Salt Lake Telegram | 1936-04-14 | Page 20 | Backseat Driving

t it i 0 b I V I FRANK K BAKER BAKER- When Sam Parks Jr begins defense of his national nations open golf championship at the historic Baltusrol course 17 m miles les west of New York City June 4 4 the exclusive J club lub will be host to its first national tournament since sine 1926 r when George Gix Von Elm interrupted the reign of Bobby Jones Jones was seeking his third championship in a row when he hemet met Von Elm at Baltusrol He had beat Gix at Merion Medori in 1924 1 for r the title tile and repeated at Oakmont in 1935 by downing Watts Gunn in the final match I r He had played spectacular golf two mon months hs earlier to win the British open championship and he had been in the tournament at Baltusrol with 73 70 73 70 Gix on the other hand had soared t tc to 83 on the first 18 holes of the qualifying round He started the second round with a seven on the first hole but steadied thereafter to finish with 76 and anda a safe aggregate of 1 59 I S Si i Twelve J thousand spectators turned out to lo see seo the title I match the largest gallery up to that time to follow a a golf gol match in America And the two stars put on a performance which will Wil not be forgotten by any of those fortunate enough V to follow the pair over the heavily wooded course V V Jones laid four stymies in Von Van Elms Elm's path Gix chipped over one for a win The other three cost him halves when V victories were in sight And amid all aU this this this' of battle the gallery was V treated to two episodes of competitive courtesy courtesy courtesy-as as pleasing pleasing pleas pleas- ing in themselves as the brand of golf V The The first one came early on on the morning round when uG Gix u surveyed a two foot putt put which was a few inches longer than the one Jones was waiting to try The gallery moved restlessly toward the next tee V Von on Elm straightened up and moved away to collect himself When Bobby saw that he was perturbed by the gallery disturbance he knocked the ball away conceding a half And nd Bobby was down at the time V Gix had a chance to return the courtesy a few holes boles V later when he rolled the ball ban up within two inches of the tho cup while Jones had a two foot tap to make Gix didn't hesitate a second He conceded a half V S The m former Salt Laker finished one up at the end of the morning round and Jones squared it on the first hole of the thc afternoon after after- noon oon play From then on it was a tense fight Von Elm finally won von 2 and 1 for the triumph that kept the Georgian from holdi holding hold hold- holding i ing g the he crown five years years' in a row inasmuch as Bobby came back to win in both 1927 and 1928 V Von Elms Elm's golf that day inspired one scribe to write the following lol- lol lowing The haired flaxen-haired young star from the west put his head bead down kept it down and played golf He wrote a symphony with his putter and an epic with his irons This brand of golf came after he had failed by two strokes to qualify for the thc national open at the tle Scioto club in Columbus V Ohio a couple of months earlier It came too a short time after h d. d tied Walter Hagen at at- 29 for third place place- in the British open behind Jones and Al AI Watrous S S S 1 Baltusrol considers itself the sixth oldest club In the V United States following St. St Andrews Newport Brookline V. V Chicago and S Hills V It was organized in 1895 with nine holes Nine more holes holes were added a few ew years later but the layout was scrapped in 1920 so two new hole 18 layouts could be de de- de signed S S S The national open of 1903 won by Willie Anc Anderson erson with w was s' s held at Baltusrol Jerry trav Travers ravers rs had there to win the national open of 1915 and the late H. H Chandler Egan captured the national amateur championship there in 1904 Various Metropolitan Metropolitan meetS and other tournaments of ovary ovary- varying vary vary- V lug ing importance have been held there but none drew more ac acclaim acclaim acclaim ac- ac claim as a high grade show than the theone one of 1926 when Von yon Elm p a product duct of Utah courses cours s rose to the pinnacle before fans ans