Show Where o Are the Kid Stars By GRANTLAND RICE T THE HE NATIONAL PASTIME slang for baseball takes over until October 2 when football will be at high speed outdrawing baseball two to one at that frosty date In the same way enough sun has been drifting from blue skies to get geta a few million golfers goIters out for another another another an- an other big campaign on some courses Baseball is largely large large- 1 i ly 11 for tor the r tors Golf GaIt is 90 per percent percent cent for the play play- ers Golf GoIt still has the largest outdoor turnout for tor the thew w players b bar barring a r r i n g JS fishing and hunting hunting hunting hunt hunt- ing which are strictly personal af- af Grantland Rice fairs In fishing and hunting the contest is between a human and a fish tish fowl or animal All of this is a slow preamble to the fact that both baseball and golf goIt two playing gams gam games s are running out of at kids Both sports are looking for more of the young stars of other years years kids kids like Ty Cobb and Babe Ruth and Grover Alexander or or such golf gaIt kids as s Bobby Jones Gene Walter Hagen Francis Francis Francis Fran Fran- cis Ouimet and Chick Evans who were stars at 20 and 21 21 The fact Is that neither baseball baseball baseball base base- ball nor golf gol has the brilliant kids of 20 years ago Who are baseballs baseball's 1949 stars Stan 28 Ted Williams 30 Joe DiMaggio 34 Lou Boudreau 32 No kids have reported It is the same in golf goIt Most of the stars include include include in in- clude players above 31 or 32 Sammy Snead Lloyd Mangrum Byron Nelson Jimmy Demaret areno are areno areno no longer on the younger competitive tive side They are well over 30 30 Cary l Is close to 30 But the point is there are no Ty Cobbs Bobby Jones Walter Hagens Hagens Hagens Hag- Hag ens Gene etc marked against the skyline The great kids of yesterday for the time tune being are gone In baseball they are paying bonuses from to for school high-school kids who might finally be worth 2000 Or nothing at all You cant can't blame blam the kids or their parents for grabbing this sucker cash the greatest sucker cash inthe in inthe inthe the history of sports The two big leagues have In Invested Invested invested In- In vested over In kid bonus players They will be lucky to get back in the way of value The age problem is even worse in golf gol Such great kids as Bobby Dobby Jones Walter WaIter Hagen Gene Sara Sara- zen Chick Evans and Francis Ouimet are now ghosts from tram another another another an- an an an- other generation Frank Stranahan at 27 is the best we have left In both baseball and golf the kid stars of long ago and now almost almost- forgotten years have moved into middle age At least this is now w where ere most of the headliners be be- long Golf's Leading Marvel It was a matter of just 27 years ago over the well-trapped well terrain of Skokie Chicago that year 20 old Gene won the open golf gaIt championship of the United States I followed that final round In the same year won the title at Oakmont Twenty-seven Twenty years Is a long I Ispan span in competitive sport Yet afew a afew afew few days ago I followed Gene Sara Sara- zen at the Masters in Augusta He was hitting the ball better in 1949 than he was in 1922 He was longer off aU the tee and he was straighter I saw good young golfers of 27 or 30 finish well in hi back of ot stocky Genes Gene's wallops I spoke to Gene about this later You Yon must be 10 or 15 yards better than you were at Skokie and Oakmont when yon you were only 20 I said There Isn't any question about abou that Gene said with a well re half halt grin Im hitting the ball much better than I dId die when I was winning championships I 1 am both longer and straighter I have control over a greater number of shots Yes he continued and I 1 know your next question Why is ii isit isit it Im I'm not winning That's simple There are two or three answers One is legs Another is ambition The third is concentration There is a lot of difference between your legs at 20 and 47 And tired golfers dont don't do so well The only urge to win left leU years ago When youve you've won the US U.S. Open the British Open the and other titles theold the theold theold old ambition of youth begins to wither You are no longer willing to take tak e the mental and nerve beating Even Eve n Bobby Jones I kept playing but like like Jones Nelson and others who retired l found it impossible to keep concentrating concentrating concen through 72 holes 36 hole holes 9 or 18 holes I 1 can concentrate foa fo foa tor tora r a while but not for too long I misa mis miss missa s a shot or two now and say aw what the heck and concentrate on o on n about every third shot |