LESSONS BY THE YEAR! Members, for a fiat annual charge, entitled to lessons at any time

T THE Worcester (Mass.) CC, an idea is being nicely worked out that A may have wide and beneficial effect on golf as a satisfying recreation for club members and as a business career for professionals. Briefly, the Worcester idea is to put golf instruc- ^ tion on the basis of coaching as it is done at universities, where the en- tion is advisable in order that members tire student body may take advan- use the club more and get more out of tage of expert coaching talent, in- each visit to it. Results to date have stead of on the now general practice amply confirmed the judgment of the Wor- of having lessons paid for individ- cester board. ually. Ogg relates that when the news of the plan got around there was some belief that The method employed is to make a it would be a bad thing for the pro. In- charge of $20 a year a fixed item of the dividual lesson income was sacrificed and club charge to all members. This $20, in a murderous schedule of instruction was the case of Worcester, is paid $10 at the in prospect. The matter of arranging les- start of the season in April, and $10 in son schedules to keep everyone happy also September. The $20 covers the expense of was viewed as a detail that couldn't be club-cleaning and individual lessons, with- solved. In some cases, Ogg admits, these out additional charge, whenever the mem- factors would damn the plan, but in the ber arranged for them. Worcester situation, which is representa- At a club of 300 members, that means tive of many first class clubs, all has been $3,000 at the start of the season with serene. which the pro can finance his shop stocks Pro and Aid and beginning operations, and $3,000 com- Must Be Competent ing in when the pro is faced with that stern problem of how to support his family The plan requires not only that the club during the winter. have a competent pro instructor, but that , veteran pro-supt. at Wor- the pro make careful choice of his assis- cester's Country club, reports that the plan tant and religiously attend to the as- in its first year is working out to the sat- sistant's training and performance so the isfaction of members, the board and the teaching may be split between the pro and professional. He forecasts extensive adop- his assistant without complaints that the tion of the plan by clubs where it is ap- pro is playing favorites among the mem- plicable, and a future of wholesome in- bers. fluence on the pro job and service situa- Booking of lessons is not the problem tion. that one might think it would be. Ogg The function of a golf club, Ogg points keeps checking up to see that the mem- out, is to provide the greatest possible bers all make use of this teaching to recreational enjoyment to its members. which their payment entitles them. He Proficiency in the game obviously is an as- believes that a fifteen-minute lesson period surance of more enjoyment, and certainly in most cases under this plan, will solve proficiency can be developed by competent any problem of booking. instruction. However, either due to a The effect that such a plan, if widely casual regard for golf instruction as a adopted, would have on the pro job situa- non-essential or due to the false fear of tion is plain. A competent coach couldn't undue expense involved, many members do be replaced by a low-scoring caddie of in- not give golf lessons the opportunity to adequate instruction qualifications, be- increase the player's enjoyment of the cause the members would effectively pro- game and of the club. test. Selection and education of assistants Therefore, reasoned the Worcester offi- would become an important detail of the cials, broadening the scene of golf instruc- pro job and an apprenticeship under a good man would become almost an essen- scrapped and replaced; others may need tial to the ambitious young man who simply a little polishing and sharpening wanted and deserved a pro job of his own. by rubbing against similar ideas from Ogg testifies that the plan has practic- other minds or through the printed page. ally doubled his shop sales thus far this The club assumes the bill for the parts year over last year, because it brings and replacements in the mowing equip- everyone into his shop. He gets well ac- ment for the course, so why not include at quainted with all the members and is in least part of the expense involved in im- position to see what they need. The plan provements in the mental equipment to has greatly increased interest in play and be used on the course? has effected a substantial increase in club- It is argued that the particular piece house business. It keeps the pro depart- of equipment mentioned above does not ment in frequent contact with the mem- belong to the club and may leave at any bers because when a member has booked time. Regardless of the merits of this a lesson and can not appear, his alternate contention, there seems to be no reason- on the lesson book, is notified by the pro- able argument against the club assuming shop in plenty of time to fill in. Thus the the bill for a good collection of books, bul- pro's non-productive time is kept at a letins and pamphlets to become a perma- minimum. nent part of the greenkeeping equipment. "It does your heart good," says Ogg, "to Throughout the season a modern green- see how many of the players who never keeper who knows how to use books will have had lessons before are beginning to find plenty of occasions for a handy li- get very good games as the result of in- brary.—USGA Green Section Comments. struction. "Members ask me how I can afford to go in on such a plan and I tell them I had Re-Seeds Fairways—Dixwell Davenport, to do it to relieve the traffic on the right USGA Green Section member and green- hand side of our course. We had too many chaimen of San Francisco GC, who has slicers who needed the cure of golf les- been experimenting for some time with sons." methods of re-seeding fairways without The Worcester pro admits that in its interfering with play, reports considerable present stage the plan is not one that can success with a recently tried method. be successfully applied at all clubs, but he Davenport says, "We take a strip of the avers that it is showing many benefits at fairway 150 yds. from the tee and lay out Worcester. If there is a pro disadvantage a strip at right angles across the fairway to ft, Ogg remarks, it is that of work and 50 yds. wide. This we cut close by going a lot of it, but the pro who isn't eager over it twice with power mowers. Then to work providing he can get an income we spray with sulphite of ammonia, using commensurate with his effort, his ability about 200 lbs. to the acre, and allow to and the results, had better pick another stand about two hours until the weeds field of employment. are burned. Then it is watered and seeded He does see in this plan a logical chance with bluegrass, redtop and New Zealand for building up many of the smaller club bent, the mixture being 50 lbs. New Zea- jobs to the point where they will be at- land bent to 100 lbs. redtop and 100 lbs. tractive to good pros and afford fair re- bluegrass, seeding 150 lbs to the acre. wards for the labors by the simple process Then we heavily topdress with good loam of bringing to all of the club's members and water it in. the profitable pleasure of better scores. "In two weeks we have a lush growth of bluegrass and redtop and in about three weeks the bent begins to come up through Greenkeeper's Mind Most Important this grass. This fall it will look like Maintenance Equipment Casey's parlor. We get rid of all carrot- WfHILE referring to overhauling and re- grass, Japanese clover and plantain and pairs of course equipment, it is well retard the growth of all other weeds by not to forget the most important piece of smothering them. equipment used in maintaining a modern "In the re-seeded portion we play winter golf course—the greenkeeper's mind. rules and before the growing season leaves Perhaps there are a few worn-out or us, which will be about the first of Oc- antiquated parts there in the form of tober, we will have all of the fairways re- theories or so-called practical ideas. Per- seeded. Many of our players now are haps some of these ideas had better be using drivers off the re-seeded fairways." GOODYEARS CUT COSTS OF GOLF COURSE MAINTENANCE

•. but, that's only one reason why leading clubs everywhere are adopting them!

Goodyears on tractors and mowing ma- In addition, Goodyear's new all-traction chines not only enable greenskeepers to tread—while giving better traction forward, keep greens, fairways and club grounds in backward, sideways, thus preventing slip- better condition, but they cut maintenance ping—does not dig in, harm the turf. These costs many ways. big air cushions roll safely, gently over roads, They save fuel. They protect equipment» lawns, greens, fairways, walks, bridges. thus saving on repairs. They save greens- Only Goodyears are made of patented keepers' time—enable them to cover more Supertwist Cord. Any Goodyear dealer will ground faster—do more work better. gladly demonstrate.

THE GOODYEAR TIRE & RUBBER COMPANY, INC., AKRON, OHIO good/year ALL-TRACTION TRACTOR TIRE 24 GOLFDOM

Lc^s have

no

JBD A it i A' this Spring we arrived at the most

important policy decision ever made by a

large manufacturer of golf halls, namely,

to confine the sale of our entire factory

output exclusively through the Pro Shop.

• We made an unqualified announcement to

this effect through the pages of the press,

trade publications, by letter and by

word of mouth of our salesmen.

Vulcanized—of course!

Acusbnet Gold Ray, 75c Acusbnet Blue Ray, 75c Acushnct Green Ray, 50c

PGA Balls at 75c and 50c Bold to PGA members only.. misunderstanding

We find tliat «juite a few of our friends among

the professional golfers still are not «¡lute clear

about our actual policy, but we propose to

leave no doubt. • Our professioual sales are

greatly on the increase. It is Droving a most grati-

fying method of selling golf balls. • So let us have

no further misunderstanding—the entire out-

put of the Acushnet plant is being sold

exclusively through the Pro Shop.

AVAILABLE ONLY THROUGH YOUR PRO SHOP HE S A LOW- PRESSURE

SALES EXPERT

By HERB GRAFFIS AL. WATROUS

F you want my opinion, the best job of club selling done at any golf club I in the United States, is that done by A1 Watrous at Oakland Hills CC where the 1937 National Open will be played. Should you follow the pop- ular custom and say I am dizzy on this one, I will welch to the extent of saying the boy who beats A1 in tele, not just a bunch of customers. Same this line is the champ club seller. way with Al's members who buy clubs. A very good average age of the clubs They're clients. Of course that attitude in pro-shop storage racks is four years. isn't developed in one season, but it's cer- This means that a pro sells about a quar- tainly worth cultivating. ter of his market limit in clubs if he is A1 loves clubs because he knows them. doing better than the general run. Frank So do you. That's the biggest thing you Walsh, some other fellows and I went over as a pro merchant and member counsellor Al's storage one night and although an have over the store competition, but do actual count was not made of all bags in your members know that you are the same the racks, my judgment is that Watrous' sort of an authority on clubs that Dr. members average a new set per in less Rosenbach is on books, Duveen on art? than three years. Chances are that most golf club mem- How does the guy do it? He is prob- bers can no more tell the difference be- ably the world's lousiest high-pressure tween golf clubs than they could tell the salesman. There is no more slug in Al's difference between the Kohinoor diamond selling than there is in a custard pie. But and a phoney you could get for three bucks the members buy and buy; when A1 has at Uncle Moe's. That doesn't hold good something for them they are more anxious at Oakland Hills. A1 has those folks so to get it than A1 is to sell it, which is they probably are the best judges of club what many of the boys would call heaven. construction and design of any club mem- I've got the answer for you and it's bership in the world. an important detail of the expert pro's job Part of the explanation for that is the about which very little has been written mechanical influence bound to prevail in a or said. It's something that distinguishes club having many of Detroit's motor mag- a thoroughly qualified pro from a fellow nates among its members. Such members who still has something to learn to be are M. E. Coyle, Chevrolet president; John worth the most to his club members. Oswald, Oldsmobile chief designer; C. The answer to Watrous' superb selling Harry McAleer, auto polish plutocrat; is that he loves clubs! Bert Lyon, auto bumper inventor; and He Seems Chris Brinke of the Allegheny Steel Co. to Hate to Sell But there are others of non-mechanical I have seen- wealthy dealers in rare training to whom A1 has carefully and books and art operate. Those fellows so repeatedly explained the niceties of club highly prize what they have to sell that construction and design so that they con- honestly, they almost cry when someone sider themselves experts, and not without buys something from them that shows license because they can hold up their them a swell profit but takes it out conversation end on club technicalities in of their stock. They know art values and almost any pro argument. they are responsible for developing a cul- The beautiful part of it all is that the tured and affectionate interest in these games of these men reflect interest and works among their clientele. It's a clien- possession in the fine club line by scores JULY, 1936 FOR BETTER SHOP VOLUfflE

lyfomn ÌW (With apologies to Clarence Clark— Professional, Forest Hill Field Club, Bloomfield, New Jersey)

WALTER HHGE11

UIOODS IROnS

Clarence Clark certainly has the larger volume for professionals, right idea—to increase pro shop Nation-wide. profits—go after the women's mar- ket! If you are not familiar with all of the exclusive features of these clubs, And that was the way we viewed built and styled exclusively for the 1936 season when, back last women, write at once for the details. August, we introduced American Lady clubs. There's a whale of a lot of busi- ness left yet in 1936—here's one way They have pointed the way to to go get it.

LH YOUnG GOLF CO... DETROIT considerably lower than those you expect to the games of the stars; hence, there's from extremely busy men. Their enjoy- a greater reason for the poorer players ment of these clubs brings them out for being given conscientious expert advice in a lot of golf, and that's to the benefit of club purchasing. On that basis the Wat- any executive under the pace they main- rous policy has worked out happily for tain in Detroit. the Oakland Hill members. Al's own profit Extension of this appreciation of club- results from the service members of a first making artistry is by no means without its class club are entitled to get. angles of hard work, expense and respon- The public does not realize the vast and sibility. Watrous makes two factory trips significant improvements that have been a year at his own expense to see that clubs made in golf clubs during the last three are made exactly to the requirements of years. Counting each development in head his members. Some of these requirements design and construction, shafts and grips are special and involve extra cost in the of fourteen of the clubmaking companies selling price, but to a buyer who really supplying the pro trade and the five steel knows, it's worth money to get clubs ex- shaft makers, you could conservatively es- actly right, and nothing but perfection to timate that there have been 5,000 changes the prevailing modern standard will do. in golf club design and construction in the period 1935-36. It stands to reason that Club Must Fit each of those changes is an improvement Or It Is No Sale! in the opinion of some qualified expert or Watrous will not sell a club that is the change would not have been made. not exactly right for the player who is Hence there are 5,000 reasons why a club to use the club. If A1 hasn't the right bought in 1933 is enough behind the times club in stock, the player either will wait today to be costing its owner strokes and until Watrous can get it from some manu- enjoyment—and probably money. facturers' stock or get it made special, or But to get the golf public aware of that, the player can buy elsewhere. Now and constant change and advance requires their then some of them do buy elsewhere, but education in clubs as works of art. Wat- they come back to A1 eventually with a rous has been teaching his members in tale that's an advertisement for his policy. that respect and it has been mutually An important effect of the Watrous pleasant and profitable to the members and practice of educating his members in fine Watrous. It's something for you to think club appreciation is that sharp seasonal about. selling does not fold up his business after the early spring sprint. When a player sees and feels a new club or a new set Mañero Given Wrist Watch as that makes a lively appeal, that player Reward for Open Win buys, even if it's September. Again, there may be the automotive business influence because the automobile people have been smart in easing off the seasonal selling curse which still tends to choke off club selling after June despite the fact that numerous first class pro businessmen have shown both pros and manufacturers that golf clubs can be sold while golf is being played. The greater part of the golfing public undervalues the difference that clubs make in a game. You hear the remark that re- gardless of what clubs the star pros have, ^ONY MANERO'S timing is under good there wouldn't be a difference of two control. The Gruen watch people gave strokes a round in their individual games. Open champion one of their The pros themselves know that's the handsome wrist watches in appreciation of baloney and are their own best customers Tony joining them as a high-priest of good in the ceaseless hunt for perfect clubs. timing. However, the pros will admit from their Lou DeGarmo, who handles the Gruen extensive observation that clubs make more advertising, engineered the presentation, difference to the poorer player's score than which was made by Bill Richardson. JULY, 1936 WILSON IS BUILDING 75c GOLF BALL SALES FOR PROFESSIONALS

Because:

IT DELIVERS A LOWER

©PCOST PER BROUND • Above all, the average golfer wants distance in a golf ball—but he wants durability too. He wants a ball that will give him real protection against furrowing and cutting. That's why he goes for the new Wilson Vulcanized Golf Ball in a big way when you show him that it gives a combination of distance and toughness never before found in one golf ball. He gladly pays 75c when he finds it buys not only finer performance but a lower C. P. R. (cost per round). The Wilson exclusive "mild heat" slow "air cure" method of vulcan- izing gives maximum toughness with extraordinary performance because there is no excessive heat to rob cover, core and winding of their vitality. IPiiWti GOLF EQUIPMENT By this mark you shall !• know fine golf equipment

WILSON SPORTING GOODS CO. 0 Chicago, New York and Other Principal Cities Sarazen Makes Hit as Lecturer when great golfers and great golf styles at Eastern Colleges are mentioned. Sarazen feels that he owes golf more ^OLLEGE golf received further impetus than he can give back and after a fashion from the lectures and demonstrations of saying, he does. He's glad to devote made by Gene Sarazen before large his spare time to argosies such as this groups of students at Harvard and Dart- without any monetary rewards whatsoever. mouth. Gene made his appearances at the He feels that anything he can do to Eastern schools prior to the National further the game or interest in the game Open and found that golf interest of col- will eventually come back in some meas- ure to himself or to other pros such as legians had developed substantially since himself. his previous college appearances. So far as parties such as this one go, He is so convinced that one of golf's there may be nothing immediately in them greatest opportunities for growth exists for Sarazen in person, but there's un- among collegians that he is planning to doubtedly much in them for the local golf club and for the pasture game in general. devote considerable time to college visits It was noticeable, also, that Sarazen kept after his return from his world tour. the name of the local pro, Tommy Keane, The kids have gone for Gene's lecture, before his audience in a pleasant and com- exhibitions and demonstration in a great plimentary way. way. He has put on a strong, broad plug He was showing, for instance, the im- for the game and centered interest on portance of the grip, and, with a series of local pros so the campus prospects will bad shots showing how a faulty grip not feel the urge to come under the tutelege only ruined a golfer's game, but might lead him on to such disqust that he'd give of the pro who is on the job at a course the game up altogether. in the college neighborhood. "The grip," said he, "is nothing that Strong newspaper publicity has been can't be straightened out with one look given the Sarazen appearances. from your golf professional. Tommy Bill Cunningham, Boston sports com- Keane can clean it up for you in less than mentator, devoted one of his columns to one lesson." Gene's show at Dartmouth. Of this affair, Sarazen was pleasant to people without seeming to try. And he's the fellow who Bill wrote: once was so completely misunderstood by Squire Gene Sarazen, the Connecticut the golf filberts that they called him farmer and some time golfer, spent one everything but regular. afternoon and evening showing members of the Dartmouth undergraduate body and the faculty how easy it is to hit a golf Shawnee Open Back as Annual ball far and straight. He gave a first hand Post-Open Fixture demonstration on the local golf course in A WELCOME sign of the return of the the afternoon, a demonstration which was good old days was the revival of the strongly attended, and in the evening, he showed his interesting reels of golf movies, Shawnee Open at the famous Buckwood providing the sound himself by word of Inn course of the Worthingtons. In 1912 mouth. over this course at the Delaware Water- gap the first Shawnee Open was played. Audience Finds The event became practically an Old Home Gene Knows His Stuff week for pros, and discussions after the Squire Sarazen does a first class job. rounds had much to do with the early He gave a quick review of the entire golf stages of the PGA. C. C. Worthington, primer, showing how to grip the weapons, Buckwood head man, played an important how to propel them through space and how and how not to make them meet the role in helping the pros get their organiza- gutta percha sphere. His audience fol- tion started. lowed intently and asked lots of questions. It was the usual custom for the Na- It was noticeable in his talk about shots and how to make them that he took par- tional Open champion to make Shawnee ticular pains to praise Bobby Jones. This his first tournament appearance after his was interesting because the money players Open victory and Manero continued that used to love Mr. Jones in the powerful re- this year. verse, the principal reason being because , winner of the 1930 Shaw- Mr. Jones used to insinuate himself into nee Open, won this year's revival with their open tournament and more than oc- casionally win it. But Sarazen is too hon- 288, finishing the last half with two fine est a golfer and too honest a man not_ to 70 rounds. Ralph Guldahl three-putted the recognize the grandeur of the famed citi- last hole to tie for second with Roland zen of Atlanta and to grant him his due Mackenzie.