JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT THE LAST FOUR IN GIRLS' JUNIOR The USGA Girls’ Junior Championship drew a record entry of 97 girls from twenty-five states to the Manor Country Club, near Washington, D. C., and the four pretties who survived to the semi-final round were, from the left, Miss Carol Sorenson, 16, of Janesville, Wis., Miss Diana Hoke, 17, of Pittsburgh, Pa., Miss Marcia Hamilton, 17, of Evansville, Ind., and Miss Judy Rand, 16, of Aurora, Ohio. Miss Rand was the ultimate winner. SEPTEMBER, 1959 USBA 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. 5 SEPTEMBER, 1959 Through the Green ____________________________________________ 1 Protecting the Amateur _____________________________ John D. Ames 5 Fire Protection — Golf Club Properties _______________ T. Seddon Duke 7 Centers of Power in Junior Golf _____________________ John P. English 10 The Rules — Lifeblood of Golf _______________________ Harvey Raynor 13 16 Year Old Wins Girls’ Junior____________ __________ John P. English 15 Feather Ball Equipment Displayed in “Golf House” ______ Paul R. MacDonald 17 Is a Golfer a Gentleman? _________________________ Sir A. P. Herbert 18 “Elephant Have the Right of Way” _____________________ Allan Brown 20 Shooting One’s Age ___________________________________________ 21 The Referee: Decisions under the Rules of Golf _______________________ 23 Turf Management: Poa annua Control ---------------------------------- Dr. Marvin H. Ferguson 25 Pilot Study of Maintenance Costs is Started ____________________ 28 Turf Damage from Foot Traffic _________ Dr. Marvin H. Ferguson 29 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. AH articles voluntarily contributed. USGA COMPETITIONS FOR 1960 Championship or Team Match Entries Close Qualifying Rounds Dates of Event Location Curtis Cup Match (1) — — May 20-21 Open May 4 May 23 June 6 June 16-17-18 Amateur Public Links *June 2 tJune 19-26 July 11-16 Women’s Open July 6 None July 21-22-23 Junior Amateur June 29 July 19 Aug. 3-6 Americas Cup Match (2) — Girls’ Junior Women’s Amateur July 29 Aug. 3 — None None Aug. 11-12 Aug. 15-19 Aug. 22-27 Amateur Aug. 10 Aug. 30 Sept. 12-17 Senior Amateur Aug. 24 Sept. 7 Sept. 19-24 Lindrick G. C., Worksop, Nottinghams. Cherry Hills C. C., Englewood, Colo. Ala Wai G. C., Honolulu, Hawaii Worcester C. C., Worcester, Mass. Milburn G. & C. C., Overland Park, Kan. Ottawa H. & G. Club, Ottawa, Canada The Oaks C. C., Tulsa, Okla. Tulsa C. C., Tulsa, Okla. St. Louis C. C., Clayton, Mo. Oyster Harbors C., Osterville, Mass. World Amateur Team — ■ 1 Sept. 28-Oct. 1 Merion G. C., Re Amateur Public Links Championship: * Entries close with each Sectional Qualifying Chairman. t Exact date in each Section to be fixed by Sectional Chairman (1) Women’s amateur teams: British Isles vs. United States. (2) Men’s amateur teams: Canada vs. Mexico vs. United States. In the Right Direction After several unsuccessful attempts to play over a pond, a hapless golfer finally took a divot which flew over, leaving the ball behind. His caddie remarked: “That’s better, sir. You got a bit of something over!” How A Senior Knows Miss Margaret Curtis, of Boston, who has never made any bones about the fact that she is 74 years old, got to talking about senior golf and senior golfers the other day and suddenly dipped into her handbag and produced the following, which she read with zest and feeling which only one in her seventies could apply to the subject: How do I know my youth has been spent? Because my get-up-and-go has got up and went. But in spite of all that I am able to grin When I think where my get-up-and-go has been. Old age is golden, I have heard it said But sometimes I wonder as I go to bed— My ears in a drawer, my teeth in a cup. My eyes on the table until I get up— 'Ere sleep dims my eyes, I say to myself "Is there anything else I should lay on the shelf?" I am happy to say as I close the door My friends are the same as in days of yore. When I was young, my slippers were red, I could kick my heels right over my head. When I got older, my slippers were blue But I still could dance the whole night through. Now that I'm old, my slippers are black; I walk to the corner and puff my way back. So the reason I know that my youth is spent Is my get-up-and-go has got up and went. But I really don't mind when I think with a grin Of all the places my get-up has been. I busy myself with complete repetition; I get up each morning, dust off my wits, Pick up the paper and read the obits. If my name is missing, I know I'm not dead, So I eat a good breakfast, and go back to bed. New USGA Executive Robert C. Renner, of Pontiac, Mich., joined the staff of the United States Golf Association on September 1. He is serv­ ing as a tournament executive, engaged primarily in preparations for the eight national championships and four inter­ national team events sponsored by the USGA. Mr. Renner formerly was National Tour­ nament Director of the Ladies’ Profes­ sional Golf Association and Assistant Sports Editor of the Fort Wayne, Ind., News-Sentinel. USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 1 Father and Son When Dick Chapman and his son, Dixie, appeared for the Amateur Championship in San Francisco last year, there was a good deal of newspaper talk indicating that it was the first time a father and son had played in the same Amateur Cham­ pionship. The statement, of course, is not quite true, although the achievement is no less remarkable for that. Since the Chapmans have entered again, it seems timely to put the record straight. Adrian C. McManus, of San Francisco, and his son, Roger, both play­ ed in the 1947 Amateur at Pebble Beach. (Roger went to the semi-final round last year.) Also, Emerson Carey, Jr., of Den­ ver, now Treasurer of the United States Golf Association, and his son “Duke,” both played in the 1950 Amateur at Min­ neapolis Golf Club. There may have been others, but we have no record of them at this writing. How Many Will Join? Is there any relation between club mem­ berships and the population of a given area? On a nationwide basis the Club Man­ agers Association of America finds that 8/10 of 1 per cent, or 1 in every 125 peo­ ple, represents a country club member­ ship. In arriving at this figure, the almost universal standard of a family member­ ship was used: one membership includes the wife and dependent children. Mother and the children are counted individually in the population data but are included with the father in computing member­ ships. Thus, assume three country clubs in a community of 200,000 people. Assume the total membership of these three clubs amounts to 1,300 members. A little arith­ metic shows there are potentially 1,600 country club memberships in the com­ munity. A club has three choices: (1) it can enlarge and absorb the re­ maining 300 who are statistically interest­ ed in joining a golf club; (2) it can wait until the other two clubs accept these new members, or (3) all three clubs can sit back and wait for the inevitable fourth club to be formed. Wanted- Back Issues of Journal Does any reader have extra copies of the USGA Journal for Spring 1948, July 1949 and August 1949? If so, would you be good enough to forward them to the USGA for transmittal to the new Library of the Professional Golfers’ Association of America. Oversized Cups There are a number of ways of getting the ball into the hole, and an unusual one has been introduced by an enterpris­ ing soul in the Pacific Northwest—name­ ly, the use of holes 4% inches in dia­ meter, or one-half inch wider than the law allows. Definition 15 of the Rules of Golf pro­ vides: “The ‘hole’ shall be 4^4 inches in diameter and at least 4 inches deep. If a lining be used, it shall be sunk at least 1 inch below the putting green surface unless the nature of the soil makes it impractical to do so; its outer diameter shall not ex­ ceed 414 inches.” Scores made on a course with holes which do not conform with Definition 15 are not acceptable scores and may not be used for handicapping under the USGA system or any other system of which we are aware. Challenge Ladder To re-vitalize a golf club, abandon the A-B-C-D typing and call golfers with handicaps 0 through 7 expert amateurs, 8 through 14 good amateurs, 15 through 21 average amateurs, and 21 up sociable amateurs. This is the advice of Dr. A. Lee Voll­ mer, of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., who further advocates a challenge step-ladder system, with four miniature step-ladders on display at the club. Each step of each ladder will bear a golfer’s name and handicap, as Dr. Vollmer suggests, in large enough print to be readable even 2 USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 to viewers whose eye glasses are in the car at the time. In the weekly or monthly contests, four names are picked out of a hat, one for each classification, to .select a group of four to compete against others similarly chosen. Women may be included. Handi­ caps are used. Each ladder is kept alive with chal­ lenges. Any player may challenge the golfer whose name appears above his on the steps. If the challenge is not ac­ cepted and played within fifteen days, the higher name automatically is re­ placed by the one who challenged him or her. The challenge ladder is an inexhausti­ ble source of properly handicapped players. The handicaps are proper be­ cause of their display in large print. New rivalries and friendships will re­ sult. Cliques will be shaken up. New members will be attracted. New interest in golf will result. Ball Out of Bounds Penalties for balls out of bounds, lost and unplayable will be reduced for a one- year trial starting January 1, 1960. The new penalty for a ball out of bounds will be loss of distance only. Previous penalties were: 1900-1919 loss of distance 1920-1946 stroke and distance (penalty stroke could be remitted by local rule) 1947-1951 loss of distance 1952-1959 stroke and distance Special Privileges for Juniors Three Connecticut cities joined the many communities which have authorized special privileges for junior golfers (junior and senior high school age students) playing their municipal golf courses. Hartford, Waterbury and Meriden now permit juniors to play golf at half-price from Monday through Friday up to 4:00 P.M. and the response was reported as outstanding. In addition, Waterbury and Meriden have special arrangements for junior lessons with instructional em­ phasis on swing and golf etiquette. Amateur Scene Colorado is celebrating its “Rush to the Rockies” Centennial during 1959 and the Amateur Championship at the Broadmoor Golf Club is one of the calendared events. The Broadmoor course ranks as one of the most spectacular in the world. Sprawled at the foot of lofty Cheyenne Mountain and within the shadow of Pikes Peak, it presents a real challenge. It measures 6,975 yards and has a par of 71. The original 18-hole course, built in 1918, was designed by Donald Ross. How­ ever, Robert Trent Jones was in charge of the reconstruction program which was completed in 1958. Broadmoor now has an 18-hole course, on which the Amateur will be held, and an additional nine-hole course. The first important match was played on July 4 of that year between Jim Barnes, Broadmoor’s first professional, and Chick Evans, the Amateur and Open Champion, against Jock Hutchison and Warren Wood. All admission receipts for the match went to the Red Cross. Broadmoor since has been host to five Trans-Mississippi Amateur Champion­ ships, the Western Amateur, the Women’s Western Open and two National Collegiate Championships. Each year the Broadmoor invitation tournaments for men and women, dating back to 1921, attract strong fields. As a result, many entrants in the Amateur are familiar with the site. The Broadmoor course record of 63 is held jointly by Sam Snead, Lawson Lit­ tle and L. B. Maytag, Sr., the latter an amateur and now General Chairman for the Amateur. Ed Dudley is the summer professional. The year-around professional is Norman Larsen. The Broadmoor clubhouse, which ad­ joins the Broadmoor Hotel, built original­ ly in 1918, was completely renovated in 1957. PGA Championship Bob Rosburg won the PGA Champion­ ship last month at the Minneapolis Golf Club, in Minn. Trailing Jerry Barber, the third round leader, by six strokes, Ros­ burg rallied with a final round 66 for a total 277. Barber finished at 278 and was tied for second place with Doug Sanders. USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 3 Rosburg was runner-up in the recent USGA Open, finishing one stroke behind Bill Casper. In 1946 he was a member of the Stanford University golf team, win­ ner of the Intercollegiate Championship. The following year he reached the quar­ ter-finals of the USGA Amateur, losing to Skee Riegel who went on to win the Championship. Assistant Professionals' School An intensive course of instruction for assistant professionals has again been scheduled by the PGA of America for early next year. Harold Sargent, presi­ dent of the PGA announced that the fourth annual PGA Assistant Training and Business School will be conducted January 10-16, 1960 at Clearwater, Fla. A total of 361 assistants have completed the course since it was established in 1957. Courses in teaching, public relations, buying, selling, club repair, and related subjects will make up the curriculum. The school is financed through the PGA Educational Fund by funds realized from National Golf Day, the nation wide com­ petition for all golfers, sponsored each year by the PGA of America. Necrology It is with deep regret that we record the death of: Edward L. Cheyney, Rancho Santa Fe, Cal., member of the USGA Executive Committee from 1935 through 1943. THE SPRAWLING COURSE AT BROADMOOR A scene of the Broadmoor Golf Club course, in Colorado Springs, Colo., site of the fifty-ninth Amateur Championship. The sprawling course is viewed here from the clubhouse, looking over the eighteenth green. Cheyenne Mountain is visible in the background. The Amateur is being played September 14-19. Charles R. Coe, of Okla­ homa City, Okla., is the defending Champion. 4 USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 PROTECTING THE AMATEUR By JOHN D. AMES President, United States Golf Association In a day when commercialism and the making of the fast dollar characterize a broad range of human activity, the United States Golf Association’s code of amateur status sometimes seems out of place. At least, we are told that it does. “Why shouldn’t promising young golf­ ers be able to play in important tourna­ ments, whether or not they happen to have money?” we are asked. “Why shouldn’t dealers encourage good young players by giving them free clubs and balls?” “Why shouldn’t tournament winners be able to accept automobiles, complete new wardrobes or a week at a golf re­ sort?” “What’s the harm if a man makes a bet on a boy and shares part of the winnings with him?” The answers to all these questions are the same. If amateur golfers were allowed to do these things, they would tend to prosti­ tute and destroy the most attractive quali­ ty in the game. “Oh, come now!” you say. “What harm would it do if Jackie’s expenses are paid to one little tournament?” Specifically, it would do harm in these ways: If Jackie’s expenses were paid to “one little old tournament,” then Billy’s ex­ penses could be paid, too. So could Tom’s and Dick’s and Harry’s. And so could Jackie’s to a second tournament. If Jackie happened to be a very good player, sponsors might make him very generous offers. Jackie, being a bright young man, would quickly discover that he had come upon a better way of making a living than go­ ing to the office every day. And so would Billy and Tom and Dick and Harry. The creation of a class of Jackies would be no service to amateur golf, or even to Jackie in the long run. It would be a dis­ service. Jackie would be secretly using the game for his own private gain. He would be only masquerading as an “amateur.” He should turn forthrightly to a career in professional golf, where the profit-motive is completely honorable. He wouldn’t be playing for fun. Isaac B. Grainger, a former USGA President, once asked: “Is it a sporting thing to use one’s fel- Icw-amateurs as stepping stones?—to ex­ ploit one’s friends who are playing the game for fun, as an avocation?” A true amateur, who plays for fun when his business permits, should lose interest in at least the competitive as­ pects of a game which creates a pri­ vileged class of quasi-amateurs. So the game would be hurt in two ways: The masquerader would be subjecting it to the indignity of using it as a means to an end. The true amateur would eventually find it tasteless as a competitive sport. In the eyes of the USGA, the game it­ self is greater than any individual who plays it. The great majority of all who play it are true amateurs. The USGA is i epresentative of more than 2,300 mem­ ber clubs, and it is concerned with the interests of the individual amateur mem­ bers of those clubs. The USGA thinks a healthy corporate body of amateur golf better than the development of a few super-stars without any status. The Rules of Amateur Status are de­ signed to protect the game as a whole, and particularly the rank and file of true amateurs. An amateur golfer is one who plays for the fun and fair competition there is in it, at his own expense and without thought of material gain. Ideally, an amateur golfer is one to whom the sport is a recreation, to be pursued as time permits after his pri­ mary responsibilities of earning a living and caring for a family have been dis­ charged. USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 5 Amateurism is, in this concept, a state of mind. As Eugene G. Grace said so aptly to players in the 1951 Amateur Champion­ ship at the Saucon Valley Country Club, Bethlehem, Pa.: “The only way in which amateurism in sports can be defined is in the sports­ man’s own heart. “If the player says to himself that the only reason he is playing (and putting up with the sacrifices and inconveniences of stiff amateur competition) is that he gets his full reward out of his enjoyment of the game, then he is a sure-enough ama­ teur. If he expects direct or indirect cash reward, then he is a pro. “It is certainly not dishonorable to be frankly a professional; but to lie to your­ self, and pretend you are an amateur when you know in your heart you are lying, is just a ruinous habit. That’s the real nub of the amateur problem in ath­ letics. Schools that are supposed to train young men, yet warp their consciences by phony amateur standards, can’t have much to brag about.” There is no way in which this intangi­ ble quality can be adequately defined by words. There is no code which can, in the final analysis, completely implement the amateur ideal, even though by con­ tinuous review we strive toward this goal. But the USGA Rules of Amateur Status do, we believe, prohibit the tangible ac­ tions which eventually must identify the person who plays for profit, not for fun. If you are an amateur golfer under this code, you can compete in any amateur competition reasonably secure in the knowledge that you are engaging in fair competition against other amateurs. This is the only real way to determine an ama­ teur champion. We believe that, if the true amateurs are protected and allowed to flourish on their own initiative, the development of highly skilled amateur players will fol­ low automatically—the American com­ petitive instinct being what it is. We do not believe that there is any ad­ vantage deriving from the development of a few super-stars which would warrant sacrificing the Rules of Amateur Status, even though we admit it is sometimes difficult to hold the line. Now, sometimes it is said that the Rules of Amateur Status discriminate against people who are poor. To the extent that the Rules require a player to pay his way in amateur golf, this is true. However, what is wrong with requiring a young man to pay his own way in life? This is a lesson which schools and churches teach from the beginning. It is a lesson which we all must learn if we are to achieve maturity and independence. USGA FILM LIBRARY "St. Andrews, Cradle Of Golf," a 14- minute, full color, 16m.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 17-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 16% 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 opportunity 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 17V2 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. 6 USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 FIRE PROTECTION - GOLF CLUB PROPERTIES By T. SEDDON DUKE Chairman Board of Directors National Fire Protection Association The deadly march of fire with its de­ struction of life and property re­ ceives only a glance in the passing parade of events. In an ordinary day in the United States, there will be 5,550 out­ breaks of fire. Of these, 2,600 will be in buildings and 1,500 in one and two-story homes. Thirty-two lives will be lost to fire each day and the monetary loss, daily, will be three-and-one-half-million dollars The intangible losses are generally many times the actual physical fire damage to any property. A survey of over two-hundred fires in Country Club properties, by the National Fire Protection Association, brought forth the following known causes of fire: Known Causes Electrical Fires Wiring Motors Appliances Per Cent 28.3 21.7 3.3 3.3 Smoking and matches Heating equipment fires Overheated or defective 11.8 equipment Sparks from fireplace 4.1 Defective chimneys 3.3 Grease on stove Incendiary, suspicious Sparks on wood shingle roof Lightning Misuse of flammable liquids Miscellaneous known causes 26.7 19.2 7.5 5.9 4.1 3.3 2.5 2.5 100.0 Golf club properties are particularly vulnerable due in many cases to their isolation, lack of water and lack of pro­ tection. However, no golf club needs to be destroyed by fire—automatic sprink­ ler systems are available. Even where the clubhouse is out in the country, beyond city water, it can be protected by a relia- Salvage from the fire at Flint Country Club, Flint, Mich., which ran to a loss of $465,000. Fire started either from falling chimney sparks, or from exposed wire which showed signs of shorting. ble and effective type of system sup­ plied by a pressure tank. There may be those among the membership who would object to automatic sprinklers on the ceiling. Although pipes on the ceiling are used in industrial plants and warehouses where appearance is not of major im­ portance, in a country club, pipes are al­ ways located to be inconspicuous and sprinklers are put at the sides of rooms. If some members object to the artistic effect of automatic sprinklers on the ceiling of the country club, remind them that there isn’t anything very sightly about a pile of ashes that was formerly the clubhouse. Proper fire protection through all the means at our disposal is a MUST but certainly of equal importance is the neces- USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 7 RESULTS OF A SMALL GREASE FIRE Failure of employees to call the fire department for a small grease fire under the hood of a kitchen range was responsible for the destruction of the Westmoreland Country Club, Verona, Pa., in 1950. Visible flames were put out with hand ex­ tinguishers, but the fire burned undetected above the kitchen ceiling. The loss was $384,000. sity for fire prevention. In the line of fire prevention, the first thing that should be done is to have the Board of Directors appoint one of its members with the re­ sponsibility for fire matters. The indi­ vidual selected should not be one con­ nected with fire insurance, the sale of fire extinguishing equipment or even a fire fan. Let fire matters be settled by a hard-headed member with no axe to grind. This individual can impress the club manager with the fact that the Directors want the club property safe­ guarded on a day to day basis. The saying “Cleanliness is next to God­ liness” applies to golf club properties. There should be plenty of ashtrays and good, substantial wastebaskets around the clubhouse. No cigarette ever started a fire by itself—someone was careless. Rub­ bish and trash serve no useful purpose —they are merely fuel for a fire. Regular arrangements should be made for the col­ lection and disposal of rubbish. Covered metal cans should be provided for rub­ bish which must be temporarily stored on the premises. The kitchen can be a danger spot and the kitchen range ventilating system in particular has been the cause of grease fires. Grease fires in a kitchen range ventilating system are a sign of pretty 8 USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 sloppy operation and these fires are need- leoo. if there is an incinerator located in the property, this should have frequent inspection to see that the breeching into the chimney is tight, that the doors are tight, etc., so that no fires can be caused by this unit. The janitor’s equipment, mops and cleaners, which cause spontaneous com­ bustion, should be kept in proper con­ tainers. A metal paint storage locker is needed if paints are kept about the pre­ mises. Electrical wiring and electrical equip­ ment should be subject to fairly frequent inspections—the motors in particular, of which there are always a great many around a clubhouse, can start fires if al­ lowed to get dirty or overloaded. Heating equipment should receive periodic inspection and clubs should make very sure that the chimneys are tight without regard as to whether they are fireplace chimneys or those used for the kitchen or incinerator. The things enumerated are the causes of many fires but fire prevention should extend to all possible sources that would cause fire damage. The golf course superintendent natural­ ly worries about the safety of his equip­ ment. Frequently much valuable equip­ ment is housed in quick-burning struc­ tures. Consideration should be given to providing non-combustible structures for the storage and use of valuable golf course equipment. On the course itself, there are a num­ ber of specific fire prevention measures which are worth mentioning. One of these concerns the handling of gasoline for tractors and other equipment. The main supply of gasoline should always be kept in an underground tank and dispensed with a standard pump. The distribution of fuel to small power motors and other gasoline-powered equipment should al­ ways be by means of flammable liquid safety cans, labeled by Underwriters’ Laboratories. The wiring in sheds on the course should be regularly inspected. For the clubhouse and other important buildings, a system of lightning rod po- tection may be needed in many locations. If, on the clubhouse, there is a television aerial of any considerable height, it should have a substantial grounding down-conductor in order that lightning could be properly grounded. No rubbish should be allowed to ac­ cumulate and paints or other flammables should, as we have previously pointed out, be stored in metal containers. If pos­ sible, all fertilizers and chemicals should be stored in a shed other than in the structure used to house trucks, tractors, mowers and power equipment. Loss of equipment could be very seri­ ous, particularly those items that could not be quickly replaced. If the storage and work structures are substantial, any fire prevention measures mentioned in regard to the clubhouse would also apply to these structures. Fire extinguishers should be provided in the clubhouse and equipment barns. Pre-fire planning should be done and arrangements are needed to attack a fire, particularly if the golf club property is seriously isolated from public fire depart­ ment protection. Day and night em­ ployees should be required to know how to call the fire department, particularly if the department has to be called by telephone. It is a comparatively simple matter to develop extra sources of water for fire­ fighting from streams or ponds, if there is no public water supply available. How­ ever, it must be realized that a fire de­ partment, to approach a pond or stream with a pumper, must have a road on which the equipment can travel. There is usually a watering system and if some outside hose is kept available, it could help save the property. Attention to these items can prevent the destruction of golf club property and the terrific loss and inconvenience that would be caused the members. Remember, fire can destroy both life and property. It can destroy the pur­ chasing power and productivity of em­ ployees. It can remove from a taxable, going enterprise on which many people depend for employment and healthful recreation. Your golf club is part of our American way of life—preserve it. Don’t be deluded if someone tells you that this or that is “fireproof.” The word “fireproof” is the most abused word in the English language. No building is more fireproof than its contents. The best illustration of this is that a stove is fireproof but built to burn its contents. USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 9 CENTERS OF POWER IN JUNIOR GOLF By JOHN P. ENGLISH USGA Asst. Executive Director For the USGA’s twelfth Junior Amateur Championship, the Association walk­ ed boldly into the lion’s den and scheduled the affair on the Stanford University Golf Course, just south of San Francisco. It was generally forecast that the out- of-staters would be almost literally chew­ ed up by Californians, and with some rea­ son because Californians have, over the years, come into the Championship in quantity and with quality. California has been in the forefront in the breadth of its junior programs. As so often happens in golf, however, the unexpected happened. Only two Cali­ fornians survived to the quarter-final round, Mike Riley of San Diego and Dave Stockton of San Bernardino. In the same round were two boys from the State of Washington, Kermit Zarley, Jr., of Seattle and Larry J. Lee of Spo­ kane. There were also two from Georgia, Michael V. McMahon of Atlanta and Jimmy Gabrielson of Athens. The other states represented were Colorado, with Gary Polumbus of Denver, and Florida, with Fred Leffingwell, Jr., of Miami Beach. The two boys from Washington both won and advanced to opposite brackets of the semi-final, where Kermit Zarley op­ posed Mike McMahon of Georgia and Larry Lee went against Fred Leffingwell, of Florida. The outcome for Georgia could hardly have been different, because the two Georgians, the only entrants for that state, unfortunately had been drawn to­ gether in the quarter-finals. These are all fine young players of real promise, and even though one went on to win the Championship and the others fell short this time, it would be idle to speculate which may mature the fastest and go the furthest among the men. An all-Washington final, such as oc­ curred in the Girls’ Junior Championship four years ago, was averted when Mike McMahon beat Kermit Zarley, 3 and 2. NEW MEMBERS OF THE USGA REGULAR Almaden Men's Golf Club Greeley Country Club Valley-Hi Country Club Sandy Run Golf Club Caldwell Golf Association Kankakee Valley Elks Golf Club Fort Dodge Country Club Hampton Country Club St. John Golf Club Rolling Green Golf Club Ramshorn Country Club Keene Country Club Cedar Hill Golf and Country Club Jal Country Club Oak Ridge Golf and Country Club Sparta Golf and Country Club Belleville Country Club Wayne Golf Club Janesville Country Club Merrill Golf Club ASSOCIATE Aptos Beach Golf Club Berkshire Country Club Cal. Colo. Colo. Ga. Idaho III. Iowa Iowa La. Mich. Minn. N. H. N. J. N. M. Tenn. Tenn. Texas Wash. Wis. Wis. Cal. N. Y. However, Zarley’s fellow-Washingtonian, Larry Lee, won by the same margin over Fred Leffingwell to set up a Georgia- Washington final. The final went down to the last hole, a tough 445-yarder, and there Lee, using his favorite club, a No. 5 wood, for the sixth time in the round, lofted his second shot to the middle of the green to set up a sure par 4 and close out McMahon, who over-shot the green, 2 up. He had earlier finished with a birdie 3 by the same means in the quarter-final to make a 69 and beat Mike Riley, 2 up. The new Champion, succeeding Gordon (Buddy) Baker, of Florence, S. C., who was too old to defend, is also 17, so he too will be unable to defend next year at the Milburn Golf and Country Club, Over­ land Park, Kan. He was in the event for the first time this year. A public-course player who practices long and seriously at the Indian Canyon course, Lee carried his own clubs until the final day and is accustomed to earn­ ing his own way and watching his pen- 10 USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 AT THE FINISH OF THE JUNIOR Two young men trom opposite ends of the country played off for the Junior Amateur Championship at the Stanford University Golf Course, in California. They were Michael V. McMahon, of Atlanta, Ga. (left), and Larry J. Lee, of Spokane, Wash, (right). The Cup went to Lee, but McMahon had earned his complete respect as a golfer in the process. The gentleman in the center is Hord W. Hardin, of St. Louis, the Chairman of the USGA Junior Championship Committee. nies. He holds the City of Spokane junior and aduit championships and will enter Seattle University this month. McMahon took his defeat with a smile and great good grace, and fortunately will have another chance next year. He is only 16 and entering his senior year in Carroll­ ton High School, a suburb of Atlanta. He is a junior member of the Druid Hills Golf Club in Atlanta. The only other one of the last eight survivors who will be eligible to play again next year is Mike Riley, who is only 14 and a tenth grader in the Point Loma High School in San Diego. He is one of the youngest quarter-finalists the Championship has developed, and it took Lee’s 69 to beat him, 2 up. Here is a name to be remembered. The tournament drew a record entry for the eleventh successive year, and 1,368 boys vied for the 128 places in sectional qualifying. The pace was fast even in this early phase of play, and both Robert H. Droz, in Salt Lake City, Utah, and Tom Hornbuckle, in Albuquerque, N. M., paced their fields with 66s. Only one of every eleven entrants qualified to play at Stan­ ford, but the 128 boys who were there represented 36 states. It is not often that the juniors get a course of the dimensions of Stanford’s. USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 11 Although it measures only 6,665 yards the holes seem to be among the longest on the face of the globe and the course rambles and rolls through oak groves and back and forth across a heavily wooded ravine. The course rating is 72. It is beau­ tiful to the eye and most demanding. It was not until the third round that a boy finally made a score under 70; Bob Small, of Long Beach, Cal., a strong driver, got around 69 to beat Tom Flory, of Anna­ polis, Md., 2 and 1, in one of the keenest contests of the week. A dozen members of the USGA Junior Championship Committee conducted the play with the whole-hearted cooperation of the Stanford University Department of Athletics and members of the Stanford Golf Club. The boys got a kick out of operating in the club locker room presided over so ably by big Chris Burford, Stanford’s All­ America football end and captain. E. Harvie Ward, of San Francisco, the Amateur Champion of 1955 and 1956 and four times a member of the Walker Cup Team, analyzed the course hole by hole for the boys in a chalk-talk on the club­ house lawn on the afternoon before play began. Harvie played the course in an al­ most incredible 64 during the Northern California stroke play championship in 1957. “The key to this course is to be sure you’re up,” Ward told the boys. “The bunkers fan out in front of the greens, and the openings are narrow. Hit half a club more than you figure to need.” The smart boys ate it up. The less con­ cerned failing to heed were gone after a round or two. Of the 64 losers in the first round, 57 took advantage of the opportunity to play in the 18-hole stroke play consolation tournament at the Pebble Beach Links 75 miles down the coast. Bus transporta­ tion, lunch and dinner were provided by the Northern California Golf Association and the Stanford Golf Club. The best score was a 36-39—75 turned in by Kenneth L. Folkes, of Concord, N. C., and he received a USGA medal. The runner-up was Robert B. Kostelecky, of La Jolla, CaL, with a 78, and the third medal went to Ralph Johnston of Garden City, N. Y., who won a one-hole play-off among four boys tied at 80. Robert R. Kirouac, 16, of Sharon, Mass., shared the lead in the sectional qualify­ ing in Boston with a 73, and earned a match play place for the fourth consecu­ tive year. He was presented a USGA medal at the Players’ Dinner in honor of the achievement. If Bobby can qualify again next year in his fifth and final year of eligibility, he will join Jack Nicklaus, of Columbus, Ohio, and John P. Konsek, of Buffalo, N. Y., as the only five-time qualifiers. Nicklaus made the Walker Cup Team last spring, and Konsek recently won the New York State Amateur Championship for the second successive year. Recording Scores at Home Club Handicap Decision 59-3 References: Men: Sections 4-4 & 7-2 Women: Sections 14-4 & 17-2 Q: Is it permissible under the USGA Golf Handicap System for a player to add or subtract any differences in course ratings when posting, at his home club, scores made at other courses? The USGA system states in part that scores on all courses should be reported and that the following in­ formation should be given: name of course, score, course rating, handicap differential. A: The USGA recommends use of “differentials” (scores minus course ratings) in computing handicaps. The USGA Handicap Record Form pro­ vides spaces for “scores,” “course ratings” and “differentials,” thereby making all adjustments automatic without chance of error, such as add­ ing the course rating difference when it should be subtracted, or vice versa. However, there is no objection to re­ cording “corrected” scores and com­ puting handicaps from them. The end result is the same. Whether handicap records are kept in “differentials” or “scores,” it is desirable to note thereon which scores were made at other courses, including course names and course ratings, for possible future reference in the event any question arises. USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 THE RULES - LIFEBLOOD OF GOLF By HARVEY RAYNOR Tournament Supervisor The PGA of America Rules are the lifeblood of golf, par­ ticularly, tournament golf. Whether tue tournament player be a professional competing on the PGA Tour or an ama­ teur playing in regional events, the Rules of Golf are the mainstay of the competitor. As the Rules of Golf are important to the competitor, so is the conduct of the tournament golfer important to the pub­ lic. Imitation is the greatest teacher, whether the imitation be of something good or of something bad. Thus, when a galleryite sees a fine shot from a trap, chances are he will try to imitate that shot the next time he gets into a similar position. In the same manner, any golfwear- minded person, after viewing a tourna­ ment, will try to dress in attire similar to that worn by his favorite player. Those are good imitations. But what happens when a person in the gallery sees his “golf hero” commit a violation to one of the rules of golf? Certainly, he will think, if a known tournament star does it, so can I. That’s why it’s so important for tour­ nament golfers, especially those on the PGA Tour, to be absolutely sure that each rule of golf is obeyed “to the letter.” Every violation a tournament player commits is seen not only by his fellow competitors, but by sponsor representa­ tives and officials, the gallery and the press, as well. From there these offenses are discussed in the locker rooms, press rooms and throughout the town. One of the major reasons for a rule be­ ing broken is because the player “just didn’t know any better.” The most important book in a golfer’s life—and that includes the high handicap­ per as well as the touring professional—is the Rules of Golf. For the player who makes his living by playing the PGA circuit, the better he knows the rules, the more money it will save him—and make for him—in the long run. Many of our PGA Tour players want Harvey Raynor some of the rules changed. For instance, the rule regarding the cleaning of the ball on the green and the repairing of ball marks. The USGA, ruling body of golf in the United States, and its Rules Committee, understands this problem completely. Rules, in most cases, were made for the minority and affect the majority. Such is the case here. The only reason for not having changed the rule before, is the possibility of giv­ ing the “cheater” an advantage when he can get his hands on the golf ball. It was through examples of careless, or deliberate, improper marking of the golf ball on the green, fixing of everything on the green from ball marks to spike marks, and in many cases, imaginary rough spots which are not ball marks, that the tour­ nament golfers delayed their chance to have these rules changed. USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 13 Until every man in the field of any golf tournament assumes the responsibility of warning each man with whom he plays that he intends to call rule violations as called for in the Rule Book, no player can expect the Rules of Golf to be changed. Here are three of the Rules of Golf which are most often violated: 1. From ground under repair and casual water—the ONLY drop a player has is to the nearest area giving relief from these conditions. 2. The ONLY places one may have two club lengths relief is from a lateral water hazard or from an immovable obstruction. 3. The ONLY proper way to drop a ball is to face the hole and drop the ball over the shoulder. There is no penalty if the ball touches you during the drop. The USGA, in an effort to educate the American golfers in the rules governing golf, offers the following suggestions on using the Rules Book: 1. Become familiar with key words and special terms. 2. Refer to the Index. Every item in the Rules is listed; many are cross- indexed. 3. Study the Definitions. They are basic. 4. What form of play is involved? Is it match play or stroke play? Single or four-ball? 5. Where did the incident occur?— on the teeing ground, “through the green,” in a hazard, or on the putting green? Find the right place m the Index, as the Rules may be different for the same occurrences on different parts of the course. 6. Two Rules may cover different aspects of the same case. 7. Every word means what it says. 8. Carry a Rules Book in your golf bag and use it. Everyone can benefit by personally taking the responsibility of observing all Rules of Golf. In the long run, you will enjoy the game of golf more if you play it as it must be played. USGA PUBLICATIONS OF GENERAL INTEREST THE RULES OF GOLF, as approved by the United States Golf Association and the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews, Scot­ land. Booklet, 25 cents (special rates for quan­ tity orders, more than 500). USGA GOLF HANDICAP SYSTEM FOR MEN, containing recommendations for computing USGA Handicap and for rating courses. Book­ let, 25 cents. USGA Slide Rule Handicapper, 25 cents. Poster, 10 cents. THE CONDUCT OF WOMEN'S GOLF, contain­ ing suggestions for guidance in the conduct of 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 of a USGA Journal article detailing various types of competitions. No charge. PREPARING THE COURSE FOR A COMPETI­ TION, a reprint of a USGA Journal article by John P. English. No charge. PROTECTION OF PERSONS AGAINST LIGHT­ NING ON GOLF COURSES, a poster. No charge. 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 print of a USGA Journal article by Richard S. Tufts. No charge. 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. GOLF COURSE REBUILDING AND REMODEL­ ING-FACTORS TO CONSIDER, a reprint of talks delivered at the 1959 Educational Pro­ gram 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 tailed results of all USGA competitions since their start in 1895. $2. USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT, a 33-page magazine published seven times a year. $2 a year. These publications are available on request to the United States Golf Association, 40 East 38th Street, New York 16, N. Y. Please send payment with your order. 14 USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 16 YEAR OLD WINS GIRLS’ JUNIOR By JOHN P. ENGLISH USGA Asst. Executive Director Those who attend the USGA Girls’ Junior Championship year after year —and there are many with this habit— GIRLS’ JUNIOR CHAMPION have grown accustomed to seeing the Rand family, formerly of Framingham, Mass., and more recently of Aurora, Ohio. The elder sister, Marcia, played for two or three years and was succeeded by the younger sister, Judy, who has been play­ ing for five years now. Any girls who tended to treat Judy with the disdainful familiarity of a kid sister when she turned up again at the Manor Country Club, in suburban Wash­ ington, D. C., last month came in for a shock, however. She went all the way and brought the Championship to an exciting climax by firing a 71 and a par 4, with substantially all putts holed, to defeat Diana Hoke, of Pittsburgh, Pa., on the 19th green in the semi-finals. As a semi-finalist last year and co-medalist this year, Miss Hoke had been a favorite. Judy then established a clear mastery over Marcia Hamilton, of Evansville, Ind., 5 and 3, in the final to win the title. Miss Rand’s 71, two under women’s par, was probably the finest round in the eleven-year history of the Championship, and it is a great tribute to her opponent that even such a brilliant effort did not by itself bring victory. Miss Hoke was around in 72 to stay even and succumbed only on the extra hole. A strong player with great determina­ tion, Judy is still only 16, like her pre­ decessor Judy Eller, and will be eligible tc play for a sixth time and enter a de­ fense of her title at the Oaks Country Club, in Tulsa, Okla., next August. She plays her home golf at the Aurora Coun­ try Club and takes lessons there from Harold Paddock, Jr., the former Walker Cup player. She is a senior in Aurora High School. Miss Hamilton, a niece of Bob Hamil­ ton who won the PGA championship in 1944 and daughter of another profes- Miss Judy Rand sional, Clem, was 17 and will no longer be eligible. She had, however, been the sur­ prise package of the Championship in her first and only appearance. She upset in order Andrea Schaffer, 17, of San Fran­ cisco, Cal., the co-medalist; Sandra Hay­ nie, 16, of Austin, the Texas Women’s Champion; and in the semi-finals Carol Sorenson, 16, of Janesville, Wis., the Western Girls’ and Wisconsin Women’s Champion, by a margin of one hole. Miss Hoke, a grand daughter of Bobby Cruickshank, also is 17 and has com­ pleted her eligibility. While the Championship is limited to girls who have not reached their 18th birthdays, quarter-final honors were divided equally among 16-year olds and 17-year olds. The 16-year olds, all of USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 15 whom can play again, were the Misses Rand, Sorenson, Haynie and Patricia Shook, of Saugatuck, Mich. The 17-year olds were the Misses Hamilton, Hoke, Patty David, of Tulsa, Okla., and June Woodman, of Wichita, Kan. The 18-hole qualifying round resulted in a tie, the first since 1952, between Miss Hoke and Miss Schaffer, each of whom scored 76. There was no play-off; both girls received medals. While their scores were two strokes higher than the record, the quality of the field was evident from the fact that it took a round of 89 or better to earn one of the thirty-two qualifiers’ places. This was a new low for the Championship in its present form. All told, five girls broke 80. They were, in addition to the Misses Hoke and Schaf­ fer, Darlene Anderson, 17, of St. Louis Park, Minn., at 77, and Miss Haynie and Miss Rand, who made 79s. Four girls tied for the last three places at 89, and the play off went one hole. Miss Robbye Lee King, 16, of Norfolk, Va., made a par 4 and the Misses Robin Beard, 16, of Reading, Pa., and June Woodman, made 5s to take the three places. Miss Lynn Willey, 17, of Pebble Beach, Cal., lost out. As always, the Championship was nota­ ble for its festive, reunion atmosphere as golfing friendships, some of many years standing, were renewed. Margot Morton, 16, of Indiana, Pa., was for example, play­ ing for the sixth time; and Miss Rand, of course, for the fifth. Six more girls were back for the fourth year—Penelope Bar­ ley, 16, of Warren, Pa., who played in the third flight, and Sharon Fladoos, 16, of Dubuque, Iowa, Sandra Haynie, 16, of Austin, Texas, Diana Hoke, 17, of Pitts­ burgh, Pa., Donna Litke, 17, of State Col­ lege, Pa., and Judy Torluemke, 14, of St. Louis, all of whom qualified for the Cham­ pionship. This feature probably accounts for the fact that the entry record was broken for the fourth successive year. Ninety-seven girls entered and 85 started. The youngest player was a 10 year old, Victoria Jenssen, a pig-tailed blonde from Great Barrington, Mass., and she was playing for the second year. She quali­ fied in the fourth flight with a 113. Girls who did not qualify for the Cham­ pionship were drawn into four additional flights for match play, and the results of the finals were: Second flight: Miss Suzy Williams, Monessen, Pa., defeated Miss Jeanie But­ ler, Harlingen, Texas, 3 and 2. Third flight: Miss Anne Trainor, Rochester, N. Y., defeated Miss Cynthia Liddell, Ypsilanti, Mich., 6 and 5. Fourth flight: Miss Elizabeth Lyons, Perry, N. Y., defeated Miss Katherine Wilson, Rochester, N. Y., 1 up. Fiftn flight: Miss Betsy Shirley, Ber­ nardsville, N. J., defeated Miss Valerie Annison, Glen Cove, N. Y. Thirty-five girls who lost in the first round took advantage of an invitation to play in an 18-hole consolation stroke play event and have a snack at the Columbia Country Club, in near-by Chevy Chase. They put on an attractive and interesting performance there. Miss Fladoos, a semi­ finalist in the Championship in 1956, matched par with a 74 to win the gross prize and Susan Matthews, of Norbeck, Md., won the handicap prize with 103-34— 69. There is, probably, no club better suited for a junior competition than the Manor Country Club, which lies in the Maryland countryside about fifteen miles north of Washington. The course rambles past and around the homes of the members, and they are the kind of folk who thoroughly enjoy having kids around and like to take them into their homes. Many Manor fami­ lies adopted girls for the week and not only housed and fed them but trans­ ported them around and rooted for them. It was Manor’s third experience with juniors. The Club entertained the USGA Junior Amateur Championship in 1957 and the Western Junior in 1956. The course, itself, is ideal for juniors. It was cut back to 6,162 yards for the girls and from those tees has a course rating of 73. The first nine is cut through woods and requires accuracy. William F. Banville, president of the Club, served as chairman for both USGA events at Manor, and with the aid of Bur­ ton M. Langhenry and Mrs. Vivian Cur­ tis, offered up every facility the girls could want, plus the warmest of hospi­ tality. In this happy atmosphere, thirteen members of the USGA Girls’ Junior Com­ mittee assembled from as many scattered points of the country to conduct the play. 16 USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 FEATHER BALL EQUIPMENT DISPLAYED IN “GOLF HOUSE’ By PAUL R. MacDONALD USGA Executive Assistant An exhibition of tools and equipment used in making the feather golf ball is on display in the USGA Museum in “Golf House,” New York City. The display includes a “him” hat, two wooden feather stuffers, a three-cornered iron pot, two awls with wooden chest braces, two short awls and one leather ball-holder plus curved needle, waxed thread and goose feathers—all tools of the “feathery” trade. The materials were contributed by Gil­ bert C. Tompkins, of New York, N. Y., a member of the USGA Museum Com­ mittee. They resulted from a trip abroad in 1953. Visiting Carnoustie, Scotland, for the British Open Championship, he made the acquaintance of several golfing person­ ages with the idea of collecting for the USGA Golf Museum authentic tools used in the making of feather golf balls. From Carnoustie he proceeded to St. Andrews, where he obtained permission from the Royal and Ancient Golf Club to repro­ duce certain tools from their collection. He was aided by Alexander Hogg, of Car­ noustie, and Brig. Eric Brickman, Secre­ tary of the Royal and Ancient, in obtain­ ing authentic equipment. The making of feather balls was a tedi­ ous and wearisome task, and most ball­ makers could only produce about four specials a day. The best balls sold for up to five shillings (70c) apiece; in bulk, rarely less than a pound ($2.80) for a dozen. The process necessitated that the leather be softened with alum and water and cut into four, three or two pieces. These were stitched together with waxed threads and reversed when the stitching was nearly completed. A small hole was left for the insertion of the boiled goose feathers. The ball-maker held the leather cover in his hand in a recessed ball-holder, and pushed the first feathers through the hole with a stuffing rod, a tapering piece of A Legacy To respect the game of golf. To see it whole; acknowledging its principles, recognizing its purpose and accepting its eternal challenge. For it is the only game on the face of the earth in which man plays the toughest opponent there is: himself. Whether he is alone on the course, walking on greens still wet with the new morning, or surrounded by 25,000 people during a major tournament, the golfer who hovers over a ball, a primitive club in his hand, is express­ ing man’s ultimate faith in his own skill and in his own purity of dedica­ tion. This dedication is greater than health, greater than wealth, greater even than friendship, and unworthy to be sullied by self-interest or some­ thing as shabby as a preferred start­ ing time. wrought iron sixteen to twenty inches long and fitted with a wooden crosspiece to be braced against the ball-maker’s chest. When the stuffing iron failed, an awl was brought into play, and a volume of feathers which would fill the crown of a beaver hat eventually was inserted in­ to the leather cover. The hole was then stitched, and the ball was hammered hard and round and given three coats of paint. Feather balls were seldom exactly round. In wet weather they tended to be­ come sodden and fly apart. They were easily cut on the seams. A player was fortunate if his ball endured through two rounds. These tools, described here, form but one phase in the history and development of golf as depicted in the “Golf House” Museum. USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 17 IS A GOLFER A GENTLEMAN? By SIR A. P. HERBERT This article, taken from “Uncommon Law," is reprinted here by permission of the author and the Proprietors of Punch. Mr. Justice Trout (giving judgment): In this case the defendant, Mr. Albert haddock, is charged under the Profane Oaths Act, 1745, with swearing and curs­ ing on a Cornish golf course. The penalty under the Act is a fine of one shilling for every day-laborer, soldier, or seaman, two shillings for every other person under the degree of gentleman, and five shillings for every person of or above the degree of gentleman—a re­ markable but not unique example of a statute which lays down one law for the rich and another (more lenient) for the poor. The fine, it is clear, is leviable not upon the string or succession of oaths, but upon each individual malediction (see Reg. v. Scott (1863) 33 L. J. M. 15). The curses charged, and admitted, in this case are over four hundred in num­ ber, and we are asked by the prosecution to inflict a fine of one hundred pounds, assessed on the highest or gentleman’s rate at five shillings a swear. The defend­ ant admits the offenses, but contends that the fine is excessive and wrongly calcu­ lated, on the curious ground that he is not a gentleman when he is playing golf. He has reminded us in a brilliant ar­ gument that the law takes notice, in many cases, of such exceptional circum­ stances as will break down the normal restraints of a civilized citizen and so powerfully inflame his passions that it would be unjust and idle to apply to his conduct the ordinary standards of the law; as, for example, where without warning or preparation he discovers an­ other man in the act of molesting his wife or family. Under such provocation the law recognizes that a reasonable man ceases for the time being to be a. reason­ able man; and the defendant maintains that in the special circumstances of his offense a gentleman ceases to be a gentle­ man and should not be judged or punish­ ed as such. Now, what were these circumstances? Broadly speaking, they were the twelfth hole on the Mullion golf course, with which most of us in this Court are familiar. At that hole the player drives (or does not drive) over an inlet of the sea which is enclosed by cliffs some sixty feet high. The defendant has told us that he never drives over, but always into, this inlet, or Chasm, as it is locally named. A steady but not sensational player on other sections of the course, he says that before this obstacle his normal powers invaria­ bly desert him. This has preyed upon his mind; he has registered, it appears, a kind of vow, and year after year at Easter and in August he returns to this county determined ultimately to overcome the Chasm. Meanwhile, unfortunately, his tenacity has become notorious. The normal pro­ cedure, it appears, if a ball is struck into the Chasm is to strike a second, and if that should have no better fate to abon- don the hole. The defendant tells us that in the past he has struck no fewer than six or seven balls in this way, some roll­ ing gently over the cliff and some flying far and high out to sea. But recently, grown fatalistic, he has not thought it worthwhile to make even a second attempt, but has immediately fol­ lowed his first ball into the Chasm, and there, among the rocks, small stones, and shingle, has hacked at his ball with the appropriate instrument until some lucky blow has lofted it on to the turf above, or, in the alternative, until he has broken his instruments or suffered some injury from flying fragments of rock. On one or two occasions a crowd of holiday- makers and local residents have gathered on the cliff and foreshore to watch the defendant’s indomitable struggles and to hear the ver­ bal observations which have accompanied them. On the date of the alleged offenses a crowd of unprecedented dimensions col­ lected. but so intense was the defendant’s 18 USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 concentration that he did not, he tells us. observe their presence. His ball had more nearly traversed the gulf than ever be­ fore; it struck the opposing cliff but a few feet from the summit; and nothing but an adverse gale of exceptional ferocity prevented success. The defendant therefore, as he con­ ducted his customary excavations among the boulders of the Chasm, was possessed, he tells us, by a more than customary fury. Oblivious of his surroundings, con­ scious only of the will to win, for fifteen or twenty minutes he lashed his battered ball against the stubborn cliffs, until at last it triumphantly escaped. And before, during, and after every stroke he uttered a number of imprecations of a complex character which were carefully recorded by an assiduous caddie and by one or two of the spectators. The defendant says that he recalls with shame a few of the ex­ pressions which he used, that he had never used them before, and that it was a shock to him to hear them issuing from his own lips; and he says quite frankly that no gentleman would use such language. Now, this ingenious defense, whatever may be its legal value, has at least some support in the facts of human experience. I am a golf player myself but, apart from that, evidence has been called to show the subversive effect of this exercise up­ on the ethical and moral systems of the mildest of mankind. Elderly gentlemen, gentle in all respects, kind to animals, be­ loved by children, and fond of music, are found in lonely corners of the downs, hacking at sandpits or tussocks of grass, and muttering in a blind, ungovernable fury elaborate maledictions which could not be extracted from them by robbery or murder. Men who would face torture without a word become blasphemous at the short fourteenth. It is clear that the game of golf may well be included in that category of intolerable provocations which may legally excuse or mitigate behavior not otherwise excusable, and that under that provocation the reasonable or gentle man may reasonably act like a lunatic or lout respectively, and should legally be judged as such. But then I have to ask myself, What does the Act intend by the words “of or above the degree of gentlemen?” Does it intend a fixed social rank or a general habit of behavior? In other words, is a gentleman legally always a gentleman, as a duke or solicitor remains unalterably a duke or solicitor? For if this is the case, the defendant’s argument must fail. The prosecution says that the word “degree” is used in the sense of “rank.” Mr. Haddock argues that it is used in the sense of a university examination and that, like the examiners, the Legislature divides the human race, for the purposes of swear­ ing, into three vague intellectual or moral categories, of which they give certain rough but not infallible examples. Many a first-class man has “taken a third,” and many a day laborer, according to Mr. Haddock, is of so high a character that under the Act he should rightly be in­ cluded in the first “degree.” There is certainly abundant judicial and literary authority for the view that by “gentleman” we mean a personal quality and not a social status. We have all heard of “Nature’s gentleman.” “Clothes do not make the gentleman,” said Lord Mildew in Cook v. The Mersey Docks and Harbour Board, (1896) 2 A. C., meaning that a true gentleman might be clad in the foul rags of an author. In the old maxim “Manners makyth man” (see Charles v. The Great Western Railways) there is no doubt that by “man” is meant “gentleman,” and that “manners” is con­ trasted with wealth or station. Mr. Thomas, for the prosecution, has quoted against these authorities an observation of the poet Shakespeare that “The Prince of Darkness is a gentleman,” but quota­ tions from Shakespeare (in Court) are generally meaningless and always un­ sound. This one, in my judgment, is both. I am satisfied therefore that the argu­ ment of the defendant, has substance. Provocation was so exceptional that I cannot think that it was contemplated by the framers of the Act; and had golf at that date been a popular exercise I have no doubt that it would have been dealt with under a special section. I find there­ fore that this case is not governed by the Act. I find that the defendant at the time was not in law responsible for his actions or his speech and I am unable to punish him in any way. For his conduct in the Chasm he should perhaps be formally convicted of Attempted Suicide while Temporarily Insane, but he leaves the court without a stain upon his character. USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 19 “ELEPHANT HAVE THE RIGHT OF WAY” By ALLAN BROWN Ekwanok Country Club Manchester. Vt. The traveler who enjoys an occasional round of golf in the course of his journey will find Africa a happy hunt­ ing ground. Wherever the English have colonized they have introduced golf. This also can be said of the Belgians and the French, particularly where they have developed mining properties in remote areas. The golf clubs maintained by the mines pro­ vide recreational centers for members of the supervisory staff and their families. I have played golf in some rather out- of-the way places but I never thought I would have the privilege of playing on the island of St. Helena. This small island, deep in the South Atlantic, was our first port of call after leaving New York. Following a brief visit to Napoleon’s grave, we had time for a last round of golf before the steamship signaled it was time to depart. The Longwood Golf Club, at St. Helena, is unique in a number of ways. They have no formal budget for maintenance of their nine-hole course. The cattle take care of the fairways and the sheep take care of the greens. As there is no airport on St. Helena and ships call at very infrequent intervals, it is difficult to replenish golf equipment. A lost ball is a real tragedy, for it may be months before a replacement can be ob­ tained. This is quite different from the numer­ ous clubs in and around the larger cities of Africa, where you will find well- groomed courses with clubhouses equip­ ped with modern facilities. There are many golf clubs along the East Coast. Humewood, for example, near Port Elizabeth in Cape Province, South Africa, is one of the finest seaside layouts I have ever played. The course at East London, South Afri­ ca, is also well designed and in a very picturesque setting. The course at George, South Africa, is also interesting and well groomed. Probably no place in the world offers so many varied conditions for golf. Some of the recollections that come to mind are: The Signs “Elephant have the right of way” “Beware of Snakes and Crocodiles” ‘Caution! You are in Wild Animal Country!” Unusual Features “Black sand” (greens) at Ndola in North Rhodesia. A caddie house made of corn stalks at Kilembe Mines. The park-like atmosphere at the Havelock Mine Course in Swaziland. The breath-taking scenery of the Bukavu Golf Course in the Belgian Congo. A “green” located in the middle of the race track in Goma, with active volcanoes in the background. 10c caddie fees in Uganda and the Belgian Congo. Concrete tees at the Mombasa Golf Club in Kenya. The hexagonal club house at Mnazi Mmoja Sports Club Course in Zan­ zibar. The shadows of the great pyramids on the 18th green of Mena House Golf Course in Cairo. Yes, for the golfer who is seeking new courses to conquer, Africa has everything. 20 USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 SHOOTING ONE’S AGE Two Californians Have Remarkable Achievements Many senior golfers have expressed the opinion that playing against their age is far more intriguing than try­ ing to match par. In the September 1956 issue of the USGA Journal, we reported the achievements of twenty-five seniors who scored their age or better. In subse­ quent issues we related additional achievements, and are always pleased to learn the facts of similar triumphs over age. The latest to come to our attention concerns two Californians whose feats are outstanding and establish new marks at both ends of the record. Dr. Leon J. Richardson, of San Fran­ cisco, has scored his age a number of times during the past twenty years, and at 91 he feels that he is playing badly whenever he scores at the rate of one stroke for each year of his life. His usual scores are in the middle 80s. Dr. Richardson is a member of the Til­ den Park Golf Club in Berkeley where he plays about six times a week. He is also an active member of the California and Northern California Senior Golf Associa­ tions. His golfing achievements span a half- century. In 1912, shortly after he started to play golf, Dr. Richardson was runner- up in the California State Amateur Cham­ pionship at Del Monte. At seventy-three, he was the 1941 cham­ pion of the Tilden Park Golf Club. In the period from 1944 to 1956 he won his age flight in the Califonia Senior Golf Association annual tournament ten times. In the 1946 and 1952 events he was low net scorer. In 1944 he scored low net and won his age flight in the Northern California Seniors Championship. He repeated the win in 1948 at the age of 80. Dr. Richardson is professor emeritus of Greek and Latin at the Univesity of California. In 1938, after more than fifty years of teaching, the University told him the law required him to end his active Dr. Leon J. Richardson teaching days, even though he insisted that he was “just as well as he was twenty-five years ago.” His colleagues must have found merit in his argument for the professor was given charge of two correspondence courses which he still conducts. He is proud of his health, and contends that diet and massage have done the trick. “I can’t remember a day since 1947,” he says, “that I haven’t had a Swedish massage ten minutes before breakfast, ten minutes before dinner and ten minutes before retiring.” Little won­ der that he is the living example of his USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 21 two courses, “How to Keep Intellectually Alive” and “Retirement and How to Take Advantage of It.” Dr. Richardson’s performances parallel those of Nathaniel Vickers of Forest Hills, N.Y., which we related in 1956. Mr. Vickers started playing golf at the age of 50 and accomplished the minor miracle of scoring his age at 91. He was champion of Queens Valley Golf Club. At the age of 84 he won the Class A flight of the 1931 United States Seniors Golf Associa­ tion’s annual tournament. Record Low 63 The second achievement breaks a record shared by three Californians, Weller Noble of Berkeley, J. Barton Bridgeford of San Francisco, and Lee Davis of Los Angeles, who scored 64s in equaling their dges. We now have the facts of a round of 63 scored by Carl E. Haymond of Los Angeles at Los Angeles Country Club’s South Course. The remarkable round occurred on August 3 in the company of Carl Hospers, Al Schabel and Bob Gil­ bert. All putts were holed-out and play was in accordance with USGA Rules of Carl E. Haymond Revising Handicaps of New Players Handicap Decision 59-4 Reference: Men: Sect. 8-lb Women: Sect. 18-lb Q: When a golfer has just begun to establish her handicap under the pres­ ent USGA System and has had no scores posted but is playing several times each week to build up 25 scores as quickly as possible, do you recom­ mend figuring her handicap with each game which entitles her to use a greater number of scores for her handicap—namely, games 6-9-11-14-17- 19-21 and 23? Or do you feel her handi­ cap should be figured only once a month with the others? Question by: Mrs. Lewis R. Sams Atlanta 19, Ga. A: Section 18-lb of The Conduct of Women’s Golf provides as follows: “When a player has fewer than 25 scores posted, her handicap should be revised more frequently than others to insure that she is assigned a handi­ cap fair to herself and her opponents.” The frequency of the revisions is a matter for the Committee in charge to determine, but under the circum­ stances mentioned, once a week would seem reasonable. Golf. The performance rated considerable at­ tention in Southern California as Mr. Haymond’s score also set a new amateur course record for the South Course. “Many thrills come to a golfer during the course of many years of playing the wonderful game,” says Mr. Haymond, “but this one outshines even the five holes-in- one that I have had over the years.” Mr. Haymond has entered the USGA Senior Amateur Championship which is to be held at the Memphis Country Club, Memphis, Tenn., from October 5 through 10. This year’s record entry of 395 is twenty-five more than the previous highs of 370 in 1955, the year the Cham­ pionship was inaugurated, and 1958. The defending Champion is Tom Robbins of Pinehurst, N. C. 22 USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 Example of Symbols: •rUSGA" indicates decision by the United Slates Golf Association. “R & A” indi­ cates decision by the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews, Scotland. “59-1” means the first decision iec.ind in 1959. “D” means definition. “R. 37-7” refers to Section 7 of Rule 37 in the 1959 Rules of Golf. Bridge In Hazard USGA 59-19 R. 31-2 Q: If a ball comes to rest so close to a bridge over a shallow ditch that it in­ terferes with the player’s swing, is the player entitled to relief? Suppose the ball is in the hazard close to the bridge? Question by: C. R. Ault Birmingham, Ala. A: The player is entitled to relief in both instances (see Rule 31-2). If the ball is in the hazard, the player must drop the ball in the hazard. Distance Markers USGA 59-22 Miscellaneous Q: Is there a USGA Rule prohibiting markers on the golf course indicating a distance of 150 yards from the markers to the green? If there is such a ruling, is it permissible to plant small trees at dis­ tances of 150 yards from the greens? Question by: A. W. Mitchell Denville, N. J. A: There is nothing in the Rules of Golf to prohibit use of markers indicating the distance to the putting green. However, distance markers are prohi­ bited in competitions conducted by the USGA. Effective Handicap USGA 59-23 R. 36-1, 36-5, 37-4, 38-3, 41-7 Handicap Decision 59-5 Q: Our association held a one-day, handicap four-ball tournament on July 10, net prizes only. A and B entered as a team and sent in their entry during the latter part of June, indicating handicaps of 7 and 7. They won the tournament with a net score of 139; two teams tied for second with 140 and six teams tied for fourth with 141. On July 11 a protest was lodged against the winners on the basis their handicaps were incorrect. I investigated and found that the handicap committee at their club had revised the handicaps of all members on July 1. This action is taken monthly. The handicaps of A and B were reduced to 6. B played in a pro am tournament on July 6 and used his revised handicap of 6. He will be out of town for some time and is not available for comment. I have USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 23 talked to A, who states he was of the opinion that he should use the handicaps originally sent in even though the tour­ nament was held ten days after the handi­ caps were revised. Any advice you can give me to help decide the proper action to take will be deeply appreciated. Question by: Ray Lawrenson Adelphi, Md. A: All players in the one-day handicap tournaments should have used handicaps which were in effect at the time of the competition, unless there were any rule or custom to the contrary. (See Rule 37-4 for the players’ responsibility.) The Committee would be justified in disqualifying players who played with handicaps higher than their actual handi­ caps at the time (see Rules 38-3 and 41-7). For the Committee’s right to waive or to modify a disqualification penalty in ex­ ceptional individual cases, see Rule 36-5. If any competitor played with a handi­ cap lower than his actual handicap, his score should stand as returned (see Rule 38-3). The Committee should publish in ad­ vance the conditions under which a com­ petition will be played (see Rule 36-1). No Free Relief From Boundary USGA 59-24 D. 20; R. 29-2, 31 Q: Our seventh hole is a par 5 dog-leg on the drive to the left, with an interior angle of about 120 degrees. Along the left side of the first leg, and on our pro­ perty line, is a fence consisting of a masonry wall about four feet high, top­ ped by wire netting. Often a sliced drive hits this fence and the ball falls down against the bottom of the wall or so close to it that it cannot be played by a right- handed player, and, even if played, it must be along the line of the fence in­ stead of towards the hole. What is the ruling on such a lie? May the ball ever be dropped (and where) without penalty? We have no local rule on this situation and have said that a ball could only be lifted under Rule 29, Clause 2. This is, to an extent, justified by the fact that if the fence were not there, the ball would probably have fallen out of bounds. Question by: S. D. Brown Pine Orchard, Conn. A: Walls, fences, stakes, railings or similar objects defining out of bounds are not obstructions—see Definition 20— and the player is not entitled to free re­ lief under Rule 31. Relief may be obtain­ ed only under Rule 29-2. Conceded Hole Won On Infraction USGA 59-25 D. 28; R. 11-1, 21-2 Q: A and B are engaged in a match. X and L complete the “fousome” but are not engaged in match. On Hole 16 A and B are all even. A and X drive near the rough on the left side of the fairway. Y drives down the middle and B into the right rough. A hits first and puts his shot on the green. X and Y then hit their shots. B hits his second shot last, into the trap in front of the green. After three unsuc­ cessful attempts in getting out, B picks up his ball and concedes the hole to A. Upon reaching green, A discovers and declares that he had hit X’s ball to the green. B immediately claims the hole as his. Up to the time A had discovered his mistake and after B had picked up and conceded the hole to A, no player was aware that any infraction had been com­ mitted. Since the last two holes were halved, this was the deciding hole in the match. Question by: Bernard J. Boles Buffalo, N. Y. A: B won the match. B made a proper claim before either he or A played from the next teeing ground—see Rule 11-1. A lost the 16th hole under Rule 21-2, which provides in part: “If a player play a stroke with any wrong ball except in a hazard, he shall lose the hole.” Thus, the hole was decided when A played the wrong ball; what happened thereafter was irrelevant. X and Y were outside agencies. The case illustrates the inadvisability of con­ stituting matches and groupings in any manner other than as provided in Defini­ tion 28. 24 USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 Poa Annua Control BY DR. MARVIN H. FERGUSON Director, Mid-Continent Region and National Research Coordinator, USGA Green Section Poa annua continues to be one of the major problems in golf course mainte­ nance. Despite the efforts of many re­ search workers, there still is not a satis­ factory chemical control for this pest. Progress in chemical control of unwanted plants has been so great as to merit confi­ dence that continued research will pro­ vide an herbicide that will selectively eli­ minate Poa annua from putting greens. On the other hand, when we examine the growth requirements and the habits of Poa annua in comparison with those of the desirable plants in putting greens, we may be justifiably pessimistic about the prospects of easy control of this weedy grass. It appears to be unrealistic to antici­ pate the development of control methods that will operate independently of good management. As a matter of fact the practice of good management in all its phases will go far in reducing the seri­ ousness of the Poa annua problem. What are the characteristics of the Poa annua plant? It is shallow rooted, but the shallow roots are produced in abundance and in a thick stand they may almost completely occupy the surface two inches of soil. It is not drought resistant. The shallow root system causes Poa annua to wilt readily in hot weather. This is one of the reasons the grass is considered undesira­ ble. It is undependable during spells of heat and drought. Poa annua is an annual by nature and produces an abundance of seeds. The seeds are produced at heights of from less than ¥4 inch to heights of 8 inches or more depending upon the condition un­ der which the grass is grown. This ability of the plant to produce seed under a wide range of conditions insures a con­ stantly ready source of reinfestation. Un­ der some favorable conditions Poa annua will survive the summer and behave as a perennial. These situations are excep­ tional, however, and in most of the United States the grass behaves as an an­ nual. It is susceptible to diseases. Poa annua is attacked readily by the leafspot organ­ isms such as Helminthosporium species and by Fusarium species. With all its inherent weaknesses, one wonders how Poa annua manages to con­ tinue as a serious pest. One answer is its prolific reseeding habit. Another is that conditions are provided which meet the requirements of the grass. Shallow rooted Poa annua should not be able to compete with deep rooted bent, but a low area in the putting green that is poorly drained prevents the deep roots of the bent from functioning and conse­ quently they die. The Poa annua is far superior to bent in its ability to extract USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 25 moisture and nutrients from the shallow region of the soil. Heavily compacted areas of putting greens generally are more severely in­ fested with Poa annua than are the areas that have relatively little use. Compaction causes the soil to hold more water near the surface. The surface wetness permits ready germination of seeds and ample moisture for the shallow roots of Poa annua while it serves as a barrier to the oxygen which normally would diffuse in­ to the deeper bentgrass root zone. Further­ more traffic thins out the bent and bruises the turf making it more susceptible to disease. Even though Poa annua is quite sus­ ceptible to attacks of diseases, it usually makes further inroads as a result of disease activity. The abundance of Poa annua seeds in the soil provide for ready invasion of thin areas whereas the bent makes a relatively slow recovery. Thatch is a condition that favors Poa annua. Here again the deep rooting ad­ vantage of bentgrass is neutralized by the fact that moisture is held by the layer of organic matter. Roots of both bentgrass and Poa grow in the organic layer but the Poa has a decided advantage in this shallow foraging. Again, the moisture near the surface encourages Poa annua germination. Twelve Point Management Program After considering these facts concern­ ing the growth habit of Poa annua and the conditions which favor it, we may conclude that there are certain manage­ ment practices which would discourage Poa annua in putting greens. The follow­ ing twelve point program is suggested: 1. Provide for good drainage. Good drainage implies ready removal of excess water both from the sur­ face and through the soil by the process of percolation. Good drain­ age is almost always accompanied by good aeration. Thus the normal root zone of bentgrass, which ex­ tends at least twelve inches, is kept in a favorable condition for root activity. Conversely, the sur­ face portion of the soil is allowed to become relatively dry and the shallow rooted grasses such as Poa annua and crabgrass do not thrive at the expense of the bentgrass. Good internal drainage must be established when the green is built. 2. Topdress and cultivate to relieve surface compaction. Cultivation has come to be an accepted part of maintenance routine. Topdress­ ing lost favor for awhile but now is being practiced to some extent on most golf courses. Both these practices relieve surface compac­ tion. This promotes good internal drainage. Removal of moisture from the surface is one of the prime principles in Poa annua control. Topdressing and cultiva­ tion improve soil aeration. Aera­ tion, or oxygen diffusion, is ex­ tremely important to the health and vigor of bentgrass roots. 3. Move the flagstick frequently. Traffic becomes increasingly im­ portant in its effects upon turf. First there is the simple wear and tear of the turf. This attrition makes grass plants more suscepti­ ble to diseases such as Curvularia. The turf is crushed down into the mat in which are present many fungus spores capable of infecting the plant. The bruising of the plant and the pushing it into con­ tact with a source of inoculum is thought to further the occurrence of disease in turf. Furthermore traffic affects the soil. These soil effects appear to be even more serious than are those of attrition to the grass plant itself. Traffic produces compaction, which pro­ duces a moist surface, and a poorly aerated soil, conditions which in turn are detrimental to bentgrass but not particularly damaging to Poa annua. 4. Follow an irrigation program which is favorable to bent grass and un­ favorable to Poa annua. Bent will survive on rather infrequent irri­ gations, if temporary midday wilt- ting is taken care of by the prac­ tice of light showering of the turf. Poa annua requires moisture at or near the surface and this implies frequent irrigation. Unfortunately, soils freouently dictate the irriga­ tion schedule. A permeable soil, one which holds a good supply of 25 USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 available moisture is desirable on putting greens. Such soil require­ ments have been discussed else­ where. Many putting green soils do not meet this requirement. They are quite impermeable and consequently hard at the surface. Surface hardness, in turn, brings complaints from golfers and a great many superintendents find it necessary to water frequently to keep greens soft, even though such watering is harmful to turf. If it were possible for the super­ intendent to irrigate in such a way that the one or two inches of soil nearest the surface would remain relatively dry while the remainder of the root zone was relatively moist, a long step toward Poa an­ nua control would be taken. Highly permeable soils lend themselves to this practice. 5. Keep thatch in greens to a mini­ mum. As greens tend to build up a layer of undecomposed stems and leaves at the surface of the soil, roots tend to arise in this layer. This layer is similar to peat. Peat is used commercially as a rooting medium in plant propaga­ tion because it provides a condi­ tion where oxygen and moisture vapor combine to make the en­ vironment suitable for root growth. This condition is undesirable in bentgrass because the roots tend to be formed near the surface. Bentgrass roots in this region can­ not compete effectively with those of Poa annua. Poa annua control is, of course, not the only reason for removing thatch but it is a good one. 6. Control diseases and insects. Any­ thing that serves to open up the turf provides for ready invasion of Poa annua. It is capable of taking over bare areas much more rapidly than bentgrass during seasons favorable to its growth. 7. Fertilize bentgrasses when Poa is weak. During the last few years more superintendents have begun to use fertilizers more liberally during the summer months. This trend has been accompanied, or perhaps preceded, by more effec­ tive disease control practices. When bentgrass is kept in a vigor­ ous condition during the summer months it enters the autumn sea­ son of Poa annua germination bet­ ter able to resist the invasion of this weed. The use of fertilizer in the summer must be tempered with caution but judicious fertili­ zation at this time appears to be beneficial. 8. Use such materials as lead arsen­ ate to discourage Poa annua. There appears to be a. considerable amount of difference in the toler­ ance of bentgrass and of Poa an­ nua to the effects of lead arsen­ ate. While the nature of this selectivity is not completely un­ derstood, its existence is adequate­ ly confirmed and it becomes a use­ ful tool in combatting Poa annua. Calcium arsenate also exhibits selectivity but its use has been ac­ companied by erratic behavior. In the light of this experience it probably should not be used on putting greens until further test­ ing has been done. 9. Keep phosphrous levels down. It has been demonstrated by the re­ search done at Purdue University that the presence of high levels of phosphrous in the soil counteracts to some extent the herbicidal ef­ fect of lead arsenate on Poa annua. Bentgrass requires relatively small quantities of phosphrous for healthy growth. Therefore the use of fertilizers which provide the nu­ trients, nitrogen, phosphrous acid, and potassium oxide in the ap­ proximate ratio 3-1-2 appears to be indicated. 10. The use of wetting agents may be of some help in preventing the standing of water at the surface. On compacted soils or on thatched greens, water is almost certain to remain on or near the soil surface. An agent which will lower the sur­ face tension of water, thereby per­ mitting more ready penetration in­ to the soil would appear to be helpful in reducing the advantage of Poa annua. It should be stated that in the author’s knowledge no experimental work has been re- USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 27 ported along this line and that the foregoing statement is based en­ tirely on the author’s suppositions. 11. The judicious use of herbicides ap­ pears to have a place in Poa an­ nua control. There are several chemical materials that exhibit some degree of selectivity between Poa annua and the bentgrasses. Bentgrasses, however, seem to be quite susceptible to damage by most herbicidal chemicals and therefore any herbicide should be used cautiously on putting greens. Herbicidal control measures may eliminate a stand of Poa annau and they may discourage its re­ turn. It will be very difficult to maintain putting green turf in a “Poa-free” condition, however, un­ less the points discussed in fore­ going paragraphs are given some attention. The use of herbicides to control other weeds will help indirectly in the control of Poa annua. For in­ stance an infestation of crabgrass which goes out in the fall opens the turf for Poa invasion. 12. Use a bentgrass that grows vigor­ ously and resists diseases that would thin it out. There are sev­ eral excellent putting green strains of bentgrass available. Some of them do well in almost every part of the country where bentgrass is grown. A good vigorous strain of bentgrass will go a long way to­ ward winning the battle against Poa annua. When the reader considers this “Twelve Point Program,” he is likely to conclude that “this is not just a Poa annua control program it is almost a complete manage­ ment program.” If the reader reaches such a conclusion, this article will have achieved its pupose. Indeed, nothing short of a complete program of good manage­ ment will provide good Poa annua con­ trol. Conversely, it appears that we have the means for effective, if not complete, Poa annua control, but everyone of these tools must be used if our efforts are to meet with success. Pilot Study Of Maintenance Costs Is Started The USGA Green Section staff has un­ dertaken a pilot study designed to provide a uniform method of recording maintenance costs. The need for a uni­ form system of accounting arises from the natural desire of club officials to com­ pare their costs of operation with those of other clubs. Obviously, such comparisons cannot be made with validity unless ac­ counting procedures and units of mainte­ nance are standardized. Mr. Allan Brown, Chairman of the Green Section Special Committee on Uni­ form Accounting and Terminology said in a recent report, “We hope that the study will result in a system by which golf clubs can compare their costs of op­ eration and their various accounting prac­ tices with those of other clubs of equal standing among the USGA member clubs.” In order that this pilot study may pro­ vide a thorough test of the adequacy of the proposed system, approximately 120 clubs throughout the United States will be asked to cooperate. Each Green Sec­ tion staff member will contact representa­ tive clubs in his area and ask them to use the suggested procedures for a period of one year. Tributary to the value of the system is the concept of dividing all maintenance into units. The cost of maintenance of a single unit in terms of man hours be­ comes a figure that can be used satis­ factorily in comparisons. Without such bases for comparison, a representative ciub of “A” says, “We spent $4,000 last year for labor for mowing fairways,” and the member from club “B” says, “Why we only spent $3,400 for that item.” Nothing is ever said about the price of the labor, the number of acres of fair­ ways, nor the frequency of mowing. Club “A” actually may be doing a more effi­ cient job of mowing fairways than club “B” when costs are reduced to units of maintenance. If your club should be asked to partici­ pate in this study, your cooperation would be much appreciated. The expressions re­ sulting from a broad sample of experi­ ence will provide a better method of ac­ counting procedure. 28 USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 Turf Damage From Foot Traffic By DR. MARVIN H. FERGUSON Mid-Continent Director and National Research Coordinator, USGA Green Section Traffic effects on turf become increas­ ingly troublesome. The numbers of golfers are increasing, the amount of cart traffic is increasing, and maintenance is becoming more intensive. These facts provide a good reason for trying to evalu­ ate the damage caused by traffic on turf. Damage from traffic is manifested in at least three ways. First, there is attri­ tion to the grass plant itself, the bruising and tearing of the plant structures. Sec­ ond, the soil is compacted and it loses desirable structural qualities. Third, there are the resulting effects of en­ croachment of weeds, infection by diseases, and infestation by algae. These troubles come about partly because of thin, worn turf and because of soil com­ paction. During the last two years, some rather simple experiments involving the effects of different types of shoe soles have been conducted by students in agronomy at Texas A. & M. College, These tests have provided some interesting information with regard to the degree of damage caused by various types of shoe soles but they have provided also some insight in­ to the relative importance of the various manifestations of damage. 1958 Studies The results of the first series of tests, which were conducted in the early sum­ mer of 1958, were published in the USGA Journal of November, 1958. The traffic described in these tests consisted of paths which were traversed 630 times during a period of six weeks. Of the shoes em­ ployed in the test, it was found that the ripple-soled shoes were least damaging and that conventional spikes were most damaging. Figure 1 illustrates this fact. Several methods were used in attempts to measure and report the degree of damage. Visual observations and the DQ (double quadrat) technique were used in recording the amount of wear on the Figuie 1. Damage to Seaside bencgrass turf after 630 traverses during a 6 weeks period in 1958. Left, ripple sole shoes; Center, rubber lug sole shoes; Right, conven­ tional spiked shoes. Ripple sole shoes produced least damage; conventional spiked shoes produced greatest damage. USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 29 Figure 2. Seaside bent grass plots after 3 weeks traffic (10 minutes daily), 1959. Plot 1—conventional spiked shoes; Plot 2—modified spiked shoes; Plot 3— ripple sole shoes; Plot 4—check, no traffic. Figure 3. Seaside bent grass plots after 5 weeks traffic (10 minutes daily), 1959. Plot 1—conventional spiked shoes; Plot 2—modified spiked shoes; Plot 3— ripple sole shoes; Plot 4—check, no traffic. 30 USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 plants making up the turf. An indication of the degree of soil compaction was ob­ tained by measuring the amount of defor­ mation which occurred across the paths. 1959 Studies A second series of studies was conduct­ ed in the spring of 1959. Mr. Dale Darling, a senior student in agronomy at Texas A. & M., and a recipient of the Trans­ Mississippi Golf Association scholarship, did this research as a special problem. There were numerous criticisms of the techniques employed and the conclusions drawn from the first series of tests. The following complaints were typical. 1. Golfers do not make paths in putt­ ing greens. The tests measured only the effects of walking in a straight line. 2. There was no effect of turning such as the golfer does when he applies “body English” and when he retrieves his ball from the cup. The 1959 tests were set up in such a way that these faults of technique would be corrected. Squares of turf (2y2’ x 21/2>) were marked off and a cup was set in the middle of each square. The tests were replicated three times. Each replication consisted of four plots. Of these, three were subjected to traffic from different shoe sole types and one plot received no traffic. This plot served as the check. The traffic was applied in the following manner. A man took a putter and one golf ball and spent ten minutes each day putting the ball into the hole. He drop­ ped the ball, putted it into the hole, re­ trieved it, dropped it on another part of the plot, moved around the cup, assumed his stance, putted the ball again, etc. Thus, with each type of shoe, ten minutes traffic each day was applied to the ap­ propriate plot. The tests were continued for a period of five weeks. In the 1958 tests, there was some indi­ cation that the shoulder surrounding the spike used on conventional golf shoes was contributing to the compaction of the soil. Therefore, in these tests, the three shoe types employed were the conven­ tional spiked shoes, the ripple soled shoe, and one with modified spikes. The modification consists of removing the shoulder from around the spike. The threaded receptacle which fits between the layers of the shoe sole is enlarged by the addition of a metal disk. Thus the only protrusion from the shoe sole is the spike itself. Figure 4. Seaside bent grass plots 6 weeks after termination of traffic experiment— 1959. Plot 1—conventional spiked shoes; Plot 2—modified spiked shoes; Plot 3—rip­ ple sole shoes; Plot 4—check, no traffic. Note weeds and algae growing in Plot 1. USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 31 Figures 2 and 3 illustrate the amount of damage to the turf appearing at dif­ ferent stages of the experiment. The damage to the grass plants appeared to be about the same in the case of both con­ ventional and modified spikes. Damage was considerably less severe on plots on which the ripple sole shoe was used. The degree of damage to the soil did not become fully apparent until sev­ eral weeks after the termination of the experiment when the plots began to re­ cover. In Figure 4, the plots are shown 6 weeks after the termination of the ex­ periment. All plots had recovered with the exception of the ones on which con­ ventional spikes were used. These plots still showed some bare areas and an in­ festation of algae and weeds. Conclusions These tests, while not extensive, point up clearly several facts about traffic dam­ age on turf. They indicate a need for much more attention to this matter of wear. The first visible effects of traffic are the footprints which may be only tem­ porary in nature. Then comes the bruis­ ing of stems and leaf structures which becomes noticeable when the damaged tissue dies and begins to dry out. As bruising continues, the crown of the plant, the stolons, and the upper part of the root system begin to be damaged. Concurrent with injury to the struc­ ture of the plant, the soil is compacted. Air is excluded from the root zone and infiltration of water is retarded. A weak­ ened turf, and the encroachment of weeds and algae, are almost certain results. Grass plants which are injured may re­ cover and heal any bare areas that may exist, but the correction of soil struc­ tural deterioration is a very slow and dif­ ficult matter. Thus some of the most serious traffic damage is not visible on the surface. In the light of observations report­ ed here, it would appear that frequent changes of cup locations and tee markers is extremely important. If one waits until the turf area begins to show visible dam­ age before changing the cup location, he has allowed far more serious invisible damage which may not show up until some later period when conditions are unfavorable to turf growth. COMING EVENTS September 14-15 Midwest Regional Turf Foundation Field Day Purdue University Lafayette, Indiana Dr. William H. Daniel September 15 Cornell Field Day Cornell University Ithaca, N. Y. Dr. John Cornman September 15-16-17 University of Florida Turfgrass Manage­ ment Conference Dan McCarty Hall, University of Florida Gainesville, Florida September 17 and 18 28th Annual Golf Course Superintendents' and Turfgrass F eld Day University of Rhode Island Kingston,, R. I. September 23-24-25 Northwest Turf Asociation Conference Washington State College Pullman, Washington Dr. J. K. Patterson September 28-29 Utah-Idaho Turf Conference Twin Falls, Idaho Mr. Jay Richardson September 29 St. Louis District Field Day Sponsored by St. Louis District Golf As­ sociation and Mississippi Valley Golf Course Superintendents Association October 1-2 Arizona Turfgrass Conference University of Arizona Tucson, Arizona Mr. Joseph S. Folkner October 5-6 New Mexico Turfgrass Conference New Mexico A. & M. College State College, N. M. Prof. C. E. Watson October 8-9 Rockv Mountain Turf Conference Colorado State University Fort Collins, Colorado Prof. George A. Beach October 21-22-23 10th Central Plains Turfgrass Conference Kansas State College Manhattan, Kansas Dr. Ray A. Keen November 16-20 Fifty-Second Annual Meeting of American Society of Agronomy Netherlands-Hilton Hotel Cincinnati, Ohio December 2-3-4 14th Annual Oklahoma Turfgrass Conference Oklahoma State University Stillwater, Oklahoma Dr. Wayne W. Huffine December 7-8-9 14th Annual Texas Turfgrass Conference Texas A. & M. College College Station, Texas Dr. Ethan C. Holt 32 USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 IT’S YOUR HONOR Kind Words To The USGA: I always enjoy getting your USGA Journal and I was extremely im­ pressed with the article on cup­ changing technique at Wee Burn. From experience I can tell you that no club at which I have ever played was it impossible to find the previ­ ous cup. From the article it looks as though the technique at Wee Burn should be followed everywhere. Another item of particular interest that I would like to comment about was the one on the shoe-sole ques­ tionnaire. My comment would be sim­ ply this: if we could instill in all golfers the idea of leaving the course in better condition than it was before they played it, we wouldn’t have the problems we do now in maintaining good putting surfaces, reasonably kept bunkers and good fairways. Gene Andrews Los Angeles, Cal. creased so we have enough money for labor and supplies, and to make the improvements and maintain the course properly. We are also very fortunate in hav­ ing Mollie Strazza as Green Superin­ tendent. Mollie has been at the Club since it opened and, as you may know, is a recognized expert. The combination of these two men, and a lot of hard work by Mollie and his crew has enabled us to bring the course to really top condition. As you know, when a course is not in top notch shape, most every mem­ ber becomes an agronomist, and a few years ago I had to take a lot of free advice on how to improve the course—the advice was worth just what it cost. However, I am glad to say that today the comments are all complimentary and I do again enjoy going to the Club. William E. Greenwich, Ward Conn. Green Section Visiting Service To The USGA: I am Chairman of the Green Com­ mittee at the Round Hill Club, and I want you to know of the great help which Al Radko and the Green Sec­ tion Visiting Service have given us. The course has improved tremend­ ously over the past five or six years, and the improvement is in a large part due to following the suggestions we have had from Al. I have also used his reports to get our budget in­ Club Pro's View To The USGA: Congratulations on a fine Open this year. Bill Casper will be a great Champion. Winged Foot was a great test of golf, and I was thrilled to be able to play there in the Open. I would like to make one comment about double qualifying. I believe it is too time consuming and too ex­ pensive for the average club pro. I believe this should merit some care­ ful consideration. Bill Johnston Provo, Utah USGA JOURNAL AND TURF MANAGEMENT: SEPTEMBER, 1959 33 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: Bernard 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, 111. James L. Holmes, Mid-Western Agronomist Western Office: P. O. Box 567, Garden Grove, Cal. William H. Bengeyfield, Director, Western Region WESTERN REGION