JOURNAL

AND

TURF MANAGEMENT

SCENE OF THE MATCH AND THE MEETING

Muirfield links, in Scotland, one of the great courses of the world, will 
also be perhaps the busiest this spring. In mid-May, its dales and dunes 
will provide the setting for the Walker Cup Match while representatives 
of the USGA and the Royal and Ancient Golf Club engage in their quad­
rennial meeting to consider proposals for changes in the Rules of Golf. 
At the end of June, the links will be the scene of the British Open. This 
is the thirteenth hole and shows how closely the greens are guarded.

USSA
JOURNAL

AND

TURF MANAGEMENT
Published by the United States Golf Association

1959 by United States Golf Association. Permission to reprint articles or material in the USGA
© 
Journal and Turf Management is granted to publishers of newspapers, periodicals and books (unless 
specifically noted otherwise), provided credit is given to the USGA and copyright protection is af­
forded. Neither articles nor other material may be copied or used for any advertising, promotion or 
commercial purpose.

VOL. XII, No. 1
APRIL, 1959
Through the Green 
1
Scotland Entertains Cup Play, Rules Talk ___________________________
5
National Golf Day, Saturday, June 6 
9
A Game that Creates Handicap Interest _____________ George H. Fulton. Jr.
10
Qualifying Schedule for Open Championship _____ _ __________________
11
Course Ratings Listed to Guide Committees .1
13
Tax Rulings Affecting Golf ________________________  Wm. Ward Foshay
15
Junior Program at a Club _______________________________________
16
Uniformity Restored in Rules of Golf ______________________________
20
Williams Retires __________________________________________ ____
21
The Referee: Decisions under the Rules of Golf  22 
Turf Management:

Golf Course Rebuilding and Remodeling— 

Renovation vs Rebuilding ____________________  A. M. Radko 25
Good Drainage for Greens __________________  Dr. Ralph E. Engel 27
Soils --------------------------------------------------  Dr. Marvin H. Ferguson 29
Grasses ------------------------------------------------------------- H. B. Musser 31
It’s Your Honor: Letters  33

Published seven times a year in February, April, June, July, August, September and November by the 
UNITED STATES GOLF ASSOCIATION
40 EAST 38th ST., NEW YORK 16, N. Y.
Subscription: $2 a year. Single copies: 30c. Subscriptions, articles, photographs, and correspondence 
should be sent to the above address.
Entered as Second-class Matter, March 3, 1950, at the Post Office at New York, N. Y„ under the Act 
of March 8, 1879. Additional entry at the Post Office in Pinehurst, N. C.
Edited by Joseph C. Dey, Jr., and John P. English. All articles voluntarily contributed.

USGA COMPETITIONS FOR 1959

Championship
Entries 
or Team Match
Close
(a) Walker Cup Match —

Sectional 
Qualifying 
Rounds
—

Dates 
of Event

May 15-16

Location

Honourable Company of 
Edinburgh, Golfers, 
Muirfield, Scotland

Open

Women's Open

April 29

June 11

(b) May 18
<c) June 1
None

June 25-26-27

June 11-12-13 Winged Foot Golf Club, 

Amateur Public Links

*June 4

tJune 21-28

July 13-18

Junior Amateur

July 1

July 21

Aug. 5-8

Girls' Junior

Women's Amateur

July 31

Aug. 6

None

None

Aug. 17-21

Aug. 24-29

Amateur

Aug. 12

Sept. 1

Sept. 14-19

Senior Amateur

Sept.

2

Sept. 22

Oct. 5-10

Mamaroneck, N. Y.
Churchill Valley C. C., 

Pittsburgh, Pa.

Wellshire Golf Course, 

Denver, Colo.
Stanford G. C., 

Stanford University, 
Stanford, Cal.

Manor Country Club, 

Norbeck, Md.

Congressional C. C., 
Washington, D. C.
Broadmoor Golf Club, 

Colorado Springs, Colo.
Memphis Country Club,

Memphis, Tenn.

Dates entries close mean last dates for applications to reach USGA office, except in 
the case of the Amateur Public Links Championship. For possible exceptions in dates 
of Sectional Qualifying Rounds, see entry forms.
Re Amateur Public Links Championship:

*—Entries close with Sectional Qualifying Chairmen.
t—Exact date in each Section to be fixed by Sectional Chairmen.

(a) Walker Cup match: Men’s amateur teams—Great Britain vs. United States
(b) Local Qualifying Rounds; (c) Sectional Qualifying Championships.

Precisely the Trouble
“Just go through the movement of the 

stroke without using the ball.”

“But that’s precisely the trouble I’m 

trying to overcome, man!”

Michael for Mayor

Elmer J. Michael, superintendent at the 
Oak Hill Country Club, Rochester, N. Y., 
has been elected Mayor of Pittsford, 
N. Y.

Michael’s capabilities have been recog­
nized before by his fellow townsmen. He 
has been Chairman of the Board of 
Trustees of the Presbyterian Church, 
President of the Rotary Club and Chair­
man of the Zoning Board. He has had 
charge of Oak Hill’s grounds for thirty 
years and is a member of the USGA 
Green Section Committee.

No small part of Elmer’s success is due 
to his lovely, tolerant wife, Hester. But 
Mrs. Michael, in her own right, merits 
recognition. One of her many community 
services was as member of the Board of 
Education for two terms, during which 
she played a significant part in the erec­
tion of a high school.

Two-Day Round-Robin
One member club wanted to determine 
its champion by means of a round-robin 
and came up with an interesting solution 
to the problem.

All members are eligible who have 

qualified for the first sixteen.

All entrants play 18 holes on each day, 

Saturday and Sunday.

Each entrant’s card is matched against 
every other entrant’s card at match play 
and one point is given for a win and a 
half point for each in a tie. The high 
scorer is the club champion.

In case of ties for first and/or second, 
an eighteen hole play-off, with sudden 
death, is held the following week.

The sixteen players find themselves 
rated from first to sixteenth after this 
match. In lieu of beaten eight prizes, ad­
ditional place prizes may be awarded.

In this competition no putts may be 
conceded by anyone, since each man is 
playing fifteen others.

Mrs. Valentine, M.B.E.
Mrs. George Valentine, the former 
Jessie Anderson, of Perth, Scotland, who 
is reigning for the third time as British 
Champion, was awarded the M.B.E. in 
the New Year’s Honors List and is one 
of the very few golfers to earn this recog­
nition from the Crown.

Mrs. Valentine was a member of the 
Curtis Cup Teams of 1936, 1938, 1950, 
1952, 1954, 1956 and 1958. She won her 
British Championships in 1937 and 1955 
in addition to last year, and she has held 
the French and New Zealand Champion­
ships.

On the heels of these many honors, Mrs. 
Valentine also has announced her retire­
ment from serious competitive golf, and 
the game will be much the loser.

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

1

Golf in New York
Backlanders are prone to think of the 
pavements and skyscrapers of New York 
and to assume the city is barren of golf 
courses—but not so!

Edward P. Brady, Director of Golf for 
the City of New York, has reported that 
687,581 rounds were played on the city’s 
ten 18-hole courses during the period Jan. 
1, 1958 to November 30, 1958. Range of 
play was 55,421 rounds at Van Cortlandt 
Course in the Bronx to 103,604 rounds at 
Dyker Beach, in Brooklyn. All but four 
of New York City’s courses close for the 
season on Nov. 30. Green fees are week­
days, $1.50; weekends and holidays $2.00. 
An additional 27 holes at Marine Park 
are in planning.

Ralph Miller Honored
Ralph Miller, one of the founders of 
the Southern California Junior Golf As­
sociation and a member of the USGA 
Junior Championship Committee, was 
honored by the Los Angeles Times at its 
annual Sports Award Banquet.

He was presented a beautiful trophy 
for the many years he has given to golf 
and especially for his help in forming 
the junior golf program which is one of 
the most active in the United States.

A Good Rule
The Poor Richard Club, in Philadelphia, 
informs its members: “Under this roof 
you need no introduction; speak to others 
as you would have them speak to you— 
and do it first.”

Welcome!

We welcome to the field of golf journa­
lism a new, friendly rival who has set up 
shop only five blocks from “Golf House” 
to publish, ten times a year, a monthly 
magazine entitled “Golf” and dedicated to 
the week-end golfer.

The first issue, off the press as of April, 
is a most auspicious start, and this comes 
as no surprise. The editor is Charles 
Price, a knowledgeable magazine writer 
and golfer. The associate editor is Miss 
Judy Frank, the Metropolitan New York 
and New York State Women’s Amateur 
Champion. The publishers are Universal 
Publishing and Distributing Company, 

which publishes seven other magazines.

It appears that “Golf” will take full 
advantage of its opportunity to extend 
the good influence of the game’s ideals.

"Plus Fours"

The persistent attempts to revive “plus 
fours” in golf have raised questions as to 
the origin and precise meaning of the 
term, and we had one dickens of a time 
getting this fragment of information to 
supplement our supply of miscellaneous 
background information on the game of 
golf.

According to Mrs. Ruth Turner Wilcox, 
the author of The Mode of Costume, the 
term originated in the British Army when 
breeches were measured as reaching from 
the knees plus four inches.

Junior Star

Dave Turner, 14, one of the bright 
prospects in the Washington, D.C., area, 
scored two holes-in-one at Kenwood Golf 
and Country Club within two months last 
summer. One was on a 155-yard hole, 
where Dave used a No. 5 iron. The other 
on a 212-yard hole, where he used a 
driver. Playing to a three handicap, Dave 
won Kenwood’s junior championship for 
two years and has won most district com­
petitions in the 14-and-under class.

Dave’s family moved to Washington 
last year from Fort Worth, Texas. In 
manner and size, Dave is like another 
Texan, Ben Hogan. He is five-foot-four, 
weighs only 105 pounds and takes his 
game just as seriously as Hogan does.

To Greener Grass

The wild geese swing down from Temiska- 

ming, 

heeding the call of their kind 
The airways are filled with their music 
as they follow the path of the wind 
to a warmer, kinder climate 
That's just what I have in mind.

Where click of the ball 
sounds from morning till e'en 
and the putt-happy player 
takes three on the green 
The music is there for the golfer keen.

When the Ides of March come storming in, 
its time for the lads to add their scores 
and follow the path of the geese again 
to greener grass and Northern shores.

—BILL BEVERIDGE
Wauwatosa, Wis.

2

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

NEW PORTRAIT FOR "GOLF HOUSE"

A new oil portrait of Freddie McLeod hangs at the Columbia Country Club, Chevy 
Chase, Md., and a full-size photographic reproduction now also hangs in “Golf House” 
as a result of the generosity of the Club. McLeod is, of course, the Open Champion of 
1908 and the professional at the Club for forty-seven years. Presentation of the repro­
duction to “Golf House” was made recently by Vice-President Nixon, who is a mem­
ber, at the Club. Others who took part were, from the left, Julian B. Heron, McLeod, 
Wm. Ward Foshay of the USGA Executive Committee, the Vice-President and 
George Ferris.

Survey of Operations
The need for information on club man­
agement matters continues to increase as 
club boards face the constant problem of 
making ends meet without pricing them­
selves out of the market.

The Pacific Northwest Golf Association 
is the latest to recognize this need and to 
attempt to fill it by the publication of a 
1958 Survey of Country Club Operations 
in that area. The six sections cover types 
of memberships; locker rentals, green 
fees and pro shop; power carts; clubhouse 
operations; salaries and wages; and mis­
cellaneous matters.

The Metropolitan (N.Y.) Golf Associa­
tion also has distributed to its member 
clubs a similar survey which it up-dates 
from time to time.

Hill-of-Fame Trees
Trees on the Hill of Fame established 
by the Oak Hill Country Club, Rochester, 
N. ¥., have been dedicated to President 
Eisenhower, Bob Jones, Walter Hagen, 
Cary Middlecoff, Chick Evans and Mrs. 
Babe Didrikson Zaharias.

The listing of dedications in the last 
issue of the USGA Journal was incom­
plete.

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

3

Gordon Elected

David W. Gordon, of Doylestown, Pa., 
is the new president of the American 
Society of Golf Course Architects. He 
moves up to the office held in 1953 by his 
father, with whom he is associated in the 
William F. Gordon Co.

Other officers named by the architects 
at their annual meeting at Mobile, Ala., 
were J. Press Maxwell, Dallas, vice presi­
dent; William B. Langford, Chicago, sec­
retary-treasurer.

Books

THE AMERICAN WAY IN SPORT by 
John R. Tunis (Duell, Sloan and Pearce,

New "Conduct"

A new edition of The Conduct of 
Women’s Golf, revised as of February, 
1959 has been prepared and distri­
buted. However, those who have been 
proceeding under the previous edition 
need not be unduly alarmed. There 
are only a few changes and they are 
not changes in principle.

For example, the following para­
graph has been added to Section 14-3 
regarding conceded putts and pick-up 
holes: “When there are more than two 
pick up holes in a round, the score it­
self should not be used in handicap 
computation, but the round should be 
noted in the player’s scoring record as 
‘No Card’ (or ‘N. C.’) so that the handi­
cap will still be based on the best 10 
of the last 25 rounds played.”

And Section 17-8a has been ampli­
fied as follows: “If a player belongs to 
more than one club, she should desig­
nate one club as the authority for her 
handicap and return to that club all 
scores made at all her clubs, together 
with course ratings and dates. How­
ever, if she maintains separate handi­
caps at different clubs, she should re­
turn all scores to all her clubs, with 
course ratings and dates.”

In Section 26-3b, authority is now 
granted to a course-rating committee 
to walk a course, rather than play it, 
in ueveloping a course rating.

$3.50). An appraisal of sport, including 
golf, in the United States which describes 
the changes caused by growth and ma­
turity during the last forty years.

GOLFERS AT LAW, by Geoffrey 
Cousins (Alfred A. Knopf, $3.50). Mr. 
Cousins, a British golf writer, has now 
brought forth an American edition of his 
book that traces the historical develop­
ment of the Rules of Golf.

Baltusrol Host Again

The 1961 Women’s Open Championship 
will be played at the Baltusrol Golf Club, 
Springfield, N.J. Baltusrol has been un­
usually generous in entertaining USGA 
competitions. The 1961 Women’s Open 
will be the tenth USGA event to be 
played there. The others were: Open in 
1903, 1915, 1936 and 1954; the Amateur in 
1904, 1926 and 1946; and the Women’s 
Amateur in 1901 and 1911. The dates of 
the Women’s Open will be fixed later.

Necrology

It is with deep regret that we record 

the deaths of:

Findlay S. Douglas, New York, N. Y., 
the Amateur Champion in 1898, president 
of the United States Golf Association in 
1929-1930, champion of the United States 
Seniors’ Golf Association in 1932, presi­
dent of the USSGA in 1937-1941, winner 
of the Bob Jones Award for distinguished 
sportsmanship in 1959.

Mrs. Alice Cushing Underwood Gardi­
ner, Needham, Mass., well known golfer 
and former president of the Women’s 
Golf Association of Massachusetts.

Robert Harris, London, England, the 
captain of the 1922, 1923 and 1926 British 
Walker Cup Teams and the British Ama­
teur Champion in 1925.

Lt. Gen Floyd L. Parks, Washington, 
D. C., member of the USGA Senior Cham­
pionship Committee and previously Com­
mander of United States Forces which 
entered and occupied Berlin at the end 
of World War II and Chief of Public In­
formation for the Army.

Walter B. Pedersen, Wilton, Conn., 
president of the Pedersen Manufacturing 
Company.

4

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

SCOTLAND ENTERTAINS 
CUP PLAY, RULES TALK

Walker Cup Team, 
Officials Go Abroad

Arrangements have been substantially 

completed for the forthcoming trip 
abroad by the nine members of the 

United States Walker Cup Team for the 
biennial match with Great Britain.

The Match will be held for the first 
time at the course of the Honorable Com­
pany of Edinburgh Golfers, Muirfield, 
Scotland,. May 15 and 16.

Team members were selected on the 
basis of their playing ability, their sports­
manship, their general ability to repre­
sent this country in international rela­
tions and their unquestioned status as 
amateur golfers. The Team comprises:

Charles R. Coe, Oklahoma City, Okla. 

(Captain)

Thomas D. Aaron, Gainesville, Ga.
Deane R. Beman, Silver Springs, Md.
William Hyndman, III, Abington, Pa.
Jack Nicklaus, Columbus, Ohio
William J. Patton, Morganton, N. C.
Dr. Frank M. Taylor, Jr., Pomona, Cal. 
E. Harvie Ward, Jr. San Francisco, Cal. 
H. Ward Wettlaufer, Buffalo, N. Y.
From these nine, Captain Coe will 
select the eight players to take part in 
the foursomes and in the singles, which 
will take place on successive days.

The Team will leave New York by jet 
aircraft on Thursday evening, May 7 fol­
lowing a briefing and reception in “Golf 
House,” arrive in London on Friday 
morning, May 8 and fly immediately to 
Muirfield, where it will be quartered at 
the Greywalls Hotel. The players will 
have six days for practice.

The four youthful members of the 
Team — Aaron, Beman, Nicklaus and 
Wettlaufer—will be playing in Scotland 
for the first time.

The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of 
St. Andrews, Scotland will be host at a 
pie-match party on Monday, May 11, for 
the players, officials and their wives, and 
will honor the Teams at the traditional 

dinner after the Match on Saturday, May 
16.

The British Sportsman’s Club, which is 
representative of all games and sports 
in Great Britain, will honor the Team and 
accompanying officials at a luncheon at 
the Savoy Hotel in London, on Tuesday, 
May 19.

Six members of the Team—Coe, Aaron, 
Beman, Hyndman, Nicklaus and Dr. Tay­
lor—plan to stay on for the British Ama­
teur, from May 2.5 and continuing through 
30 at the Royal St. George’s Golf Club, 
Sandwich, England. Patton, Ward and 
Wettlaufer will return home immediately 
after the Match.

Rules Conference

A conference with representatives of 
the Royal and Ancient Golf Club on pro­
posals for changes in the Rules of Golf 
will be held at Muirfield on Saturday and 
Sunday, May 9 and 10. The following will 
accompany the Walker Cup Team abroad 
and represent the USGA in this con­
ference: John M. Winters, Jr., of Tulsa, 
Okla., Chairman of the USGA Rules of 
Golf Committee, Wm. Ward Foshay, of 
New York, Isaac B. Grainger, of New 
York, Richard S. Tufts, of Pinehurst, 
N. C., and Joseph C. Dey, Jr., of New 
York.

John D. Ames, of Chicago, Presi­
dent of the USGA, Clarence W. Benedict, 
of New York, a member of the Executive 
Committee, and Totton P. Heffelfinger, of 
Minneapolis, former president, also will 
accompany the Team.

Biographical briefs of the United States 

players follow:

CHARLES R. COE, the Amateur Cham­
pion, is again Captain of the Team. He is 
making his fifth appearance in Walker 
Cup play, having been a member of the 
1949, 1951 and 1953 Teams and non-play­
ing Captain of the 1957 Team. Mr. Coe 
was also a member of the United States 

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

5

Team in the World Championship at St. 
Andrews, Scotland, last fall.

An oil broker and a graduate of the 
University of Oklahoma, Mr. Coe makes 
his home in Oklahoma City. He is 35, 
married and has three sons. He domi­
nated amateur golf in the United States 
last year by leading all amateurs in the 
Open Championship prior to winning the 
Amateur Championship, and he was lead­
ing amateur again in the 1959 Masters 
Tournament. He was previously Amateur 
Champion in 1949, Western Amateur 
Champion in 1950 and runner-up in the 
British Amateur in 1951. He captained 
the first Americas Cup Team in 1952 
and played on the 1954 and 1958 Teams.

Thomas D. Aaron

DEANE R. BEMAN is also a newcomer 
to the Walker Cup Team and, at 21, is its 
second youngest member. He is a junior 
at the University of Maryland.

Mr. Beman is married, has a daughter 
and resides in Silver Springs, Md. He was 
a quarter-finalist in the last Amateur 
Championship and reached the fourth 
round in 1957. He was first amateur in 
the Eastern Open in 1958.

Charles R. Coe 
Captain

THOMAS D. AARON is making his first 
appearance on the Walker Cup Team. He 
was runner-up in the last Amateur Cham­
pionship.

A 22-year-old senior at the University of 
Florida, Mr. Aaron is single and lives in 
Gainesville, Ga. He won the Southeastern 
Amateur and the Georgia Open, both for 
the second time, last year and the Georgia 
Amateur in 1957. He was an outstanding 
football player in high school, but has 
given up the game in favor of golf.

Deane R. Beman

6

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

Amateur in 1955 and was second amateur 
in the Open in 1957.

In the 1957 Walker Cup Match, he de­
feated Dr. F. W. G. Deighton at singles, 
7 and 6.

JACK NICKLAUS, a sophomore at^ 
Ohio State University, is, at 19, the'' 
youngest member of the Team. He is the 
Trans-Mississippi Amateur Champion.

He lives in Columbus, Ohio, and was 
the Ohio Junior Champion in 1956 and 
1957 and the Ohio Open Champion in 
1956, at the age of 16. He won the Junior 
Chamber of Commerce national junior 
tournament in 1957.

William Hyndman, 111

WILLIAM HYNDMAN, III, is making 
bis second appearance in Walker Cup 
competition and was a member of the 
United States Team which played in the 
World Championship at St. Andrews, 
Scotland, last fall.

Mr. Hyndman attended Pennsylvania 
State College, owns an insurance agency 
in Philadelphia, is married and has three 
children. At 43, he is the oldest member 
of the Team. He reached the final of the

William J. Patton

WILLIAM J. PATTON is appearing for 
the third time in Walker Cup competi­
tion, having been a member of the 1955 
and 1957 Teams. Last year, he was a mem­
ber of the United States Team in the 
World Championship and Captain of the 
Americas Cup Team. He was also a mem­
ber of the 1954 and 1956 Americas Cup 
Teams.

Mr. Patton, a 37-year-old lumber broker 
from Morganton, N. C., is a graduate of 
Wake Forest College. He is married and 
has three children. He won the North 
and South Amateur in 1954 and was first 
amateur in the 1954 and 1957 Opens and 
th? 1954 and 1958 Masters Tournament.

His singles match against R. Reid Jack, 
whom he defeated 1 up, was a highlight of 
the 1957 Walker Cup Match. In four­
somes, with Rex Baxter, Jr., he defeated 
Joseph B. Carr, and Dr. F. W. G. Deighton, 
2 and 1.

Jack Nicklaus

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

7

DR. FRANK M. TAYLOR, JR., appear­
ing for the second time in Walker Cup 
play, was also a member of the World 
Amateur and Americas Cup Teams last 
year.

Dr. Taylor is 41, married and a dentist. 
He resides in Pomona, Cal., and is a 
graduate of the University of Southern 
California. He was finalist in the Ama­
teur Championship in 1957 and won the 
California Amateur in 1954 and 1955.

In the 1957 Walker Cup Match he de­

feated Douglas Sewell in singles, 1 up.

E. Harvie Ward, Jr.

year and the fifth round in 19^6. He is 
the Eastern Amateur and Buffalo, N. ¥., 
District Champion. In 1957, he was Ber­
muda Amateur Champion and runner-up 
in the National Collegiate Championship.
Mr. Wettlaufer is single and lives in 

Buffalo, N. Y.

Dr. Frank M. Taylor, Jr.

E. HARVIE WARD, JR., is also playing 
for the third time on a Walker Cup Team, 
having played in 1953 and 1955. Last year, 
he reached the fifth round of the Ama­
teur, was third amateur in the Open and 
a member of the Americas Cup Team.

Mr. Ward was the Amateur Champion 
in 1955 and 1956, the British Amateur 
Champion in 1952 and the Canadian Ama­
teur Champion in 1954. A graduate of 
the University of North Carolina, where 
he was raised, he i.s 33, married and has 
one son. He now lives in San Francisco.

H. WARD WETTLAUFER, also new to 
Walker Cup competition, is 23 and a 
senior at Hamilton College. He reached 
the quarter-finals of the Amateur last

H. Ward Wettlaufer

8

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

NATIONAL GOLF DAY,
SATURDAY, JUNE 6

Here’s Your Chance 
to Help the Game

Two national champions again will pro­

vide a target for golfers to shoot at 
on National Golf Day, Saturday, June 6.
Tommy Bolt, the Open Champion, will 
play Dow Finsterwald, the PGA Cham­
pion, at Happy Hollow Country Club, 
Omaha, Neb.

The date, place and form for National 
Golf Day, the event which has contributed 
$666,000 to golf projects and charities 
over the last seven years, have been an­
nounced by Harold Sargent, president of 
Professional Golfers’ Association.

Amateurs and professionals, men and 
vzomen of all ages will contribute $1 each 
for the privilege of competing against the 
winner of the “Round of the Champion.”
When the new form was used for the 
fir.st time a year ago, Lionel Hebert, the 
1957 PGA Champion, defeated Dick 
Mayer, the 1957 Open Champion, 71 to 
76, at Southern Hills Country Club, Tulsa, 
Okla.

Those who “beat” the winner of the 
Finsterwald-Bolt match, using their es­
tablished handicaps or any other author­
ized handicap, will receive newly de­
signed National Golf Day medals from 
the PGA.

Men amateurs will play from their 
normal handicaps. Women will be per­
mitted to use their regular handicaps 
plus an additional seven strokes. Those 
without club handicaps can use Callaway 
handicaps.

As in previous years, golfers will be 
permitted to play as many rounds as they 
please. The only requirements are that 
rounds be played between May 31 and 
June 6, inclusive, that each contestant pay 
the $1 entry fee before teeing off and 
that official cards be turned in after 
completing each round.

In the seven years that National Golf 
Day has been a major event on the golf 
schedule, more than 680,000 golfers have 
participated.

All proceeds go to such golf projects and 
charities as turfgrass research (through 
the U.S.G.A. Green Section Research and 
Education Fund, Inc.), caddie scholar­
ships, veterans’ rehabilitation, programs 
for blind and amputee golfers, golf at 
ai med forces installations, junior golf and 
the PGA Educational Fund.

National Golf Fund, Inc., has been set 
up to disburse National Golf Day receipts, 
lhe PGA of America turned over $61,773 
to the National Golf Fund, Inc., as the net 
proceeds of National Golf Day in 1958. 
In addition, the Fund received $5,695 in 
direct contributions. Of the latter, $5,000 
came from Indiana Golf Charities, Inc., 
earmarked for specific purposes; $495 
represented National Golf Day contribu­
tions, and $200 was contributed by Udo 
M. Reinach, of New York, for general 
purposes.

Donations for turfgrass research through 
the USGA have totaled $62,700. The dona­
tion to the U.S.G.A. Green Section Re­
search and Education Fund, Inc., last 
year alone was $8,000.

The USGA fund makes annual grants 
to various experimental stations for sci­
entific investigations and training of turf­
grass workers.

“National Golf Day is easily one of the 
most important activities carried on by 
our Association,” Harold Sargent points 
out.

“Every one< of the 4,300 members of 
the PGA and every golfer has a stake in 
National Golf Day. It gives us the oppor­
tunity, as individuals and as a group, to 
do something really important for golf 
and for golfers.”

All of the 4,300 golf professionals who 
are members of the PGA and all clubs 
and courses are being asked to cooperate 
in the nation-wide golf competition. Thus, 
golfers will be able to play their National 
Golf Day rounds at almost every country 
club, daily fee course and public links 
in the country.

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

9

A GAME THAT CREATES 
HANDICAP INTEREST

GEORGE H. FULTON, JR. 
Roanoke Country Club, 
Roanoke. Va.

Three or four years ago at the Roanoke 

(Va.) Country Club we did not have 
a working handicap system because only 

a few players would turn in their scores. 
We attempted every possible method to 
get scores, but it seemed to be hopeless.

Without any thought of the conse­
quences on handicapping, our pro Luke 
Barnes once urged some of us to try a 
new game. The game required the partici­
pants to have active, up-to-date handicaps, 
so only the few of us could try it. How­
ever, the results were electrifying.

The basis of the game is that a par on 
a hole counts two points, a birdie three 
and an eagle four. A score of one over 
par counts one. A score of two over par 
or higher counts nothing. On a perfect 
round of eighteen holes, a scratch player 
should make thirty-six points.

Now assume that a player’s handicap 
represents the number of points he will 
lack for the perfect round. So, subtrac­
ing a handicap of ten from the thirty-six 
points, a ten-handicap player would have 
a goal of twenty-six points in an eighteen- 
hole round.

At the end of a round, the player totals 
the number of points made. By comparing 
the total to his goal, he will arrive at an 
adjusted total of a certain number of plus 
or minus points. The adjusted total is 
used to determine his standing with an 
opponent.

In a four-ball match the partners then 
simply combine their plus or minus totals 
with relation to their goal to get the 
standing of their side compared with 
their opponents.

We also often play one group of four 
against another. Here again, we simply 
add the plus or minus of one group and 
compare it to the other.

Another type of game for which we 
have no particular name rewards the in­
dividual who has the best relative point 
total for the round.

By dividing the twenty-six points of the 
ten-handicap player into nine-hole totals 
of thirteen points each, he is in a position 
to play a Nassau match. The determining 
factor then becomes how much plus or 
minus his point goal the player is on each 
nine holes and for the eighteen, as com­
pared to his opponent.

The main thing in all of these different 
games is that they are played according 
to the “point system.”

With the exception of a head-to-head 
match with someone of equal ability, thi.ss 
is the finest golf game I have everr 
played. The major reason is that it keepss 
every player in the game at all times,;, 
and the high-handicap player is just as, 
important as the scratch player. Also, 
the game works just as well for any num­
ber of players—singles, four-ball, four 
versus four. Until one gets as high as two 
over par, he has the chance to make a 
point on a hole. Consequently, a player 
is working hard all the time and is not 
so likely to pick up.

With the small beginning within our 
group, the enthusiasm spread to other 
members of the Club, and they wanted to 
try the game. In order for them to do so, 
they had to put their handicaps on an 
active basis. Now, nearly everybody plays 
the game. Needless to say, our handicap 
system functions about as well as it could.
I honestly believe that, if this style of 
play could be popularized around the 
country, it would do more than anything 
else to create real interest in USGA Golf 
Handicap System.

The players at our club now anxiously 
watch the dates on which our handicaps 
are revised.

Few if any ever get through our golf 
shop after a round without turning in 
their scores. Either the player will want 
to turn his score in, or one of his 
“friendly” opponents will see that it is 
recorded.

10

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

QUALIFYING SCHEDULE 
FOR OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP

Double Rounds
Adopted for Trial

Sites and dates have been established for

60 Local Qualifying Rounds and 13 
Sectional Qualifying Championships to 
determine the 150 players who will be 
eligible to compete for the USGA Open 
Championship at the Winged Foot Golf 
Club, Mamaroneck, N. ¥., in June.

The successive series of trial rounds 
have been instituted this year as an ex­
periment to give improved opportunity 
for the most capable players to qualify. 
In recent years, there has been only a 
single series of sectional qualifying 
rounds; last year these numbered 28. 
With a record entry of 2,132 players, only 
one of every 15 could be admitted to the 
1958 Championship. That ratio was con­
sidered too restrictive.

Under the new system of successive 
series of qualifying competitions, each at 
36 holes, the ratio in each competition 
will be considerably less restrictive.

In the Local Qualifying Rounds, there 
is a broad range of exemptions. These in­
clude all former Open, Amateur, PGA and 
British Open Champions; members of the 
1959 USGA Walker Cup Team, and the 
last PGA Ryder Cup team; the 20 lowest 
scorers in the last Open and PGA Cham­
pionships; the 20 leading money winners 
on the PGA tour at the time of closing 
of entries; the British Amateur Champion 
of the previous year; and the head pro­
fessional of the club entertaining the 
Championship proper.

Approximately 20 per cent of the en- 
tr ants, or about 500 players, become eligi­
ble for the second trial.

In the Sectional Qualifying Champion­
ships, exemptions are limited to the last 
five winners of the Open; the 10 lowest 
scorers in the last Open (excluding any 
of the last five winners); the PGA Cham­
pion, the British Open Champion, the 
Amateur Champion and the British Ama­
teur Champion of the previous year; and 
the head professional at the club enter­
taining the Championship proper.

Approximately 30 per cent, or 150 
players become eligible for the Cham­
pionship proper.

The players exempt from Local Quali­
fying Rounds and Sectional Qualifying 
Championships, provided they file entries, 
are: Tommy Bolt, Julius Boros, Walter 
Burkemo, Joseph B. Carr, Charles R. Coe, 
Dow Finsterwald, Jack Fleck, Ed Furgol, 
Claude Harmon, Jay Hebert, Ben Hogan, 
Tommy Jacobs, Don January, Gene Littler, 
Dick Mayer, Dick Metz, Cary Middlecoff, 
Gary Player, Robert R. Rosburg, Frank 
Stranahan and Peter Thomson.

Entries must be received at the USGA 
office, 40 East 38th Street, New York 
16, N. Y., on official forms no later than 
April 29. Entries are open to professionals 
and to amateurs with handicaps not over 
two strokes.

The schedule of qualifying competitions 

follows:

LOCAL QUALIFYING ROUNDS
MONDAY, MAY 18

C. C. of Birmingham, Birmingham, Ala.
Phoenix C. C., Phoenix, Ariz.
C. C. of Little Rock, Little Rock, Ark. 
Hacienda C. C„ Los Angeles, Cal.
San Diego C. C., San Diego, Cal.
Presidio G. C., San Francisco, Cal.
Lakewood C. C., Denver, Colo.
Brooklawn C. C„ Bridgeport, Conn.
Woodmont C. C., Washington, D. C.
Indian Creek C. C., Miami, Fla.
Palma Ceia G. C., Tampa, Fla.
Ponce de Leon G. C., St. Augustine, Fla.
Atlanta Athletic C. (East Lake), Atlanta, Ga.
Waialae C. C., Honolulu, T. H.
Hillcrest C. C., Boise, Idaho.
Illini C. C., Springfield, III.
C. C. of Indianapolis, Indianapolis, Ind.
Wakonda C., Des Moines, Iowa.
Wichita C. C., Wichita, Kans.
Big Spring G. C., Louisville, Ky.
New Orleans C. C„ New Orleans, La.
Mount Pleasant G. C., Baltimore, Md. 
Winchester C. C., Boston, Mass.
Springfield C. C., Springfield, Mass.
Lochmoor C., and C. C. of Detroit, Detroit, Mich.
Blythefield C. C., Grand Rapids, Mich.
Northland C. C., Duluth, Minn.
Minikahda C., Minneapolis, Minn.
C. C. of Jackson, Jackson, Miss.
Milburn G. & C. C., Kansas City, Mo.
St. Louis C. C., St. Louis, Mo.
C. C. of Lincoln, Lincoln, Neb.
Ridgewood C. C„ and White Beeches G. & C. C., 

Haworth, N. J.

Fa'T H’IIs C. C., Aibuqueroue, N. M.
Schuyler Meadows C., Albany, N. Y.

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

11

STARTING HIS 90TH YEAR

Charles Morris Young, of the St. David’s Golf Club, Wayne, Pa., celebrated his 89th 
birthday last fall by playing his usual eighteen holes of golf. Mr. Young, an artist of 
international fame, plays on the average of twice a week, without benefit of cart 
and on this birthday round scored 110. The Club recently made him an honorary 
lite member. Awaiting the result of his drive are, from the left, J. Wood Platt, former 
USGA Senior Amateur Champion, Thomas Rose and T. Seddon Duke, president of 
the Club.

Park C. C. of Buffalo, Buffalo, N. Y.
Deepdale G. C„ and Wheatley Hills G. C., Lona 

Island, N. Y.

Westchester C. C., Rye, N. Y.
Pinehurst C. C. (No. 2 and No. 3), Pinehurst, 

N. C.

Fargo C. C„ Fargo, N. D.
Hyde Park G. & C. C., Cincinnati, Ohio.
The Country Club, Cleveland, Ohio.
Scioto C. C„ Columbus, Ohio.
Oklahoma City G. & C. C., Oklahoma City, Okla.
Roual C. C„ Portland, Ore.
C. C. of Harrisburg, Harrisburg, Pa.
Rolling Green G. C„ and Springhaven C., Phil­

adelphia, Pa.

Longue Vue C., and Alcoma G. C., Pittsburgh, 

Pa.

Memphis C. C., Memphis, Tenn.
Richland C. C., Nashville, Tenn.
Colonial C. C„ Fort Worth, Texas.
River Oaks C. C., Houston, Texas.
Midland C. C., Midland, Texas.
The Country Club, Salt Lake City, Utah.
C. C. of Virginia (James River Course), Rich­

mond, Va.

Overlake G. & C. C., Seattle, Wash. 
Spokane C. C„ Spokane, Wash.
Guyan G. & C. C„ Huntington, W. Va. 
Milwaukee C. C„ Milwaukee, Wis.

TUESDAY, MAY 19

Medinah C. C„ Chicago, III.

SECTIONAL QUALIFYING 
CHAMPIONSHIPS
MONDAY, JUNE 1
Yorba Linda Ranch & C. C„ Los Angeles, Cal. 
Lakewood C. C., Denver, Colo.
Congressional C. C., Washington, D. C. 
Atlanta Athletic C. (East Lake), Atlanta, Ga. 
Skokie C. C„ Chicago, III.
Grosse lie G. & C. C„ Detroit, Mich.
Kansas City C. C., Kansas City, Mo.
Baltusrol G. C., Springfield, N. J.
Orchard Park C. C., Buffalo, N. Y. 
Clovernook C. C., Cincinnati, Ohio. 
Portland G. C., Portland, Ore.
Memphis C. C„ Memphis, Tenn.
Dallas Athletic Club C. C., Dallas, Texas.

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

COURSE RATINGS LISTED
TO GUIDE COMMITTEES

Goal is Uniformity 
Between Sections

The establishment of permanent course 

rating committees within many local 
and sectional golf associations has contri­

buted greatly to the uniform rating of 
courses within each association’s area.

However, in spite of the best efforts of 
these committees to interpret and apply 
the USGA course rating system, there are 
sometimes discrepancies between areas.

In order to assist in reducing such dis­
crepancies, the USGA has surveyed 
ratings at well known and frequently 
visited courses in various sections of the 
country, so that associations which are 
now applying ratings may see how other 
courses have been rated by other, experi­
enced course rating committees.

It should be borne in mind that the 
ratings listed, unless otherwise noted, are 
for the courses as normally played by 
club members, not for the courses as they 
might be set up for a national champion­
ship or cup match.

Course rating is defined in USGA Golf 
Handicap System and The Conduct of 
Women’s Golf as an evaluation, in strokes, 
of the playing difficulty of a course com­
pared with other rated courses. Ratings 
provide a uniform and sound basis on 
which to compute handicaps and have be­
come a substitute for and an improvement 
over par in this respect.

Uniformity in course rating is as essen­
tial as uniformity in handicapping and the 
most consistent results can be achieved 
only when the responsibility for rating is 
left to groups which issue handicaps, pri­
marily the state and regional associations.. 
Ratings, to be uniform, must be unbiased, 
and these associations are best able to 
apply their knowledge of other courses in 
the area in determining the relative play­
ing difficulty of specific courses.

In order to apply the USGA Golf Handi­
cap System properly, it is essential that 
course ratings be determined by uniform 
interpretation and application of the prin­
ciples set forth in the two booklets, one 
for men and one for women.

Course rating represents the playing 
ability of a theoretical scratch golfer. It 
is the average score he should make every 
ten times he plays a given course, without 
any poor shots or exceptionally good ones.
Each hole is assigned the scratch 
player’s theoretical average score, includ­
ing fractions. The final rating for the en­
tire course is the total of the individual 
hole ratings.

While there is fairly general agreement 
as to what constitutes perfect play, this 
agreement, it has developed, is not ab­
solute. Course rating committees in some 
sections may have slightly different in­
terpretations. It is to reduce these dif­
ferences and to promote uniformity be­
tween sections that we publish the fol­
lowing course ratings.

MEN’S COURSE RATINGS

ARIZONA: 

Paradise Valley  C. C.  70
Phoenix C. C. ___________________________  70
Tucson C. C. ____________________________  70

CALIFORNIA: 

Bel-Air C. C. (Championship Course) ____  72
Brentwood C. C. (Championship Course) ___  72
Los Angeles C. C. (North Course)

(Back Tees) 75
Riviera C. C. (Championship Course) _____  75

COLORADO:

Broadmoor G. C. (Front Tees) ___________  69
(Back Tees) ___________  72
Cherry Hills C. C. ______________________  71

CONNECTICUT: 

Greenwich C. C.  70 
Hartford G. C. _______________  71
New Haven C. C. ________ .____________ 71
Wee Burn C. C. _______________________  72
Wethersfield C. C. ______________________ 70
Yale G. C. 
....___________________  73

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA:

Congressional C. C. (First Nine 

Regular Tees) ______  35

Back Tees) _________  36

(First Nine

(Second Nine

(Second Nine

(New Nine

(New Nine

Regular Tees)   ___  34

Back Tees) _________  34

Regular Tees) ______  35

Back Tees) ________  36

FLORIDA: 

Indian Creek C.. C. __ __________________  72
La Goree C. C. __________________________  71

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

13

ILLINOIS:

Exmoor C. C.  72
Onwentsia C. .__  73
Skokie C. C. (Regular Tees)  73 
(Championship Tees) __.______  75
Tam O'Shanter C. C.  72

INDIANA: 

Broadmoor C. C. ______________________.. 71
C. C. of Indianapolis _____________________ 70
Highland G. and C. C.  70
Meridian Hills C. C. _____________________ 71

MARYLAND:

Burning  Tree C.  (Regular Tees) __________ 69
(Back Tees)  71
Chevy Chase  C.  (Regular Tees) __________  69
(Back Tees) ___________  71
Columbia C. C. (Regular Tees)  69 
(Back Tees) _____________  71
Manor C. C. (Regular Tees)  69 
(Back Tees) ____  70

MASSACHUSETTS: 

Brae Burn C. C.  71
Charles River C. C.  71
The Country Club _______________________ 72

MICHIGAN:

C. C. of Detroit  72
Oakland Hills C. C.  73 
Plum Hollow G. C.  71

MINNESOTA:

Interlachen C. C. 72
Minikahda C.  72
Minneapolis G. C. _______________________ 72
Somerset C. C. ...______ .,___________ .___  70
Town and Country C. ____________________  71

MISSOURI:

Bellerive C.  C. _1 71
St. Louis C.  C.  71

NEW JERSEY:

Baltusrol G.  C. (Lower  Course) _________  73
(Upper  Course)  72
  73
Plainfield C.  C. 
Ridgewood C. C. (East and West Courses) 73 

NEW YORK:

C. C. of Buffalo ______ ........______________  72
Garden City G. C. --------------------------------------  72
Meadow Brook C. ___ ___________ 73
... Oak Hill C. C. (East and West Courses) ___  72
Winged Foot G. C. (East Course) _______  72
(West Course) _______  73

NORTH CAROLINA: 

Pinehurst C. C. (No. 1 Course) ________  70
(No. 2 Course) 

(Front Tees)______ .___  70
(Middle Tees) ___________  73
(Back Tees)  75 
(No. 3 Course) ___________  70
(No. 4 Course) ________    69

OHIO:

Canterbury G. C.  72
Shaker Heights C. C.  72 

RHODE ISLAND:

Agawam Hunt  70
Metacomet G. C. _________________________ 71
Rhode Island C. C.  71 

WOMEN’S COURSE RATINGS

ARIZONA: 

Paradise Valley C. C.  *_■____.______ 70
Phoenix C. C.  71

CALIFORNIA: 

Bel-Air C. C.  74 
Brentwood C. C. _____________ ;________ _ 74
Cypress Point C.  73
Del Paso C. C. 
__ ___________  73
Los Angeles C. C. (North Course)  75
(South Course) 72
Monterey Peninsula C. C.  73
Olympic C. C. ________ ____________ ;______ 75
Riviera C. C. _ ____________________ ____  75
San Francisco G. C.  75
Wilshire C. C. _________________________  74

COLORADO: 

Cherry Hills C. C. ___________ ,_________ 76

CONNECTICUT: 

Wee Burn C. C. _____________________.... 74

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: 

Congressional C. C. (Old Course) ______  72

(Championship Course) .. 75

GEORGIA: 

Augusta C. C. _________________ _________ 74

INDIANA: 

Broadmoor C. C. ______________________  75
C. C. of Indianapolis  74
Meridian Hills C. C. _____________________ 74
South Bend C. C.  75

MARYLAND: 

Chevy Chase C. ________________________ 74
Columbia C. C. ______________. 74
__________________________  73
Manor C. C. 

MASSACHUSETTS: 

Brae Burn C. C. ______________________  74
The Country Club __________________    75
Essex C. C.   73
Myopia Hunt C. ______________ _____________. 73

MICHIGAN: 

C. C. of Detroit _„_____________________  76
Oakland Hills C. C. _____________________ 78
Plum Hollow G. C.  76

NEW JRESEY: 

Baltusrol G. C. (Upper and Lower Courses) .. 75 
Montclair G. C.  74 
Ridgewood C. C.  74

NEW YORK: 

Apawamis C.  73
C. C. of Buffalo _________________________ 74
Fresh Meadow C. C.   74
Oak Hill C. C. (East Course)  73

(West Course)  70
Sleepy Hollow C. C.    74
Winged Foot G. C. (East and West Courses) 75

NORTH CAROLINA: 

Pinehurst  C. C.  (No. 1  Course) ____________  71

(No.  2  Course) ____________  74
(No.  3 Course)  71

VERMONT:

PENNSYLVANIA: 

Ekwanok C. C.  71 

VIRGINIA:

Army Navy C. C. 70
C. C. of Virginia  71
Princess Anne C.  C. ____________________  70
Roanoke C. C.  69 

WASHINGTON:

Indian Canyon G. C.  69
Spokane C. C. ________________________  70
Walla Walla C. C.  70 

WEST VIRGINIA:

Greenbrier G. C. (Nos. 1 and 3 Courses) _  70

Allegheny  C. C. (Championship Course)____  74
Huntingdon Valley C. C. _______;__________ 73
Llanerch C. C. 
 73
Merion G. C. (East Course)  75 
(West Course) ________ ._____  72
Oakmont C. C.  75 
Philadelphia C. C.  74
Philadelphia Cricket  C. ________________  73
Pittsburgh Field C. _______________________  74

TEXAS: 

Dallas C. C.  74 
Lakewood C. C.  74
Northwood C. C. ________________________  74

14

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

TAX RULINGS 
AFFECTING GOLF

By

WM. WARD FOSHAY
USGA Executive Committee

The following information concerning 

the application of certain federal 
taxes is considered of possible interest to 

ments, the grant of radio and television 
broadcast rights, and the sale of publica­
tions relating to the rules of the game.

golf clubs and associations:

Criteria for Exemption

Revenue Ruling 58-589 discusses the 
criteria for determining whether an or­
ganization qualifies for exemption from 
Federal income tax under Section 501 (a) 
of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954.

Condition of Membership

Revenue Ruling 58-493 is to the effect 
that where ownership of a lot within the 
boundaries of a club is a requirement for 
membership in the club, the amount paid 
for the lot, whether directly to the club, 
to a retiring member or by a co-owner 
to his partner, is taxable as an initiation 
fee, but that where a cottage has been 
erected on a lot, the tax applies only to 
the price of the lot. Further, an annual 
assessment against the lot is subject to 
the tax on dues.

Life Memberships

Temporary rules have been issued ex­
plaining the new method of taxing life 
memberships under the Excise Tax Tech­
nical Changes Act of 1958. They indicate 
the importance of an election to be made 
by life members and should be called to 
their attention.

Services in Lieu of Dues

Revenue Ruling 58-494 states that a 
member of a club who performs services 
for the club and thus relieves himself 
from paying dues is nevertheless taxable 
in an amount equal to the tax paid by 
other members.

Unrelated Business Income

Revenue Ruling 58-502 is to the effect 
that an association formed to promote the 
best interests of a game and exempt from 
Federal income tax under Section 501 
(c) (6) of the Internal Revenue Code of 
1954 is not subject to the unrelated busi­
ness income tax on income derived from 
the operation of championship tourna­

USGA FILM LIBRARY

"St. Andrews, Cradle Of Golf," a 14- 
minute, full color, Um.m. travelogue of his­
toric St. Andrews, Scotland, its Old Course 
and the Royal and Ancient Golf Club club­
house.

" First World Amateur Team Champion­
ship for Eisenhower Trophy," a 14-minute, 
full color, 16m.m. film of the first World 
Amateur Team Championship at St. Andrews, 
Scotland. Twenty-nine countries compete for 
the Eisenhower Trophy.

"On the Green," a V-minute, full color, 16 
m.m. presentation filmed at the Mid-Ocean 
Club, Bermuda, illustrating correct pro­
cedures under the Rules of Golf governing 
situations arising on the putting green.

"Golf's Longest Hour," a 16 m.m. full color 
production, running for 17% minutes, depict­
ing the closing stages of the 1956 Open 
Championship. Filmed at the beautiful Oak 
Hill Country Club, Rochester, N.Y., it shows 
the eventual winner, Cary Middlecoff, set a 
target at which Ben Hogan, Julius Boros and 
Ted Kroll strive in vain to beat.

"Play Them As They Lie," a 16 m.m. color 
production, running for I6V2 entertaining 
minutes, in which Johnny Farrell, the Open 
Champion of 1928, acts as intermediary be­
tween Wilbur Mulligan, a beginner of un­
impeachable integrity, and Joshua P. Slve, 
a past master in the art of breaking the 
Rules. The film was made at the Baltusrol 
Golf Club, Springfield, N. J., where Farrell 
is professional.

"Great Moments In Golf," gives the viewer 
an opportunitv to see the many interesting ex­
hibits in "Golf House," USGA headquarters 
in New York, and to re-live golf triumphs of 
the past with many of the game's immortals. 
The film is a 16 m.m. black and white pro­
duction and runs 28 minutes.

"The Rules of Golf—Etiquette" also has 
proved popular. The film stresses the im­
portance of etiquette by portrayal of vari­
ous violations of the code in the course of 
a family four-ball match. Ben Hogan ap­
pears in several scenes, and Robert T. Jones, 
Jr., makes the introductory statement. A 
16 m.m. color production, the film has a 
running time of 17V1 minutes.

The distribution of all seven prints is 
handled by National Educational Films, Inc., 
165 West 46th Street, New York 36, N. Y., 
which produced the films in cooperation 
with the USGA. The rental is $20 per film; 
$35 for two; $50 for three, $60 for four and 
$70 for five, in combination at the same 
time, including the cost of shipping prints 
to the renter.

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

15

JUNIOR PROGRAM
AT A CLUB

How to Start 
and Control 
a Program

A 16-page booklet entitled "A Junior Golf 
Program for your Club and District" has been 
prepared by the USGA Junior Championship 
Committee and went out to USGA Member 
Clubs. We feel, however, that the subject is 
of such vital interest to all who have the future 
welfare of the game at heart that we repro­
duce here the text dealing with a Junior Pro­
gram at a Club.

An active junior program can be sched­

uled and supervised so that it will 
interfere little, if any, with the enjoyment 

of the course by adult club members.

It is essential that the program be 
guided by an adult committee set up for 
the purpose. The members should be in­
terested in juniors and have time to de­
vote to the program.

The size of the committee depends up­
on the scope of the program and the 
number of juniors participating. The golf 
committee and women’s committee should 
be represented on the junior committee 
so that close liaison may be maintained. 
The club professional and parents of some 
juniors should work with the committee. 
Also, there should be at least one boy 
and/or girl representative.

In planning the program, the following 

aspects should be considered:

a. Whom to admit to the program.

{. b.. Registration.

c. Organizing juniors into a club.
d. Instruction in playing.
e. Instruction in Rules and etiquette.

i f. Playing privileges.

g. Handicaps.
h. Conduct.
i. Tournaments.

j j. Financing.
k. Prizes.
1. Caddie programs.
Whom to admit to the program is up to 
the club and depends entirely upon the 
local situation. As a rule, children of 
members are eligible and some clubs also 
permit grandchildren, nieces, nephews or 
wards of members to take part.

“Outside” juniors who have been recom­
mended and sponsored by a member and 
caddies sometimes have been permitted 
to participate. Clubs doing this consider 
u

they are rendering a community service.
Registration should be required early 
in the year by means of postcards to all 
juniors. Name, address, telephone number 
and birth date should be included on each 
card. Membership cards may be distri­
buted to stimulate interest.

Juniors and parents may be invited to 
an evening of golf movies and a report 
on plans for the coming year or season. 
Prominent golf personalities might talk 
on how junior golf helped them.

Organizing juniors into a club often 
makes the program easier to conduct and 
more successful. By giving them certain 
responsibilities, they develop an added 
interest and gain valued experience.

A junior club involves framing an ob­
jective and a Constitution and By laws, 
providing for a name, officers, meetings, 
committees, membership, and so forth. 
Some By-laws stress the need for showing 
courtesy at all times to the adult club 
members and of allowing them priority 
cn the course upon request.

Juniors can be of great assistance with 
many phases of the program, such as 
keeping their own handicap records and 
communicating with other juniors re­
garding meetings. They should preside at 
their meetings, keep the records, award 
the prizes and make their reports, under 
the supervision of the club’s junior com­
mittee.

As a unit, juniors are extremely in­
terested in seeing that their privileges 
are not jeopardized through the careless­
ness of any member. This will help 
greatly in maintaining a high standard 
of conduct.

Instruction in playing can usually be 
arranged quite easily with the club pro­
fessional. Group instruction, particularly 
to beginners, is often given at a reduced 
rate. This instruction may be augmented 
by shot-making clinics conducted by visit­
ing professionals and by films of famous 
players. The United States Golf Associa­
tion can provide a list of available films

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

and the sources from which they may be 
obtained.

Instruction in Rules and etiquette is 
most important. At each meeting of 
juniors, some time should be devoted to 
a discussion of the Rules. The discussion 
should, of course, be conducted by a per­
son who is well versed in them.

A series of comparatively short sessions 
about the Rules can be made interesting 
and stimulating. A USGA Rules of Golf 
booklet should be furnished to each 
junior and he should be shown how to use 
it.

The United States Golf Association has 
sponsored a series of films on the Rules 
of Golf which may be rented from Na­
tional Educational Films, Inc., 165 West 
46th St., New York 36, N. Y.

In discussing the Rules, it should be 

brought out that:

There is only one code of Rules gov­

erning golf wherever it is played.

The Rules are the result of generations 
of golfing experience and are made to 
insure fair play; a knowledge of them will 
help the player.

Unless the game is played by the Rules, 
it ceases to be golf but is something else.
The two basic principles of the game 
are: play the ball as it lies, and play the 
course as it is found.

While formerly the Rules gave the 
player relief from very few situations, 
they now give relief from many things; 
some of the relief is free and some en­
tails a penalty.

Situations from which a player may 
have relief, such as a ball lost, out of 
bounds or unplayable, in a water hazard, 
in ground under repair and so forth 
should be discussed, with the proper pro­
cedures in taking relief.

Attention should be paid to the Defini­
tions and to the most common violations 
cf Rules, such as asking advice, cleaning 
or changing the ball on the green, im­
proving the line of putt, and so forth.

Etiquette should be stressed, particu­
larly the replacing of divots, smoothing 
footprints in bunkers and repairing ball 
marks on the green after putting.

Giving the juniors a problem involving 
the Rules, to be answered in writing by a 
certain date with prizes for the best 
answers, creates added interest. Oral 
quizzes also are popular features of meet­
ings at some clubs. For these purposes

NEW MEMBERS OF THE USGA

REGULAR

Buffalo Golf Club 
Dewbird Golfers Association, The 
Douglas Golf Club 
Glen Acres Golf Club 
Glenn Dale Golf Association 
Green Valley Country  Club 
Higby Hills Country Club 
Madison Golf Club 
New Mexico Military Institute

Golf Course 

O'Donnell Golf Club 
Rio Hondo Country Club 
Selva Marina Country Club 
Wapakoneta Country Club 

ASSOCIATE

Estate Carlton Golf Club 
Los Altos Municipal Golf Course 
Western Village Golf Course 
White Springs Golf Club 
Wofford Golf Course 

n. Y.
N. Y.
Ariz.
Wash.

Md.

S. C.
N. Y.

N. J.

n. M.
Cal.
Cal.
Fla.
Ohio

V. I.
N. M.
Okla.
Ohio
n. C.

the official decisions of the Rules of Golf 
Committee, appearing in the USGA 
Journal, may be used.

An understanding of the Rules and eti­
quette will prove of great benefit to the 
junior.

Playing privileges must be offered in 
addition to instruction on the practice tee, 
else the program will not long sustain in­
terest.

Beginners usually are not allowed on 
the course (except in the company of an 
adult) until they have attained a cer­
tain degree of skill and knowledge of the 
Rules and etiquette. Proficiency rather 
than age usually is the determining fac­
tor.

The committee determines whether a 
junior shall have playing privileges. A 
handicap card or a membership card in 
the junior club may be used as evidence 
of such privileges. Very young juniors 
who possess certain skill and yet, be­
cause of their youth, play slowly, may be 
allowed limited playing privileges, such 
as playing only a few holes.

When juniors have been approved for 
play, they should be permitted the pri­
vileges of the course at times when they 
will not interfere with the adult mem­
bers.

One effective means of handling junior 
play is to establish a definite morning 
of each week during school vacation as 
“junior morning,” just as another morn­
ing may be established especially for 
women’s play. If it seems feasible, a club 

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

17

may also permit juniors to have guests 
without green fees on one of these morn­
ings each month.

Other privileges may include special 
clubhouse facilities, such as a separate 
room where golf periodicals and other 
reading matter are available and where 
meetings are held.

Handicaps may be useful in some club 
events. The USGA Handicap System can 
be used, with adaptations, for juniors. 
Nine-hole scores may be accepted until a 
handicap has been established, then only 
eighteen-hole scores.

Nine-hole handicaps are not recom­
mended for players who play eighteen- 
hole rounds. However, for players who 
cannot play eighteen holes, it is reason­
able to issue nine-hole handicaps.

It is our suggestion that nine-hole 
handicaps be based on the playing diffi­
culty of the nine holes on which the 
scores are made. In other words, if one 
nine of a course is harder than the other, 
scores made on the harder nine should be 
i elated to the playing difficulty of that 
nine. This same principle applies to 
eighteen-hole scores, where the rating of 
one course may be 73 and another 68.

A nine-hole handicap should never be 
doubled for eighteen-hole play, nor should 
an eighteen-hole handicap be halved for 
nine-hole play.

Conduct must of course be supervised. 
If a junior forgets to smooth his tracks 
in a bunker, to repair the ball marks on 
the green, to replace divots or breaks 
some other rule of etiquette or good con­
duct, a friendly chat with him generally 
will remedy the situation. However, 
should the conduct require stronger cor­
rective measures, suspension of playing 
privileges for a definite or indefinite 
period and possibly informing his parents 
will work wonders. However, the juniors 
as a. whole conduct themselves on a par 
with their elders, and more often than 
not their conduct is exemplary and little 
disciplinary action is necessary.

Tournaments are big events in the life 
of a junior, and the crucible of competi­
tion is a fine experience. A junior pro­
gram is not complete unless it includes 
competitions.

Most Cxubs with active junior programs 
have frequent events such as blind bogey, 
match play vs. par or bogey, and, of 
course, junior championships for boys 

and girls. A ladder event can be con­
ducted throughout the season. The United 
States Golf Association can furnish a list 
of varied and interesting events. Father- 
and-son or daughter and mother-and- 
daughter or son events also are popular. 
Such competitions bring parents into 
close contact with the program.

Some clubs finish the junior season 
with such an event, followed by a dinner 
at which the prizes are awarded.

Junior competitions may be in age or 
handicap flights. Common age flights are 
16-17,14-15,12-13 and 11 and under. There 
can be a ‘pee-wee” flight for the ex­
tremely young.

Competitions should be conducted 
strictly by the Rules of Golf. Local Rules 
should be examined to insure that they 
are not in conflict with the Rules of Golf.
In areas having several junior pro­
grams, an invitation junior tournament 
is an exciting and enjoyable event. It is 
usually a one-day stroke play competi­
tion with flights by ages. Unless entrants 
have established handicaps at their clubs, 
there should be prizes only for gross 
scores.

Such a competition should be con­
ducted in the same manner as an adult 
event. It must be planned well. The com­
mittee should be on hand to start the 
juniors on the first tee; to assure that 
the cards are checked, signed and attested 
before being turned in; to see that re­
freshments are available; to decide ques­
tions of Rules; and to look after all the 
other details. Some invitation events also 
include putting contests and driving con­
tests for distance and accuracy.

Transportation problems will arise in 
an invitation junior event, and the com­
mittee from each club will have to work 
them out.

Financing will be required, but a junior 
program need not be expensive. The cost 
of prizes and refreshments will be the 
chief expenses. Methods of financing the 
program have included the following:

Appropriation by the club.
Donation by individual members. 
Proceeds from a club event.
Junior club dues.
Prizes for the girls’ and the boys’ sec­
tions of a tournament and of various 
flights should be on a par with each 
other. To avoid too much emphasis on

18

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

AN EARLY START ON A BIG JOB

The Cherry Hills Country Club, near Denver, Colo., got away to a fast and impressive 
start in preparing to entertain the Open Championship in 1960. Among those who 
attended the “kick-off” dinner were (from the left) Gov. Stephen L. R. McNichols of 
Colorado; Mayor Will F. Nicholson of Denver; H. R. (Potts) Berglund, general chair­
man for the Club; Everett Collier, a vice-chairman; and J. Edwin Carter, tournament 
director for the Professional Golfers’ Association.

the material gain of winning, prizes 
should be modest. Although at first 
juniors prefer trophies, they soon come 
to appreciate a useful prize of a lasting 
nature.

Caddie programs are an important 
asset to any club and the junior commit­
tee should not overlook the boys who 
carry the clubs. The character of the 

caddie-master, the well-being of the cad­
dies, the cleanliness and adequacy of the 
caddie yard, the supervision of the boys, 
and their opportunities to learn to play 
and to understand the Rules are all pro­
per subjects of concern for the junior 
committee even though specific remedies 
for any inadequacies may be the function 
of another committee.

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

19

UNIFORMITY RESTORED 
IN RULES OF GOLF

Southern California
Rescinds Special Rules

The Southern California Golf Associa­

tion has restored uniformity to the 

Rules of Golf.
In the USGA Journal of February, 1959 
the case for uniformity was presented in 
commenting on the adoption by the 
SCGA of several basic deviations from 
the established Rules of Golf.

At the same time, the USGA appealed 
directly to the SCGA to rescind its special 
rules in the interests of uniformity in 
view of the forthcoming quadrennial con­
ference with the Royal and Ancient Golf 
Club of St. Andrews, Scotland on pro­
posals for change in the Rules.

It is a pleasure to report the subsequent 

receipt of the following letter.

“The Board of Directors of the Southern 
California Golf Association met on March 
3, 1959, for the purpose of considering 
your letter dated January 30, 1959, in 
which you respectfully requested our 
Association to rescind our local rules an­
nounced last January 15th.

“Under the authority provided in our 
Articles of Incorporation (Article Second 
(b) (2)), these local rules were adopted 
as a result of a poll conducted by our 
Association. The members of our Clubs 
voted overwhelmingly that the severe 
penalties for-a ball out of bounds, a lost 
ball, and an unplayable ball, should be 
lessened. Our higher handicap golfers (5 
and over) have long urged these changes. 
This group represents over 95% of our 
golfers. Very few of them will ever com­
pete in any United States Golf Associa­
tion-sponsored event. They pay the major 
portion of the expenses of our Clubs and 
want to enjoy everyday golf.

“We represent and service 70 Clubs 
and 35,000 golfers in Southern California. 
Since we adopted these local rules over 
250,000 rounds of “day to day golf” and 
over 5.000 rounds of competitive team 
play golf have been played without any 
problem pertaining to these rules. They 
have proven very popular and satisfactory, 
and our golfers have been very happy 

playing under them.

“Our action was taken because we sin­
cerely believed, and so stated in our press 
release of January 15, 1959, that the 
notice of this action will be welcome 
news to all golfdom and also be of assist­
ance to the USGA and the Royal and 
Ancient in obtaining the public reaction 
generally in this modification of golf 
play.

“We agree, however, that it is best 
for golf ‘that the game be played under 
a uniform code throughout the country,’ 
provided that code reflects the wishes 
of the majority of the golfers and is 
changed whenever a majority becomes 
dissatisfied. Any other code would eventu­
ally fail since it would be arbitrary and 
undemocratic. We are sure you must 
agree with this principle.

“We are sure you would not have asked 
us to reverse our action in this matter 
unless it was imperative and vitally im­
portant to the United States Golf Associa­
tion. Our Board has thoroughly weighed 
all of the points set forth in your letter 
of January 30th. We think that the first 
and most important consideration is to do 
everything we can to promote harmony 
and cooperation between our Associa­
tions.

“The statement in your letter to us that 
this matter is on your agenda for your 
coming Conference with the Royal and 
Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews, Scot­
land, in May, has become a very signifi­
cant part of our consideration. This, to­
gether with the many press releases 
which indicate that you are planning to 
take favorable action regarding the rules 
in question, has caused us to accede to 
your request and therefore we have this 
date rescinded our local rules announced 
on January 15, 1959.

“We are now looking forward to 
favorable action at your coming Con­
ference.

Donald W. Spry, President
Southern California Golf Association”

20

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

WILLIAMS RETIRES

Frederick H. Williams with a USGA testimonial of appreciation of his 37 years’ con­
secutive service with the USGA Green Section. Left to right: James E. Thomas, 
Vice-President of Golf Course Superintendents Association of America, Golf Course 
Superintendent of Army Navy Country Club, Arlington, Va., and member of USGA 
Green Section Committee; Robert Elder, former member of USGA Green Section 
Staff and Golf Course Superintendent of Indian Spring Country Club, Silver Springs, 
Md.; T. T. Taylor, Northeastern Agronomist of USGA Green Section; Alton Rabbitt, 
Soil Conservationist, National Capital Parks, Department of Interior; Mr. Williams- 
Joseph C. Dey, Jr., Executive Director of USGA; Alexander M. Radko, Eastern 
Director of USGA Green Section; Martin F. McCarthy, Mid Atlantic District Chair­
man of USGA Green Section Committee.

Fred H. Williams, Executive Secretary 

of the USGA Green Section, retired 
on March 15 after 37 years of continuous 

service. He joined the Green Section in 
March, 1922, one year after its inception.
To a large measure the continuity of 
purpose that has characterized the pro­
gress of the Green Section has been due 
to Mr. Williams’ continuous and faithful 
service.

During his lifetime he has independently 
trained youngsters in sports and in his 
retirement he hopes to continue this 
phase of his work uninterrupted.

Mr. Williams was honored with a 
luncheon party attended by associates 
past and present. At this event he was 
presented gifts from the USGA, the Green 
Section, and the Mid-Atlantic Golf Course 
Superintendents Association. These in­
cluded an inscribed plaque from the 
USGA, an honorary membership in the 
Mid-Atlantic Golf Course Superintendents 
Association, an album of congratulatory 
letters from past and present associates, 
a brief case and substantial checks from 
the USGA, the Green Section and the 
Mid-Atlantic GCSA.

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

21

THE 
REFEREE

Decisions by the

Rules of Golf Committees

Exampie oi Symbols: “USGA” indicates decision by 
cates decision by the Royal and Ancient Golf Club 
decision issued in 1959. "D” means definition. “R. 
Rules of Golf.

Swing and Miss 
at Wrong Ball

USGA 58-32
D. 30, R. 21

Q: If you swing at a ball and miss it 
and then discover it is not your ball, what 
Rule applies?

Question by: W. F. Fox, Jr. 
Indianapolis, Ind.
A: Rule 21 governs. The penalty is loss 
of hole in match play or two strokes in 
stroke play. See Definition 30.

Caddie Throws Ball, 
Then Returns It

USGA 58-34
R. 23-3

Q: A competitor in a 36-hole stroke play 
tournament discovered after reaching the 
third green that his ball had been thrown 
from the rough into the fairway and then 
returned to the rough by his own caddie 
after the caddie was instructed by an­
other caddie that it was against the Rules 
to move the ball. There were several wit­
nesses to the act. The players on the tee 
were hidden by a hill and a very large 
tree and did not see the caddie remove

the United States Golf Association. “R & A” indi- 
of St. Andrews, ScoUand. “59-1” means the first 
37-7” refers to Section 7 of Rule 37 in the 1959

the ball from the rough. The caddie was 
very inexperienced.

Upon hearing this, the player promptly 
penalized himself two strokes and finish­
ed the 18-hole round. It was determined 
beyond doubt that the ball was moved.

Upon completion of the round the offi­
cial ruling was that the two-stroke penal­
ty was removed on the grounds that an 
official scorer had not seen the act and 
that the evidence was only hearsay.

Should the player have been relieved 
of the penalty? Should the player be 
penalized two strokes because his caddie 
moved the ball from the rough to the 
fairway and back again? Or should the 
player have four strokes penalty for hav­
ing the ball moved from the rough and 
back again to the rough?

Question by: Frank Marchi 
Dayton, Ohio

A: Rule 23-3 governs.
The competitor incurred a penalty of 
two strokes because his caddie lifted his 
ball without sanction under the Rules. 
He was required to replace his ball and 
complete the play of the hole before 
playing from the fourth tee.

If he failed to return and replace his 
ball in this manner, he incurred a penal­
ty of disqualification.

There is no double penalty.

22

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

Stick Holding Ball 

Violates Rule 16 

Mark Behind Ball
Is Not Permitted

USGA 58-41
R. 16

Q: A player set a stick in the ground 
against his ball to prevent it from mov­
ing when he removed an impediment. 
Was this an infraction of Rule 16 with 
its two-stroke penalty for stroke play.

Question by: Garland R. James 
Portsmouth, Va.

A: Yes.

Testing Hazard and 
Improving Line of Play

USGA 58-45
R. 17-3

Q: In a stroke play tournament A hit 
his second shot on a 312-yard hole short 
of the green, the ball rolling over the 
green, through the fringe behind the 
green and around the corner of a shallow 
sand trap. His ball lay behind the trap, in 
the grass, with a somewhat downhill lie 
caused by the slight mound guarding the 
trap. The trap was between his ball and 
the flagstick. After looking the shot over, 
A walked to the edge of the sand trap 
and swished his club through the sand 
two or three times. The club was a nine 
iron. The only apparent reason for this 
action was to see if the condition of the 
sand would permit the play of a. rolling 
shot, either with a putter or with a four 
or five iron. After seeing the consistency 
of the sand, A played the shot with his 
nine iron.

While no player called a rule infraction, 
several people in the gallery, as well as 
some contestants who had finished their 
rounds, felt that this action of A was an 
infraction. Specifically, it was contended 
that his action involved testing the con­
sistency of the hazard prior to executing 
the shot.

Question by: Arthur R. Wyatt 
Champaign, Ill.
A: The Rules do not prohibit a player 
from testing the condition of a hazard 
except when his ball lies in a hazard.

However, if the player’s actions im­
proved his line of play by moving, bend­
ing or breaking anything fixed, with cer­
tain exceptions which are not pertinent in 
this case, he violated Rule 17-3.. Sand is 
considered a thing fixed.

USGA 59-1
R. 9-2

Q: A player habitually uses a piece of 
paper, a cigarette or any handy device to 
guide him in lining up his tee and fair­
way shots. He does this by placing the 
object behind the ball in such a manner 
as to indicate the line of flight he wishes 
the ball to take. It is the contention of 
another player that Rule 9-2 prohibits 
such action.

Who is right?

Question by: Marvin Leffler 
Flushing, N. Y.
A: The latter player is correct. A 
player may not place a mark either in 
front of or behind his ball, or in front of 
or behind the hole, to indicate the line of 
play without violating Rule 9-2.

Penalties Cancelled
When Round Is Cancelled
USGA 59-2
R. 36 4c, 37 6

Q: In stroke play a competitor sus­
tained a penalty of disqualification (he 
discontinued play for personal reasons, in 
violation of Rule 37-6; no question of the 
course’s playability was involved at the 
time).

Subsequently the entire round and all 
scores made therein were cancelled be­
cause of unplayable conditions, the Com­
mittee acting under Rule 36 4c, and the 
round was re-scheduled for a later time.
Did cancellation of the round automati­
cally cancel all penalties made during the 
round, and is the disqualified competitor 
now entitled to play in the re-scheduled 
round?

Question by: Jimmy Mann
St. Petersburg, Fla.
A: Yes (assuming there was no dis­
honesty). All penalties are cancelled 
when a stroke play round is cancelled— 
see Rule 36-4c.

Ball Hit Accidentally 
Through the Green

USGA 59-4
D. 14, 30; R. 27-lc, 33-1

Oi: Pl aver through the green takes a 
practice swing and accidentally hits his 

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

23

ball off the toe of his club. Is this counted 
as a stroke?

Al: The player incurs a penalty stroke 
and the ball shall be played as it then 
lies. Rule 27-lc governs when a ball in 
play is moved accidentally by the player.
A stroke, according to Definition 30, 
is “the forward movement of the club 
made with the intention of fairly striking 
at and moving the ball.” The answer 
above accepts at face value the statement 
that the movement of the ball by the 
player was accidental.

However, where there is any question 
about intention in such a circumstance, 
the player must be deemed to have played 
a stroke. The effect under the Rules 
would of course be the same.

Touching Grass 

in Hazard

Q2a: Player’s ball is lying in a shallow 
water hazard. Player starts his backswing 
and accidentally touches some tall grass 
growing out of the water. Is there a 
penalty for grounding club in hazard?

b: Player takes practice swing in same 
water hazard. He does not touch the 
water, but he does swing through and 
touch same tall grass. Is there a penalty?
A2a: No. The grass may be touched to 
the limited extent provided in Rule 33-lb. 
Distinction is made between soling the 
club and merely touching the top of the 
grass.

b: Grass in a water hazard is part of 
the hazard and when a ball lies therein, 
nothing shall be done which may in any 
way improve its lie or test the condition 
of the hazard; see Definition 14 and Rule 
33-1. A penalty is incurred if the player, 
in making a practice stroke, either im­
proves his lie or tests the condition of 
the hazard.

Questions by: Norman M. Lapkin 
New York, N. Y.

Ball Crossing Boundary 
but Lying on Course

USGA 59-5
D. 21; LR

Q: Our course is located so that a four- 
lane street runs between the two nines 
and they are not connected except by a 
subway. The No. 1 hole is out of bounds 
right and No. 16 is out of bounds right, 
both into the street. On occasion a ball 

goes from No. 1 into No. 16 and some­
times the player wants to play it. I have 
ruled that since the ball went out of 
bounds and did not return to that side of 
the course the ball is out of bounds. (No 
board of directors would allow a player 
tc, play over a highway where thousands 
of cars pass daily.)

How would the USGA rule?

Quesion by: Jerry Barber 
Los Angeles, Cal.
A: In the absence of a local rule to 
the contrary, such a ball is in bounds as 
it lies on the course.

In a case such as this, it is recom­
mended that the club adopt a local rule 
to clarify the matter. Each such case 
should be decided on its merits, depend­
ing upon whether or not it is reasonable 
or feasible to play from one part of the 
course across out of bounds to another 
part of the course. Attention is called to 
Definition 21, which provides in part: 
“ ‘Out of bounds’ is ground on which play 
is prohibited.”

In the circumstances described above, 
it would seem advisable to prohibit play­
ing across the highway by adopting a 
local rule somewhat a.s follows:

“A ball which crosses an out-of-bounds 
line near----------------Street and comes to
rest beyond it is out of bounds even 
though it may lie on another part of the 
course.”

In a case where playing across such an 
out of bounds is permitted, a local rule 
is not necessary but would be useful in 
resolving any doubts, as follows:

“A ball which crosses an out-of-bounds 
line near the public road and comes to 
rest anywhere on the course is in bounds. 
(The road is out of bounds.)”

Casual Water on Green,
Ball off Green

USGA 59-6
R. 32-lc

Q: Casual water on the putting green 
intervenes between the hole and a ball 
lying off the putting green. The ball 
does not lie in or touch casual water.

Is the player entitled to any relief from 

the casual water on the putting green?

Question by: Robert A. Roos 
San Francisco, Cal.
A: No. Rule 32-lc applies only when 
the ball itself lies on the putting green.

24

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

GOLF COURSE REBUILDING AND REMODELING 
AGRONOMIC FACTORS TO CONSIDER

The USGA Green Section conducted its third annua! Educational Program at the Biltmore Hotel, 
in New York, January 30, 1959. The Chairman was Mr. William C. Chapin, Chairman of the USGA 
Green Section Committee. The Vice-Chairman was Mr. Edwin Hoyt, Northeastern District Chairman 
of the USGA Green Section Committee.

The moderators were, Mr. William H. Bengeyfield, Western Director of the USGA Green Section 
and Mr. Charles K. Hallowell, Mid-Atlantic Director of the USGA Green Section. Also participating 
were Mr. James M. Latham, Jr., Southeastern Agronomist, and Mr. James L. Holmes, Mid-Western 
Agronomist of the USGA Green Section.

The morning session was devoted to the topic, Basic Agronomic Considerations in Rebuilding. The 

following summarizes the talks delivered by the principal speakers:

Renovation vs Rebuilding

BY A. M. RADKO 
Eastern Director, USGA Green Section

A familiar saying is that only death and 

taxes are certain. The underlying 
thought of course is one of permanency. 

If we could add golf course turf to this 
quote, we would have few problems and 
there would be no reason for programs 
of this nature. Perfection in the turfgrass 
field, however, is an elusive permanent 
target. Hence the interest and necessity 
for rebuilding and renovating golf course 
areas.

Nearly every club at some time or other 
is faced with the problem of renovation 
or rebuilding some part of the golf 
course. Let us first, therefore, define 
these terms.

In turfgrass language, renovation means 
renewing or improving the turf surface; 
implied is the fact that we must correct 
existing deficiencies, change over the turf­
grass surface, and then set up the re­
quired program of maintenance and 
management to insure that the new turf­

grasses will do what is expected of them.
By rebuilding, we mean changing the 
design of some part of the golf course 
through construction. To cite a few 
examples, a tee may need enlarging, a 
green may need reshaping, or drainage 
improvement, or a better soil mixture 
beneath. Rebuilding may require the 
services of a competent golf course archi­
tect, while sometimes the superintendent 
and his staff, with the backing of the 
Green Committee, can do the necessary 
work. In any event, any rebuilding pro­
ject is a major project, and usually one 
of capital expenditure.

By broad definition, the normal pro­
gram of golf course maintenance and 
management falls into the renovation 
category, for the superintendent is con­
tinually striving to improve his turf grass 
picture by intelligent fertilizing, aerating, 
top dressing, watering, and all the many 
ether routine practices. We here today 

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

25

are concerned with the jobs over and 
above routine management.

Golf course and turfgrass improvement 
jobs cover a range between the relatively 
simple reseeding jobs to the exacting task 
of design and construction of a complete 
new putting green. Rebuilding and reno­
vating tasks are the result of:

1. The desire to improve turf grasses 

and playing conditions.

2. A desire to reduce maintenance 

costs.

3. Increased use of the golf course.
4. Fundamental weaknesses in con­

struction or terrain.
5. Pride in membership.

The desire to improve turfgrasses and 
playing conditions. Superintendents take 
pride in their ability to grow good turf 
and they continually strive to give their 
membership the very best within their 
means. This is a tough assignment, and a 
certain amount of renovation work is 
usually required each year. Improving an 
approach area here, an apron there, re­
seeding or resodding weak tees, or intro­
ducing improved strains of grasses all 
add to golfing pleasure as well as to an 
improved turfgrass picture.

Members, too, desire improvement. 
Golfers today are adventurous souls; they 
play many courses; they see new things 
there and ask, “Why can’t we have them 
at our course?” Whether the golfers can 
have these improvements on their own 
course is a matter for study.

A desire to reduce maintenance costs. 
Recent surveys show that labor costs are 
approximately two-thirds of the annual 
maintenance and management course 
budget. Obstacles in the path of normal 
maintenance add to the number of man 
hours required and thus affect the mainte­
nance budget. Some examples of such 
hazards are elevated tees with sharp, 
steep sides; trees in the path of efficient 
gang unit mowing of rough areas; exces­
sive mounds or “chocolate drops” in traps 
and rough areas; and an excessive num­
ber of bunkers, some of which seldom 
come into play but which require as much 
maintenance as strategically placed traps.
Increased use of the golf course. The 
National Golf Foundation reports a record 
75 million rounds of golf played on 
courses in the United States in 1958. This 
record is expected to fall in 1959. Re­
ported, also, is an increase in women’s
M 

SUBSCRIBERS TO U.S.G.A. 

GREEN SECTION 
AND EDUCATION

RESEARCH 
FUND, INC.

Augusta National Golf 

Club, 

Catto & Putty,

Augusta, Ga.

San Antonio,

Floyd Farley,

Georgia Florida Turf 
Association, 
Lionel MacDuff, 
Metropolitan Golf 
Writers' Association, 

National Golf Fund, 

Inc., 

New England Golf 
Association, 

Oklahoma City, 

Okla.

Winter Park, Fla.

Lynn, Mass. 
Manhasset, N. Y.

Dunedin, Fla.

Boston, Mass.

Association

Connecticut State Golf
Maine State Golf Association 
Massachusetts State Golf Association 
New England Golf Association 
New Hampshire State Golf Association 
Rhode Island State Golf Association 
Vermont State Golf Association

Bernard H. Ridder, Jr., St. Paul, Minn. 
J. H. Watson, 
Marietta, Ohio

play, an increase in the number of juniors 
who have taken up the game, and an in­
crease in week-day play. Increased traffic 
means wear, wear sometimes leads to in­
jury, and injury necessitates renovation or 
rebuilding. Because of increased play, 
clubs often are forced also to look for 
means of speeding up play and, to do so, 
some changes in design may be required.
Fundamental weaknesses in construc­
tion. Under this heading we include all 
the design features and construction tech­
niques that may be improved upon. Re­
search as well as practical management 
experience has provided new and better 
ideas and methods. These include use of 
improved soil mixtures under greens, in­
troduction of improved strains of grasses, 
enlargement of small tees with ease of 
maintenance in mind, provision of more 
cupping area on greens, elimination of 
layered soils under greens, adjustment of 
traps and apron areas about greens for 
ease of maintenance, and correction of 
ether factors that either affect playability 
of the course or defy sound and economic 
maintenance and management practices.

We can also include here the troubles 
that develop as the course matures. These 
include problems created by tree roots 
that invade putting greens and compete 
with grasses for water and nutrients; de­
pressions in areas where tree stumps are 
left to decompose; erosion problems; 
poor air circulation where trees have 
grown to heights that shut off air around 
greens.

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

Problems described in the first para­
graph above usually require rebuilding, 
those in the second are primarily renova­
tion projects.

Pride in membership. Most club mem­
bers desire to make their course one of 
the best; they wish to modernize it; they 
wish at all times to have a good golf 
course in top playing condition; they wish 
to have it a tough, yet fair test of golf. 
What constitutes a tough yet fair test of 
golf depends largely on the handicap of 
the golfer who is asked this question. The 
direction in rebuilding, therefore, gen­
erally favors the “average” golfer, for 
after all the purpose of the golf course is 
to afford pleasure to the greatest num­
ber of golfers. Yet all through this desire 
for improvement is the underlying wish 
on the part of the members that the 
course not be touched. No golfer wants 
to play 17 holes—they don’t like to play 
temporary greens—they don’t like to see 
fairways torn up—they hope for a 
“magic-wand” type reformation.

Fortunately, clubs have the organiza­
tional framework for easing this situa­
tion—they get their direction from the 
Green Committee and the superintendent. 
The obvious solution is to set up a pro­
gram of projects with priority of assign­
ment so that the course is not torn up 
year after year during the height of the 
golfing season. Here, the superintendent’s 
counsel strongly enters the picture as he 

can schedule projects for best results 
with least interference with play.

Because of the usual quick turnover 
of Green Committee personnel, it is most 
important to set up a long-range program 
of improvement projects, approved by 
the membership, so that the superin­
tendent can set his course of action. Only 
then is it possible to keep members in­
formed and only then is the road to har­
mony open.

In summary, we wish to re-emphasize 

the following points:

1. The desire on the part of the superin­
tendent and the membership for improve­
ment makes renovation and in some cases 
rebuilding necessary.

2. Plan each improvement project 
thoroughly, do it at the right time for 
best results, and keep the length of time 
required to complete the project to a 
minimum.

3. Do not take on more work than you 
can handle comfortably in any one season.
4. Prepare the membership for improve­
ment projects by informing them well in 
advance of what is to take place.

5. Pursue the improvement plan vigor­
ously—leave nothing undone that should 
be done. Success with one project eases 
the way for the next.

6. Alter as necessary the maintenance 
and management program to derive full 
benefit of the renovation or rebuilding 
programs.

Good Drainage For Greens

BY DR. RALPH E. ENGEL
Associate Research Specialist in Turf Management
Department of Farm Crops, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, N. J.

Drainage is one of the major building 

blocks in successful green construc­
tion. Without good drainage the task of 

turfgrass maintenance will always be 
more difficult and expensive. Excessive 
wetness increases soil compaction. Wet 
and compact soils lower the oxygen 
levels. This reduces the efficiency of the 
soil organisms, inactivates the root sys­
tem, and gives shallow rooting. All these 
are factors which increase susceptibility 
of the turf to drought and heat. Often 
tie extra stress produced by these condi­
tions may bring disaster during critical 
summer periods. Even short periods of 
excessive wetness may cause drowning of 

the root system or a slow down of water 
intake by the plant.

Good drainage is always a first class 
investment. Without it the area may be 
unfit for use on occasions. With good 
drainage, watering is easier, and over­
watering or excessive rainfall is less 
likely to cause trouble. If a green has cor­
rect drainage, more watering can be done 
with sprinklers, and hand watering can 
be restricted largely to watering of the 
ridges and to syringing during periods of 
severe heat.

Good drainage can be characterized by 
prompt water movement off the surface 
and through the soil. Also, the system 

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

27

must have an adequate outlet which will 
permit drainage to continue even with the 
most extreme total quantities of water. 
Occasionally, drainage is made into stone 
or coarse soil set in basins of clay, 
“french” drains or other limited reser­
voirs. When these fill, days may elapse 
before excess water moves from the soil.
Some ask if over-drainage is possible. 
Rapid and complete drainage will not 
harm the grass. However, soils are fre­
quently made shallow and droughty by 
placing coarse materials too near the sur­
face.

The precise quantity of drainage, prob­
ably is not as critical as the free move­
ment of water at all times. Grass roots are 
living structures which require oxygen. 
The amount of oxygen needed varies with 
temperature, the soil organism activities, 
and the grass species. The oxygen require­
ments of bentgrass are lower than for 
many plants, and it has been shown that 
bent grass can remain healthy with the 
amount of oxygen present in fresh water. 
Thus, fresh water moving through the soil 
never harms bent; it is an important car­
rier of oxygen.

Good surface drainage of the green 
eases the problem where internal drain­
age is slow and it shortens the period of 
wetness that follows heavy deluges of 
water. Even though the surface must be 
relatively flat, a slope of Vi to 1 per cent, 
if carefully graded, can give excellent 
surface drainage. In addition to slope, the 
pattern of surface drainage is important. 
As far as possible, avoid concentrating 
all of the run-off in one waterway. If this 
is necessary, try to place this construction 
in a minimum traffic area.

Underground drainage can be obtained 
by a naturally occurring or an installed 
layer of coarse material. On occasion, a 
coarse sand subsoil may exist which 
would prove adequate. A layer of gravel, 
cinders or trap rock can be used. If a 
coarse base is effective under all condi­
tions, it must have an outlet at the bot­
tom or side.

In the more clayey soils where a coarse 
base does not exist to serve as an outlet 
for the water from the topsoil region, tile 
drains may be necessary. If the green is 
being rebuilt, past behavior may have 
demonstrated the need. Before embarking

USGA PUBLICATIONS OF GENERAL INTEREST

THE RULES OF GOLF, as approved by the 
United States Golf Association and the Royal 
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USGA GOLF HANDICAP SYSTEM FOR MEN, 
containing recommendations for computing 
USGA Handicap and for rating courses. Book­
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25 cents. Poster, 10 cents.
THE CONDUCT OF WOMEN'S GOLF, contain­
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women's golf in clubs and associations, in­
cluding tournament procedure, handicapping 
and course rating. 25 cents. USGA Slide Rule 
Handicapper, 25 cents. Poster, 10 cents.
HANDICAPPING THE UNHANDICAPPED, a 
reprint of a USGA Journal article explaining 
the Callaway System of automatic handicap­
ping for occasional players in a single tour­
nament. No charge.
TOURNAMENTS FOR YOUR CLUB, a reprint 
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PREPARING THE COURSE FOR A COMPETI­
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John P. English. No charge.

PROTECTION OF PERSONS AGAINST LIGHT­
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HOLE-IN-ONE AWARDS. No Charge.

LETTER AND SPIRIT OF THE AMATEUR 
CODE, a reprint of a USGA Journal article by 
Joseph C. Dey, Jr. No charge.

GAMBLING IN GOLF TOURNAMENTS, a re­
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WORK OF A CLUB GREEN COMMITTEE, a re­
print of panel discussions conducted by the 
USGA Green Section Committee. No Charge.
HOW TO MEET RISING COSTS OF GOLF 
COURSE MAINTENANCE, PARTS I & II, re­
prints of panel discussions conducted by the 
USGA Green Section Committee. No charge.
MISTER CHAIRMAN, a reprint of a USGA 
Journal article outlining the duties of the 
Chairman of the Green Committee. No charge. 
ARE YOU A SLOW PLAYER? ARE YOU 
SURE? A reprint of a USGA Journal article 
by John D. Ames. No charge.
A JUNIOR GOLF PROGRAM FOR YOUR 
CLUB AND DISTRICT, a 16-page booklet on 
organizing and developing junior golf programs 
at different levels by the USGA Junior Cham­
pionship Committee. No charge.
TURF MANAGEMENT, by H. B. Musser (Me 
Graw-Hill Book Co., Inc.), the authoritative 
book on turf maintenance. $T.
USGA CHAMPIONSHIP RECORD BOOK. De­
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USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT, 
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These publications are available on request 
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payment with your order. 

28

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

on establishment of drainage for a wet 
green, be sure to locate the source of 
trouble in advance. Greens built near 
embankments or slopes may have es­
pecially tricky problems. Test diggings 
are helpful in establishing the drainage 
techniques.

Tile must be carefully installed at a 
depth of 24 to 36 inches. In some cases, 
one line in a green is adequate, while in 
others, they should be spaced at intervals 
as close as 10 to 15 feet. The grade of the 
tile may range from 0.5 to 5 feet per 100 
linear feet. The grade and line must be 
established by instrument.

The tile should be laid on a true-line 
on a firm base of stone or trap rock. The 
joints should allow a space of 1/16 to 1/8 
inch and they should be covered on the 
top with tar paper. The tile should then 
be covered with coarse stone or trap 
rock. The contour of the base soil after 
installation of the tile drains should have 
slight crowns that will lead water toward 
the drain opening.

In covering a coarse base or a tile 
drain covered with coarse material, add 
similar materials of slightly but in­
creasingly finer texture up to the finest 
grades of gravel or trap rock to reach the 
level for start of topsoil installation. 
Twelve inches of loose topsoil material 
and the base soil above the coarse base 
or tile drain should total a minimum 
depth of two feet. When adding soil base 
before adding topsoil, make sure this 
material does not contain more clay than 
the topsoil. A material of this type could 
destroy all or part of the value of previ­
ous drainage work.

The soil that is used above the coarse 
base or tile drain should be very care­
fully selected. Details will not be given 
on the quantities of clay and sand as this 
will be covered in a subsequent paper. 
As the layers of topsoil and base soil are 
placed above the coarse base material or 
drains, use care to blend all layers. Also, 
all ingredients of the individual layers 
should be thoroughly mixed off the site 
before placement.

Quite often, use of drainage procedures 
as described will raise the level of the 
green above the natural surface soil. This 
is commonly very helpful in enabling 
soil water to move out of the drainage 
system. This more exposed elevation per­
mits the wind and air to circulate more 
freely over the surface of the green. 
Usually this feature is considered very 
desirable.

The drainage system should not be 
developed without the sound guidance of 
someone who has thorough knolwedge 
and actual experience. This applies es­
pecially with tile drainage. Also, actual 
attainment of the proper soil materials 
and the desired blending is far more 
likely to occur with experienced guidance.
Some of the details suggested to insure 
drainage give the task an appearance of 
being too much trouble. Every effort re­
quired for soundness of the drainage sys­
tem will be repaid. A lack of drainage 
cannot be corrected easily after the green 
is finished, and without good drainage, 
putting green maintenance becomes un­
desirable business. In some cases, the 
quality of the greens will always be in­
ferior regardless of the amount of mainte­
nance effort.

Soils

BY DR. MARVIN H. FERGUSON
National Research Coordinator, USGA Green Section

Soils upon which turf is to be established 

deserve considerable attention when­
ever rebuilding or remodeling is contem­

plated. Putting green soils are so often 
the source of turf trouble that the USGA 
Green Section began about 10 years ago 
to sponsor research dealing with the 
physical relationship of soils. This work 
has been done at Beltsville, at Oklahoma 
State University, at UCLA, and more re­
cently at Texas A. & M. College.

There are four primary functions of a 
soil. It provides support, nutrients, water, 
and air (oxygen). In addition to these 
primary functions, the soil used in a 
putting green must fulfill other peculiar 
requirements. (1) It must resist compac­
tion under traffic and during all kinds of 
weather conditions. (2) It must hold a 
properly played golf shot, yet be firm 
enough to resist the pitting caused by 
golf balls played with a high trajectory. 

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

29

(3) The soil must provide the primary re­
quirements to a plant handicapped by the 
attrition of traffic and constant close 
mowing.

Soil is not an inert material but is 
rather a complex chemical, physical, and 
biological system in which all factors 
must be considered in their relationship 
one to another. Thus, among the func­
tions that a soil performs, there are 
numerous interactions. A few examples 
will serve to demonstrate this fact. (1) 
Air in the soil affects the plant’s ability 
to take up water and nutrients and to 
use them in its growth. (2) Air affects 
the depth and distribution of roots and in 
turn influences .support as well as nutri­
ent “foraging” ability. (3) Water and 
air in the soil vary in inverse propor­
tion.

The discussion of air and water con­
tent of a soil leads to a consideration of 
pore space characteristics. We have evi­
dence that a good agricultural soil is 
composed of about 50 per cent solids and 
about 50 per cent pore .space. The pore 
space in turn is divided about equally 
between capillary pore space, which may 
be thought of as the space which holds 
water, and non-capillary pore space, 
which may be considered air space in a 
well drained soil.

The above description of a good pro­
ductive soil will fit a well-tilled loam. 
This is where the imposition of putting 
green requirements begins to intrude up­
on accepted thought. A putting green 
cannot be tilled, and the preponderance 
of relatively small particles which, when 
wet, are crushed and are pressed to­
gether by foot traffic, causes the larger 
pore spaces (air spaces) to be excluded 
from the soil. Consequently there is an 
imbalance between non-capillary and 
capillary pore space.

The use of a higher percentage of sand 
will tend to balance the relationship be­
tween large and small pores but this ad­
dition of a high percentage of larger 
particles brings about a reduction in total 
pore space. Thus, it appears that 34 to 
38 per cent is the maximum total pore 
space obtainable in a good putting green 
soil. This appears adequate, however, if 
the amounts of large and small pore 
spaces are about equal.

The considerations of pore space are 
important as they affect drainage and 

aeration of a soil. These soil characteris­
tics are closely related. Both are affected 
by underlying strata. A layer near the 
surface may impede the movement of 
water, creating a false water table and 
causing roots to be shallow. On the other 
hand, layers of gravel at depths of as 
much as 12 inches may be desirable be­
cause a false water table at this depth 
may prevent “drouthiness” in a sandy soil.
The synthesis of a suitable soil for 
putting green use can be accomplished 
quite effectively by the use of appropriate 
laboratory measurements. These measure­
ments are (1) mechanical analysis, (2) 
pore space amount and distribution of 
sizes, (3) permeability (measured as 
inches per hour with a .25 inch hydraulic 
head), and (4) moisture retention. The 
use of these measurements upon com­
pacted trial mixtures of soil together with 
careful interpretation will permit the 
making of a putting green soil that will 
maintain its suitability over a long period.
The actual putting green construction 
procedure should conform to the follow­
ing outline:

1. Lay tile in a suitable pattern after 
the subgrade has been established. 
The contours of the subgrade 
should correspond to the planned 
contours of the finished green.
2. A gravel blanket, to % inch 
aggregate, should be placed over 
the tile lines and over the entire 
surface. Minimum thickness for 
this layer should be 4 inches.
3. Because of the tendency of soil to 
migrate downward into gravel, a 
layer of coarse sand IV2 inches in 
thickness may be used over the 
gravel blanket. This is particularly 
desirable if the underlying gravel 
is coarse. If fine gravel is used, the 
sand may not be necessary.

4. Mix soil off the putting green site. 
Place carefully on the prepared 
base.

5. Save an ample supply of the soil 

for future topdressing.

6. Sterilize putting green after soil 
is in place by the use of methyl 
bromide or other suitable sterilant.
7. Firm the soil, rake it smooth, and 
firm it again until the surface is 
smooth and uniformly firm.

8. The green is now ready for plant­

ing.

30

USGA JOURNAL ANO TURF

MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

Grasses 

BY H. B. MUSSER 
Professor of Agronomy. The Pennsylvania State University

The choice of a grass for any specific 

locality or specialized use on the golf 
course, whether greens, fairways, tees, or 

roughs, must be based first on its climatic 
adaptation.

Bluegrasses, fescues, and bents, are 
essentially temperate climate grasses that 
grow best under moderate temperatures 
and good moisture. Grasses such as Ber­
mudas, Zoysias, St. Augustine, carpet and 
Centipede require much higher average 
temperatures with about the same mois­
ture levels. In contrast, species such as 
buffalo, the gramagrasses, and wheat­
grasses, will survive under a wide range 
of temperatures and thrive at moisture 
levels much lower than those required by 
the first two groups.

The farther any grass is moved from its 
region of best adaptation the more diffi­
cult it is to establish and maintain good 
quality turf of it. The high proportion of 
unsuccessful attempts to hold good bent­
grass putting greens in the South and the 
many failures to consistently use Ber­
muda north of the Mason-Dixon line tes­
tify to this.

Grasses also have specific soil adapta­
tions. There are basic differences in their 
tolerance to soil acidity, their drainage 
requirements and fertility responses. 
Bluegrasses and Bermudas need sweet 
soil. Bents and fescues have a wide 
tolerence to soil reaction. Centipedegrass 
seems actually to prefer an acid condi­
tion. There are similar differences in fer­
tility requirements. Bents, Bermudas and 
certainly the better types of bluegrasses 
require materially higher fertility levels 
than slower growing types such as fescues 
and zoysias.

The third, and equally important, grass 
characteristics which must be understood 
are differences in adaptation to specific 
uses and management. This covers all 
their natural variations in growth habit, 
texture and density, toughness and re­
sistance to wear, disease susceptibility 
and general vigor. All of these things 
have a direct bearing on their ability to 
persist and provide good quality turf un­
der the type of treatment required to 
meet the demands of special uses. As an 

illustration, the cutting height limitations 
of Kentucky bluegrass and red fescue 
are well recognized. They cannot continue 
to produce satisfactory turf on fairways 
where one-half to three-quarters inch 
cutting is demanded. Bents and Bermudas 
thrive under this treatment and we use 
them on putting greens because of their 
ability to produce the required quality 
of turf with such management.

These basic differences among grass 
species frequently extend to varieties 
within a single species. Critical observa­
tion and testing has provided us with a 
reasonably good picture of the potentiali­
ties of many of these varieties.

In the Kentucky bluegrass, species of 
seed of Merion, Delta, Park, Troy, Ar­
boretum and Newport is commercially 
available. Where bluegrass is to be used 
on fairways and a choice must be made 
among these, the practical question of 
basic differences in their characteristics 
and performance possibilities immediately 
arises. It is essential to know whether 
these differences are great enough to be 
of practical importance. No one is going 
to use Merion because it is more ex­
pensive, on the principle that what costs 
more should be better. We use it because 
Merion has shown, repeatedly, that it is 
more dependable in areas where the leaf 
spot disease causes chronic injury.

We find the same variations among 
varieties of Bermudagrass. U-3 Bermuda, 
cne of the first improved types of this 
species, is an excellent fairway and tee 
grass in the cooler sections of the general 
region of Bermuda adaptation. As we 
move it further south it becomes more

TURF MANAGEMENT

The book "Turf Management," sponsored 
by the United States Golf Association and 
edited by Prof. H. B. Musser, is a complete 
and authoritative guide in the practical de­
velopment of golf-course turfs.

This 354-page volume is available through 
the USGA, 40 East 38th Street, New York 
16, N. Y., the USGA Green Section Regional 
Offices, the McGraw-Hill Book Co., 350 West 
42nd Street, New York 36, N. Y„ or local 
bookstores. The cost is $7.

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

31

and more mediocre due to lack of disease 
resistance. The newer Tifgreen variety is 
also a good example. Its superior ability 
to produce an even, fine-textured turf on 
putting greens is fast making it a favorite 
for this purpose.

Varietal differences in the bentgrasses 
are equally pronounced. The situation 
. here is somewhat more complicated in 
that the first decision to be made is 
whether to use a variety that may be 
seeded, or a vegetatively propagated 
variety. It is quite generally recognized 
that vegetative plantings will usually pro­
duce a usable turf quicker than seedings. 
On the other hand, success in producing 
the best possible quality with vegetative 
varieties is contingent upon a very defi­
nite understanding of the characteristics 
and limitations of each. These varieties 
are vegetative multiplications of a single 
plant. Any basic weakness, such as disease 
susceptibility, a tendency toward graini­
ness and stemminess, or poor humidity 
tolerance, will be perpetuated and will 
show up strongly whenever such condi­
tions are encountered.

Most of the seeded bents, such as Sea­
side, Astoria, Highland, or just ordinary 
colonial, are composed of a large number 
of individual types, some of which are 
good and some poor. Since no effort has 
been made to breed out the weak sisters, 
the turf produced by any of them is a 
composite and represents the average for 
the species.

The only other seeded variety of bent­
grass available commercially at the 
present time is Penncross. It is the re­
sult of an attempt to concentrate desira­
ble qualities and eliminate weaknesses 
by controlled breeding. The large num­
ber of favorable performance reports on 
it, over a very wide range of conditions, 
shows that this approach has been at 
least partially successful. There seems 
little doubt that it will outperform any 
other seeded bent presently available and 
that it has a materially wider range of 
adaptability than individual vegetative 
strains.

A specialized knowledge of the grasses 
is, of course, not the only thing necessary 
to insure good quality turf. Good methods 
of establishment are just as important. 
These begin with proper construction and 
tillage. A green that is built without pro­
vision for adequate air and water move­

ment through the soil will be a constant 
problem. Fairways that are seeded with­
out thorough soil loosening or where re­
action and fertility requirements have 
not been met cannot develop the kind of 
playing turf the golfer demands.

Planting methods, also, can make a 
material difference. Where grasses are 
used that must be established vegeta­
tively by sprigging or stolonizing, it is 
essential that healthy, vigorous planting 
stock be used, at a rate that will produce 
a good cover quickly. The seed bed not 
cnly must be well prepared, but soil mois­
ture must be maintained at a level favor­
able for growth. Where mechanical 
planters are used the spacing and depth 
of planting become very important con­
siderations. The proper vegetative plant­
ing of greens is just as specialized. A 
firm seed bed, good spreading technique, 
the right top dressing mixture and its 
uniform distribution at the right rate are 
essential to good establishment.

Where seed is used it must be under­
stood that a longer period is required for 
it to become sufficiently mature for safe 
use. Here, again, good methods are vital. 
Good soil conditioning, seed bed prepara­
tion, the use of high quality seed, uni­
form distribution at the proper rate, the 
right covering depth, proper firming by 
lolling and protection of danger areas 
by mulching, all have a direct and pro­
nounced effect on the completeness of 
establishment and the rate of turf develop­
ment.

It is equally important to know how to 
handle the new grass after it has started 
to grow; when to start cutting, at what 
height and how often, how soon should 
fertilizer be used, when and how much 
water should be used. Unless we have the 
right answers to such questions, we can 
get into very serious difficulties.

These are some of the more important 
things vital to good turf establishment. 
Add to them all the specialized informa­
tion necessary to day-to-day and season- 
to-season maintenance and you have the 
normal stock-in-trade of the competent 
superintendent.

* ss *

The afternoon session was devoted to 
the topic, Factors Pertaining to Design, 
Financing and Timeliness in the Rebuild­
ing Operation. The talks will be sum­
marized in the next issue.

32

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

IT’S YOUR HONOR

Good Annual Report

To The USGA:

I was glad to receive your Annual 
Report. It is a comprehensive review 
of all the important golfing events 
that have passed into history during 
the past year.

J. Martin Watson 
Boise, Idaho

Films Enjoyed

To The USGA:

I saw your two news films of
St.
Andrews and the World Amateur 
Team Championship at the Annual 
Meeting, and I was so impressed that 
I immediately determined to try to 
get them for our Spring Field Day. 
They are both good, and I think your 
men did a good job taking them.

John L. Barr, Jr. 
Washington, D. C.

Fort Yukon Course

To The USGA:

We have built a nine hole, par-36 
golf course at this remote Air Force 
Station and would like to obtain a 
membership in your Association. We 
think we have the only golf course in 
the United States north of the Arctic 
Circle.

Actually, we have only five greens 
so far but have nine tees and nine 
distinct holes. The holes are long. It 
is really a full-size course. In time, 
no doubt, it will be .spread out more 
and have at least nine distinct greens.
Ot this writing, the course is un­
der two feet of snow. This past sum­
mer, when the course was con- 
Uructed, it was all dirt. The greens 
are fairly hard, smooth sand. We 
need cups and flags to replace our 
home-made ones. Grass will be 
planted on the fairways this spring 
as the snow goes out. It will be brome 
grass, but this can be replaced with 
Kentucky blue grass as that grows 
well in this area too. The greens will 

probably have to 
bly sand and oil 
them.

remain sand; possi- 
will work well for

Our mission is 

to operate a radar 
station in the 
air-defense net in
Alaska for detection and interception 
of hostile aircraft. 2nd Lt. Charles F. 
Scholer and a civilian technical repre­
sentative, Richard Carpenter, laid out 
the course. Capt. Chester E. Rodgers 
was the first pro. Airman Rex L. 
Kennedy won he first tournament 
last Labor Day. As Squadron Com­
mander, I insist on being president. 
Lt. Ernest W. Bie was chairman of the 
rules committee and Staff Sergeant 
Frank C. Perry was chairman of the 
green committee.

Major Alan J. Teague, USAF 
Fort Yukon AFS
Fort Yukon, Alaska

Helping Juniors

To The USGA:

You might like to know of some of 
the activities of the Shore View Golf 
Club. We sponsor the Brooklyn Junior 
Golf Championship. This tournament 
will be held on June 6 and any 
Brooklyn youngster under 19 is eli­
gible to enter. No entry fee is 
charged, and the club donates beauti­
ful trophies and merchandise. Dyker 
Beach Golf Course will be an extra­
busy place on that day.

Louis Kaufman 
Brooklyn, N. Y.

Support for Rules

To The USGA:

Congratulations on the letter you 
wrote to the Southern California Golf 
Association requesting that it abide 
by USGA Rules.

There is too much willingness to 
tamper with the Rules and, were it 
not for the USGA, golf would soon 
deteriorate into a form of shinny.

Charles R. Wilson 
Wheaton, Ill.

USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: APRIL, 1959

USGA OFFICERS, EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE 

AND COMMITTEE CHAIRMEN

PRESIDENT 
John D. Ames, Chicago, III. 
VICE-PRESIDENTS 
John G. Clock, Long Beach, Cal. 
John M. Winters, Jr., Tulsa, Okla.
SECRETARY 
Clarence W. Benedict, White Plains, N. Y.
TREASURER
Emerson Carey, Jr., Denver, Colo.

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
The above officers and: 
Fred Brand, Jr.. Pittsburgh, Pa. 
William C. Chapin, Rochester, N. Y. 
Charles C. Clare, New Haven, Conn. 
Wm. Ward Foshay, New York, N. Y. 
Harry L. Givan, Seattle, Wash. 
Richmond Gray, Richmond, Va. 
Hord W. Hardin, St. Louis, Mo. 
William McWane, Birmingham, Ala. 
Harold A. Moore, Chicago, III.
Bernard H. Ridder, Jr., St. Paul, Minn.

HONORARY MEMBER
J. Frederic Byers, Jr., Pittsburgh, Pa.

GENERAL COUNSEL
Philip H. Strubing, Philadelphia, Pa.

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Joseph C. Dey, Jr., New York, N. Y. 
John P. English, Assistant Executive Director

USGA HEADQUARTERS
“Golf House", 40 East 38th Street, New York 16, N. Y.

COMMITTEE CHAIRMEN 
RULES OF GOLF: John M. Winters, Jr., Tulsa, Okla. 
CHAMPIONSHIP: B. H. Ridder, Jr., St. Paul, Minn. 
AMATEUR STATUS AND CONDUCT: John G. Clock, Long Beach, Cal. 
IMPLEMENTS AND BALL: Clarence W. Benedict, White Plains, N. Y. 
MEMBERSHIP: William McWane, Birmingham, Ala. 
GREEN SECTION: William C. Chapin, Rochester, N. Y. 
WOMEN'S: Mrs. Henri Prunaret, Natick, Mass. 
SECTIONAL AFFAIRS: Hord W. Hardin, St. Louis, Mo. 
PUBLIC LINKS: Emerson Carey, Jr., Denver, Colo.
HANDICAP: Richmond Gray, Richmond, Va. Handicap Procedure: William O. Blaney, Boston, Mass. 
JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIP: Hord W. Hardin, St. Louis, Mo.
SENIOR CHAMPIONSHIP: William McWane. Birmingham, Ala. 
GIRLS' JUNIOR: Mrs. John Pennington, Buffalo, N. Y. 
MUSEUM: Clarence W. Benedict, White Plains, N. Y.
BOB JONES AWARD: Wm. Ward Foshay, New York, N. Y. 
FINANCE: Emerson Carey, Jr., Denver, Colo.

USGA GREEN SECTION
EASTERN REGION 

Northeastern Office: Rutgers University, New Brunswick, N. J. 

Alexander M. Radko, Director, Eastern Region 
T. T. Taylor, Northeastern Agronomist

Mid-Atlantic Office: 711 West Ave., Jenkintown, Pa.

Charles K. Hallowell, Mid-Atlantic Director 

Southeastern Office: Conner Hall, University of Georgia, Athens, Ga. 
James M. Latham, Jr., Southeastern Agronomist

MID-CONTINENT REGION 

Southwestern Office: Texas A. and M. College, College Station, Tex. 

Dr. Marvin H. Ferguson, Director, Mid-Continent Region and National 

Research Coordinator

James B. Moncrief, Southwestern Agronomist 

Mid-Western Office: Room 241, LaSalle Hotel, Chicago 2, III.
James L. Holmes, Mid-Western Agronomist

Western Office: P. O. Box 567, Garden Grove, Cal. 

William H. Bengeyfield, Director, Western Region

WESTERN REGION