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GA,4NTLD D GA,4NTL GA4NTL < 3 < W/Z/ W Z WZ9 , / / 9 , GA,4NTLRCf WZCE //CE CE R/Cf R Cf RCfA RCfSHORT / ? / / J A \ SHORT time ack we opened a adIscussion adiscussion aAA discussion on the Importance ot of otconcentratlon ofconcentration ofconcentration concentratlon concentration and other mental aids aidson aidson . on the side ot of winning wmning competitionThis competitionThis competition competitionThis I competitionI This piece seemsto seemsto seems ' to have developed anumber a anumber anumber ropert number of reper roper repercuss repercuss ! t cuss ons oils and dlsagreements disagreements dis dls , , agreements ! in n thescattered thexscattered the thephys t- t tj thk.1 * - ' ; j scattered bellef ballet that thatphys hk.1 hk1 . xscattered phys cal sk 11 II ll and andphysical and1I andphysical 1I 1Iphysical $ physical superiorityf superiorityare superiority i are the dominatmg dominating dominatmgpomts dominatinge dominatingt\ dominatingt dominatingtpoints e \ points pomts < J pomtsThIs pointsThis This doesn doesnt t hap happen hapc happen happen c pen to be true The Themental TheS Themental S mental or concen concenGrantland concenGrantlandRice concenGrantlandRIce Grantland GrantlandRice GrantlandRicetratave Rice Ricetratlve trabve tratlve tratave side is st IIm 11m 11 II 11more m more 0 o r e important importantthan importantthan importantthan than the phys cal side What good goodis IS a pitcher with blinding blmdmg speed who whocan whocan whocan can t locate the plate who has no nochange nochange nochange change of pace who doesn doesnt t know knowthe knowthe knowthe the weakness of oppos ng batters ? When Lefty Grove first came camealong camealong camealong along with the Athletics Athletlcs I recall recallwatching recallwatching recallwatching watching him h1m strike strlke out six of ot the thefirst thefirst thefirst first nine nme Yankees who faced him himand himand himand and then have his West Vlrgmla Virginia Vlrgmlaears Virginiaears Virginiaears ears pinned back by the fifth fltth innmg inning inningas innmgas as he headed tor for the cooling cool1ng shower showerGrove showerGrove showerGrove Grove only became a great pItcher pItcherwhen pitcherwhen pitcherwhen when he learned how to pitchSuch pitch pitchSuch Such students ot of golf as Bobby BobbyJones BobbyJones BobbyJones Jones Walter Waller Hagen Tommy Ar Armour Armour Armour mour and others have all toldme told me methat methat methat that they rate raie the mental mentaJ or emo emo- emotional emotional emotional - - tional side of golf at ' 70 per cent- cent centthe centthe cent centthe - - the physical side at 30 per centMany cent centMany Many years ago on a knoll knolI at Oak Oakmont Oakmont Oakmont mont one of the great courses courseswhen courseswhen courseswhen when not spolledby spoiled : ; by plov/ plov plow plovshare / share traps trapsand trapsand trapsand and Ice greens I happened to be bestandmg bestanding bestanding standmg standing with Bill Pownes Fownes an able ableCritic ablecritic ablecritic Critic of what it at takes to wm WID win a big bigtournament bigtournament bigtournament tournament There were nme nine sur our survlvors ourvivors survivors vlvors vivors left with wlth only nine nme holes to toplay toplay toplay play In this particular partlcular Natlonal National NatlonalOpen NationalOpen NationalOpen Open They were all in a seethmgmass seethingmass seething seethmg seethingBlowing massBlowing mass Blowing Blowmg Up on Last HoleThis Hole HoleThis This should be a great scram scramble scramble scramble ble I said to Fownes FownesI I don dorm t think thmk so Fownes saidThere saidThere said saidThere There are only two men ! from rom the themne themne thenine mne left who can concentrate concentratethrough concentratethrough concentratethrough through 18 holes They are Tommy TommyArmour TommyArmour TommyArmour Armour and Harry Cooper They Theyran Theyran Theyran ran 12 1 2 The others blew up com corn completely cornpletely cornpletely cornpletelyIf pletely pletelyif If Sammy Snead had only had the theab theab theab ab hty llty to concentrate on his play playas playas playas as Jones Hagen and Nelson have havedone havedone havedone done he would have been a sensa sensatlon sensation sensation tlon tion I ve ye seen Sammy in ID an his rus has prIme prImethrowaway primethrow primethrow throwaway throw away a U S Open and $1 1 $3 3 $ 500 500m 500an 500in m an cash in m a Los Angeles Open by bytakmg bytaking bytaking takmg taking two 8 s on two final holes holeswhere holeswhere holeswhere where a ten handicap player would wouldhave wouldhave wouldhave have had two 5 s The brain was wasstll wasstii wasshfl stll stii ) ) the major factor After all aU It Itwas itwas itwas was the brain braID or many brains braIDs that thatdeveloped thatdeveloped thatdeveloped developed the atomic bombBrains bomb bombBrains Brains In sport have nothing to do dowIth dowith dowith wIth any Intellectual trend Fine Finelawyers Finelawyers Finelawyers lawyers able writers smart bank bankers bankors bankers ers ors leading leadlDg physicians can be ex extremely extremely extremely tremely dumb on the competItive competItiveside competitiveside competitiveside side of sport Clowns or Uhter Illiter Uhterates Illiterates Illiterates ates such as Rube Waddell and Joe JoeJackson JoeJackson JoeJackson Jackson can be and have been beensmart beensmart beensmart smart baseball peopleRube people peopleRube Rube Waddell was completely completelydumb completelydumb completelydumb dumb until untll you handed him a glove gloveand gloveand gloveand and a baseball Then he became becamebaseball becamebaseball becamebaseball baseball smart . Joe Jackson could couldneIther couldneither couldneither neIther read nor write wr1te but he was wasa wasa wasa a different human be ng when you youhanded youhanded youhanded handed him a bat- bat batthe bat - the big black blackbat blackbat blackbat bat his h1S brave song sangor sang -or or - - or sent sentrum senthim senthim rum him to the outfield with a glove glove'Only 'Only Only ' One Play to Make Mahe ' I asked Larry Lajofe Lajoie Lajole once if it he hehad hehad hehad had ever pulled a boner in a ball ballgame ballgame ballgame game How can you pull a boner bonerhe bonerhe bonerhe he said There s always only one oneplace oneplace oneplace place to throw a ball-always ball always ball - always only onlyone onlyone onlyone one play to makeFred make makeFred Fred Merkle of the Giants was wasknown wasknown wasknown known as Bonehead Merkle but butmtellectualIy butintellectually butintellectually mtellectualIy intellectually he was tar far and away awaythe awaythe awaythe the smartest member ol of McGraw s a sold aold sold old squad and this Included ChrIsty ChrIstyMathewson ChristyMathewson ChristyMathewson Mathewson Merkle was a keen stu student student student dent of Kant Schopenhauer Plato Platopragmatic Platopragmatic Platopragmatic pragmatic and unpragmatic unpragmatlc phllos philos phllosophers philosophers philosophers ophers but his competitive retlexes reflexes reflexeswere reflexeswere were slow and out of lineSmart line Ime lineSmart Smart competitors In sport can be bevery bevery bevery very dumb people in other lines of ofUVlDg ofliving oflivmc UVlDg living They can be among the thedumbest thedumbest thedumbest dumbest Just consider the millions millionsprize millionsprize millionsprize prize fighters flghters have made only to tofinish tofinish tofinish finish broke and hungry and forgot forgot- forgotten forgotten forgotten . - - ten In their povertyThere poverty povertyThere There are those who are only onlyequIpped onlyequipped onlyequipped equIpped to make a living vmg out ot of otprofessional ofprofessional ofprolessional professional sport They are taking takingthe takingthe takingthe the hard way For one sImple sImplereasonthe simplereasonthe simplereason reason-the reason the - the time they have Is short shortOn shortOn shortOn On a general average they are tad fad tadmg fadmg fadmg mg out at 30 They are about aboutthrough aboutthrough aboutthrough through at 35 They are gone at 40 40Then 40Then 40Then Then at what Is supposed to be the theprime theprime theprime prime of ot life lite they are through Onlya Only a few ( ew smart ones have mapped out outan outan outan an extended trail on beyond heyond What lf/hat lf hat / the Public Publzc Wants WantsAttendance WantsAttendance Attendance figures prove again againthat againthat againthat that baseball s big public is more moreInterested moreinterested moreinterested Interested in a close scramble 1D in 1Dkeener inkeener inkeener keener closer competition than It Is Isin isin IsIn in looking at starsThe starsThe stars starsThe The quality quahty of baseball played has hasbeen hasbeen hasbeen been a rather deep dip from other otheryears otheryears otheryears years But the quality of ot competl competi competlhon competition competition hon tion has been tar far higher Through Throughthe Throughthe Throughthe the first lirst half ot of the race no man manager managcr manager ager agcr and no quivering qwvermg fan ( an in the thestands thestands thestands stands ever knew a ball game wa war warover warover , over until untll the last man was out out . . , |