Show Speaking of 01 Sports Sport Wood Entitled To Roll of Honor By ROBERT McSHANE 4 LIES LIE'S ES E'S one ODe of or the greatest creates golf golf- era ers Ive I've ever and seen een and sot not because he beat me It took a lot of courage for the speaker to say that for he was none other than Craig Wood who recently recent ly completed his reverse grand slam by losing to young Byron Nelson Nelson Nel son in the second hole 18 playoff for forthe forthe forthe the National Open title tille The fact that Lord Byron scored an all eagle to beat him isn't Important Important tant In Itself It was merely the up follow-up of a long succession of events which have kept him from gaining the many titles for which he has competed Wood has found only one competItor competitor compel harder to beat than Old Man lan Par Far And that's that'll Mr Hard liard Luck who has finished regularly In first place since 1931 When golf's coU's last chapter Is written Craig will be remembered remembered re re- as the man who came closer doser to winning more major cham sham championships than any divot digger who whoever whoever ever lived Opportunity has knocked more than once for him In fact it has rapped a steady tattoo on his door Ills His golfing career has been a succession succession suc suc- cession of tough breaks lost chances and marvelous opposition His amazing career got underway back tack In 1931 when the tall blond blond- haired youngster tied John Golden for the North and South title at Pine Pine- aw e n ns s r 1 CRAIG WOOD hurst It wasn't one of major titles tilles but it was his first big tournament He didn't win the title I Golden beat him in the playoff From then on his luck would have spelled disaster to anyone but a fighter In 1933 he tied Denny DeDDY Shute for the British Open championship sham cham in his first overseas effort He lie was beaten in tn the be playoff Stu Student vs VB Teacher In 1934 he reached the final of the Professional Golfers association tournament at Buffalo Paul Run Run- yan beat him on the thirty-eighth thirty the second extra hole An interestIng interest interest- Ing sidelight to Runyan's victory was the fact that he had served his apprenticeship under Wood at the Hollywood Country Club in Deal N N. J J. J During the Ibe 1934 season he finished second in tn five winter circuit tournaments tour tour- tournaments losing three times to Ilor- Ilor ton Smith Wood has been plagued by the long shots his bis opponents opponents opponents have holed to beat him Opportunity had stepped inside thedoor the thedoor thedoor door at the near-end near of the Masters at nt Augusta in 1935 Wood had retired retired re reo tired to the locker room to celebrate cele cele- celebrate brate brale and there received everyone's congratulations It Isn't over yet he told lold his well There Theren n are re still a lot of scores to be posted But nut Wood along with the milling spectators figured his lead was se se- cure Then the miracle happened Gene scored a double eagle on the fifteenth out a yard ard wood shot played the she next thu three e holes boles in par and tied Wood for the championship Wood Wooi lost Josl in the playoffs To keep the record straight he finished second in the Metropolitan Open in 1936 Reversal Completed Wood has now lost playoffs for forthe forthe forthe the four greatest titles in reach o oa of ofa ofa a pro the professional the the British Open the P. P G. G A. A crown the Masters am and the National Open Despite these breaks Wood has never carped He has always alway played his best game and is the first to give credit to the winner That's one big reason w why y so many folks feel pretty badly that tha gentleman Craig Wood didn't win the National Open Instead ol of losing it I to 10 Byron Bron Nelson In a double playoff And they have no nil wish to take anything away from the winner Wood had two breaks In the first firs playoff round of the National Open The first was when his second sho shot t hit a spectator and was thereby sued from booking hooking out Into th the e rough tough The second break break of of a totally t totally to to- o tally different nature was nature was when h he e failed tailed to hole a six foot foot putt which h would have won the championing p for or him One person remarked It was only justice 1 think tha thaI t the putt missed for it evened ened u uthe up I the break that thai came carne before Tire TIe again Beam was Cral g Star All-Star Jinx A A STRANGE jinx has overtaken 1 each of of the five college football coaches who In past years yean were named lamed nam to coach the graduated college col col- lege ege star all-star team leam which annually meets the National Football league professional champs in tn the sea pre son Ion on grid erld classic The head coach of the college all all- stars tars is le selected by millions of fans taw voting in tn a wide nationwide poll It isa Isa is isa a signal honor for any coach to win wintha that tha t election The jinx has haa already overtaken Noble KlIer Kizer of Purdue who coached the Ont first star all r team In 1934 1931 Frank Thomas of or Alabama Alabama Alabama Ala Ala- bama Bernie Bierman Bierman Bier Bier- man of or Minnesota Gus Dorais of Detroit Detroit De De- troit troll and Bo Do I Un of or Indiana Kizer's stars all-stars a i met the Chicago Bears in a scoreless I I B tie But his Purdue team while finishing Noble Kizer high in the Western conference the previous previous pre pre- year experienced a disastrous trous rous 1934 season losing three games The Boilermakers lost toRice to toRice tolice Rice lice Notre Dame and their traditional traditional rival Indiana In 1935 1933 the follo following ing year Frank Thomas rhomas coach of the Alabama Rose Bowl champions of the previous prey prey- ous season suffered utTered a similar unsuccessful unsuccessful un un- successful season Bernie BIerman coach of Minnesota Minnesota's Minne Minne- sota sota's mighty Golden Gophers was head mentor of or the 1936 all all- stars when they tied the Detroit Lions 7 to 7 7 lie He wasn't quite as al unlucky lucky as KIzer or Thomas but the Jinx tripped him up when the Gophers undefeated In 3 32 previous starts were whipped 6 to 0 by Northwestern In one of or the seasons season's most mOlt startling upsets an upsets an upset that kept the Gophers from annexing another an an- another other Big DIC Ten title Dorais suffered the same luck in 1937 as did McMillin in 1938 Mc Me- Millins Millin's collegiate crew did a fine Job lob in beating the worlds world's champion champion cham cham- pion plan Washington Redskins 39 to 14 but his own Indiana lads scored one victory and that over ineffectual Iowa Should the jinx continue football fans tans may need more than an election elec tion to name an star all-star coach It II will wUI probably bly call for a man man- date I Gag Backfires JOE TOE JACOBS manager of Champion Tony Galento Galento Ga Ga- lento struck a new high or high or rather a new low recently low recently when he charged that Joe Louis had a metal slug In his hand the night he knocked out Max Joe cant can't be blamed for trying to lo build up Interest In his fat boy Something had to be done A public pub pub- Ito lic made apathetic by past heavyweight heavy weight performances certainly wouldn't rush the turnstiles to see Galento In action even against the Brown Bomber Jacobs took it all back when Gen John J. J Phelan chairman of the 1 state athletic commission threatened threatened threatened threat threat- i ened to revoke his license In New NewYork NewYork York But the damage has been done Prize fighting has never been held in the same high repute as other sports with the exception of an almost al- al almost al most obsolete contest called wres wres- Millions of people look upon prize fighting with a raised eyebrow eyebrow eye eye- brow or with compressed nostrils thinking only of the sports sport's seamier seamier seam seam- ier ler side It Is all too true that boxing has plenty of unwashed linen In Its Us hampers It Is equally true that the fight firM game rame Includes some of sport sport- doms dom's squarest shooters in Its Us ranks Unfounded accusations such as Jacobs' Jacobs bombast magnify the evils of the ring Granted that the average average aver age fan is too smart to be betaken taken in by such hokum nevertheless nevertheless repetition repetition repetition repe repe- of such baseless ch charges have an unhappy effect A few crackpots can do untold damage And the sad part of U it itis i UIs is they dont don't suffer the conse conse- The entire pugilistic profession pro pro- is the loser I Sport Shorts ART A A RT SHIRES former White Sox first baseman says he finds refereeing wrestling male matches hIs hI's in the Southwest more profitable than managing a minor league team Ray Arcel is emphatic in saying nying Joe Louis Is dynamite He has acted act ed as a second for six fighters who have opposed Louis and only Jimmy Jimmy Jim Jim- my Braddock was able to go beyond the third round He fell feU In the sev Others handled by Arcel were Paulino Jack Sharkey Nathan Mann John JohnHenry JohnHenry Henry and and Jorge Bresci Walter lIage jays says t. t the present da day pros t ire are playing like ama They take full powered full powered swings r at al all aU times and and would rather hit a aNo No 5 Iron over the t t. t green unlike the old i t time pros who's o u would use a No 2 Wall Walter r Iron and finesse linesse the ball bail into the hole Former title titleholders holders will be qualified automatically automat for the 1940 National Open i ithe U 11 Uthe the U U. U S S. G G. G A A. can cart work out a s satisfactory arr arrangement nger ent On Only I 17 games ames have gone more than 1 18 Innings In the year 63 history o othe of 01 the National le league u and the Cub Cubs have played In nhe of them lit il 11 aM d sal III I urt I u At iri Cl Koran |