The Royal and Ancient

Cue (NZERS), Issue 18, 28 February 1945, Page 23

The Royal and Ancient

MANY a soldier eating a hasty meal of greasy bully beef and concrete-like biscuits, sprinkled with the sand of the Western Desert, vowed that"he would never be found picnickino, at the beach when he returned to New Zealand. Many an anfantcer struggling up the green hills of has similarly vowed that he will never go walking- for pleasure when he returns home. But time and circumstance will change both vows for most. Out of khaki, both ways of filling in leisure hours will have their attractions —and when a little white ball is being pursued over the green hills of home the latter, especially, will be an irresistible attraction.

For there is thing about the Royal and Ancient game of golf that makes it more than a sport. There are many who regard it as a disease—and long-suffering .wives have been known to use even stronger terms in describing it. But call it what one may,, it •is a game that is growing in popularity all the time, and is certain to make big strides forward in the post-war period,' Soldiers who have grown past the more strenuous sports during their tour abroad will had in golf a game . admirably suitable for their exercise, enjoyment, and the use of much colourful language learned in the army. Eighteen holes of golf on a Saturday afternoon or on a Sunday will offer many attractions— so will the nineteenth hole 7 ". in the club-house where the round is played again, and where ’’old Digs” will trade stories of how they stymied Heinie or got in the tough at Cassino. r 0 the uninitiated, it may appear a ittle infantile for grown men to spend several hours hitting a little white ■all over green paddocks, and to become exasperated almost to the point

of tears when a short putt curls tantalisingly round the hole. It might also seem a little magnoon of a normal person to spend hours during the week clipping out little pieces of turf from the front lawn or endangering carpet and light fittings in the . living room merely for the sake of swinging a club in a certain manner. But it does not pay to scoff, for golf is a contagious 'disease and may strike without warning. And there is no known cure. Sulphur' drugs, penicillin, even the straight-jacket are useless. In spite of the fact that it can be an expensive game, golf is of Scottish descent. The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrew’s is the national club of Scotland, whose rules are the foundation for the modern international rules of golf. The club was formed in 1754, so that it has some right to use the word ancient m its title Since those days, the game has spread to all parts of the world, and there must be millions who have swung a club for better or for worse. In New Zealand, there has ,been a rapid expansion in the number of links in the past ten or fifteen years, and municipal bodies have come to realise its advantages as a pastime . for town-dwellers, and have provided public courses. Short supplies of dubs and balls have affected the game in the war years. War service p has P reduced memberships with the result that the upkeep of courses has suffered and in at least one case military needs have destroyed links entirely. Bi t when the war is over, there is certain to be a boom in golf. The attractions of golf are many. It is a game that is fascinating, tantalising, exasperating, and adjectivally annoying. It looks so easy and is probably one of the most difficult of

games to master. It calls for many and varied qualities in the player—patience and self-control being two of manyand it has that interesting feature that one is really playing against oneself, trying to break a certain score irrespective of what one’s opponent might be doing. For this reason, golf is a game that can be thoroughly enjoyed by ’’rabbit” and ’’tiger” alike. To the beginner one of the proudest days of his life is when he breaks a hundred for the first time. To the ’’tiger” it is a. red-letter day when he breaks the course record or has his handicap reduced a stroke.

Not only can the game provide enjoyment and satisfaction, but it l is difficult to surpass for healthy exercise. It is a game that calls for the use of most muscles and for perfect co-ordination between mind and body. From the player who takes it seriously, it demands a high state of physical fitness, as anyone who has taken part in match play over some of New Zealand’s more rugged and hilly courses well knows. For the ex-serviceman it iis a first-class game for rehabilitation physically, mentally, and socially, and consequently is bound to be popular. The benefits to be derived from the game are outlined by R. A Whitcombe, winner of the British Open Championship in 1938, in his book, '’’Golf’s No Mystery.” He devotes a

chapter to physical fitness under the title, ’’Breathe Your Way to Scratch” His record is proof of his statements He enlisted during the last war at the age of sixteen, and was invalided out of the army in 1916 with a weak heart. At 39, he was run-ner-up to Cotton in the r Open, and in the following year was the’winner. (Pre-war golf enthusiasts will no, doubt ask themselves if they will ever be able to regain their form after four or five' years off the' course. Henry iLonghunst, one of England’s leading amateurs, offers them fresh hope. In an up-to-date reprint of his 'book, ’’Golf,” he em- > phatically answers ”ycs”. He docs so from practical experience, because he was recently posted l close to a golf course after an absence of over five years from the game. He devotes a whole section of his book to hints and Suggestions for the ’’vast army of returning golfers.” ( .?■ Incidentally, he affirms that there is no one correct way of hitting a ball. •Charles Whitcombe went round Crews Hill in 59 in one way, Aubrey Boomer; holed St. Cloud in 61 in another, Henry Cotton set a new standard of scoring ; ‘ with a 65 at Sandwich in a third way, ‘ and Bobby Jones won practically all the championships of world importance in h ; is own way. All were correct, but no one could have confused one style with another. But the average golfer is never satisfied with his style or his play—and in that, too, lies part of the ' charm of a game that has such a vast following. ‘ The battles of the desert, of Greece-, >of Italy will one day give way to the battles of Titirangi. Miramar, Shirley, or Balmacewen. but in the club-house over a good fire struggles grim and not so grim will fill in many pleasant post-, : war hours. Yes, golf will be the same after the war and for many years to come. ’ \ ITS