last two holes at Carnoustie are perhaps the hardest on any championship course. Jurado got the three all right. Now, : at the seventeenth, there is a stream, ■ or burn, which zig-zags in confusing fashion. It has to be carried about a : hundred yards from the tee, and again shortly in front of the green, whilst a sliced or pulled drive will probably 1 find the water. The way adopted in playing the hole was to take an iron from the tee, and get home with another iron. Jurado, however, topped : his first iron shot, and put the ball in the stream. He had to pick it out, and > was compelled to use a wooden club J for his next, which found a bunker. : The result was that he took six for ■ the hole, and the best that he could now hope was to tie with Armour. To | do this a four was necessary at the last hole. Here he had the same burn to deal with again. It had to be car- ■ ried short of the green, and it demanded a very full shot. Jurado decided to play short, and trust to placing his ; approach close enough to the hole to be able to get down in one putt. All went well with this plan, but he just missed a four yard putt for the four, and his aggregate of 297 was one high--1 er than Armour’s. Davis Cup Semi-final. When the Davis Cup competition started, there was strong hope that ■ England would win the European zone section, and there is an excellent chance of it being realised. South ! Africa were decisively defeated, and only Japan remain to be beaten. This match is to be played on grass courts at Eastbourne. South Africa were defeated without the loss of a match, though H. W. Austin had a desperate struggle to get the better of the young left-hander, V. G. Kirby. As a matter of fact, it was only lack of experience which led to the South African losing , his grip on the game. He led Austin by two sets to one, and in the course of the fourth was within a point of match five times. Austin began extremely well. He took the first set with the loss of only two games, and was within a point of four-love in the i next. Then, however, he struck a bad patch, and the score was called three all. Austin recovered, and the score , became five-three in his favour. From this point Kirby played beautifully, and took the set at six-eight, whilst he claimed the third at six-two. In the . fourth he led at five-four, and in the : next game was five times within a ■ point of match on his own service. Instead of going all out for the winner, however, he allowed his opponent to . outdrive him. On losing this set, Kirby , seemed'to lose heart, and in the end Austin won comfortably, though once , more he was troubled by cramp. In t the other single, F. J. Perry had no ; difficulty in getting the better of N. G. ; I Farquharson and, after Perry and - Hughes had gained the double, Perry i beat Kirby, and Austin accounted for . ' Farquharson.