OCR Text |
Show Francis Ouimet Put Golf on Page 1 By Ending British Supremacy s : j I , . .. . y"v'i n '.? t ?. - tyr if y ' I . . ;-. , . e- (''- , . . m-jar-j L -v--ll. - i - t, '"J. ! x.-.u-.W .t1Sikiu. f riiimiii-r'i . Boy Wonder Sold Americans on Game With Win BOSTON, Feb. 2S-In 1913, as tho 30-year -old son of a gardener, Francis Ouimet put golf on Page One and has done much to keep It there. Ouimet, the Buy Wiin'lrr irliff beat the British masters, Harry Vardon and Ted Rey, in the historic his-toric play-oft for the United States open championship at Brookllne, sold the American people the royal and ancient game. His exemplary conduct since has made him the moat popular figure la tho history of American golf . . . earned him tho title of Lindbergh Lind-bergh of the Links. Ouimet's feat of bagging the United States amateur in 1931, IT years after taking it for the first time, waa one of the more glorious comebacks. Ouimet, the 100 per cent amateur, ama-teur, has captured four American Walker cup teams. He remains a superb golfer at 47. Long a highly successful broker, he atlU finds time to golf for fun. Beat Britlih His Influence In golf In this country has been greater than that of any other man, not excepting except-ing the illustrious Robert Tyre Jones. His dramatic victory over Vardon and Ray at the Country club marked golfs first big push on this. side. Up until that rainy day, no one believed American golfers as a whole, professionals and amateurs, were aa good aa those of Great Francis Ouimet . . . He's the man who ended British golfing supremacy and started the game toward an Important position posi-tion in the American sports program. Dnmn, Until Ouimet prevailed over Vardon Var-don and Ray 27 years ago, golf largely was confined to the east and Chicago. It principally was a game for the more fashionable. Practically all the professionals came from the other side, most of them with a Scottish brogue that could be cut with a knife. There were only 335 United Statea Golf association member clubs In 1913. But when Ouimet convinced the public and the youth of the land that the game could be played Just as well on this aide aa on the other, the number of member clubs leaped to wi in Ji3, in in ivm, bm in 1925, and 1134 in 1930. There are now more than 5000 courses in America and close to 2,000.000 play 10 rounds or more a year. More than half of the public courses were constructed In the '20a and most of them prior to '28. There are now more than 3500 profeasionaia in this country, a great share of them American-bred, American-bred, and American playing professionals pro-fessionals now show the way to the world. Golf Is faster today than It was when Ouimet conquered Vardon and Ray, but Ouimet Is another of the old school who stresses the fact that the shots are now made for the player. Modern equipment has taken considerable skill out of tho game. Ouimet and other old-timers had to know just how to make the ball behave. They had to be masters of half and three-quarter shots, etc. Players now let the club do much of tho work. Willie Anderson, several times United Statea open champion, waa Ouimet'a model. It waa from Anderson, An-derson, for whom ho once coddled, cod-dled, that tha renowned Boston simon-pure obtained his Interlocking Interlock-ing grip. Gone Saraxon took it from Ouimet who at once became tho Idol of every caddy and young player In the land. Used Seven Cluba Ouimet saya that while he may have lugged mora than seven clubs In his play-off with Vardon and Ray, he did not use any more than that Vardon and Ray carried no more than 10. ' They tried to take care of courses in 1913, but didn't pack the turf aa well aa It la packed today. Mowers drawn by horses formerly gave courses about all the attention atten-tion they received. They're practically prac-tically manicured today. With fairways firmer, the ball bounds farther. Better and refined material ma-terial In the ball makes It travel farther. In the old days, most of the hazards were bunkers rather than traps. ' There are more Instructors today. to-day. Teaching la easier to get It la of a higher typo. Golf would have got on in America sooner or later anyway, but tho fact remains that It was gentlemanly Francis Ouimet who inspired Its quick growth. Through him, the sport was taken to the common people. |