THE AMERICAN GOLFER197 By "LOCHINVAR" MR. EDWARD family but shortly after was seized by G. WESTLAKE, a convulsion and never regained con- one of the pion- sciousness. eer golf report- Few Chicago citizens have been paid ers of the West greater tribute than he, all of the and for a num- papers devoting space to tributes to ber of years his memory, the Post giving a page, western corres- which included praise from many of pondent of the Chicago's leading citizens. American Golf- Mr. Westlake took up golf soon er, died suddenly at his home, 1446 after its inception during the world's Chase Avenue, Chicago, Sept. 19th, as fair at Chicago in 1893 and helped lay the result of acute kidney trouble. out the first public course in Chicago. At the time of his death he was In 1898 he made his first golfing trip automobile editor of the Chicago east, covering the national amateur Evening Post, with which paper he championship at Morris County when had been associated for 27 years, the Mr. Findlay S. Douglas defeated Mr. majority of them as sporting editor. Walter B. Smith of Chicago for the This post he held up until about five title. years ago when he took charge of the In 1915 when the Post published its automobile department. twenty-fifth anniversary number, he Few men in this country could boast was asked to run over a few of the of a wider range of personal acquaint- figures that stood out in his two ances. Possessing a remarkable per- decades as sporting editor and of his sonality, he seldom was forgotten by golfing experiences he wrote: men who met him while, on the other Of the golfing lights that pass before hand, he had a great faculty for re- us on the screen, none was more welcome membering names and faces. than Willie Smith, then out at Midlothian Death came to him on one of the big C. C. I urged him to go into the first west- ern professional, or open, tourney, which he days of his life. His eldest son, won, out at Glen View and accompanied Edward G. Westlake, Jr., a lieutenant him to Baltimore subsequently, where he in the new national army was to leave won the national open title. the following day to join the Rockford HE GOT THE CHAMP'S CLUBS camp and father and son had spent the Many times when in Old Mexico—Willie day downtown saying farewells. Those Smith is the undisputed champion golfer of who knew him said his pride in his Old Mexico and has been for years—and big boy made the experience one of my Spanish failed me, Smith was there to the happiest in his life, despite his see that I got what I wanted. His brother, Alex Smith, also a great winner of cham- sorrow in parting. pionships, dropped in one day after winning Returning home he dined with his the western and declared he would beat 198THE AMERICAN GOLFER Willie Anderson at his home links, at that W. G. A. to give him a medal commemora- time Onwentsia, or make me the finest set tive of his prowess, in addition to the cash of clubs he ever built since his club-making prize. This fight for Anderson bore fruit. days at Carnoustie and St. Andrews. There it was that I framed up the first Well, Anderson trimmed the champ and golf-course may for Jackson Park, naming I got the clubs. the holes, with the assistance of Slason Louis N. James, former national amateur Thompson of Lake Forest, and gave the public-links movement its impetus that has champion and a Glen View star, once of- not lost its energy here. There it was that fered me $250 for that set. So far as I little "Chick" Evans, a caddy at Edgewater know, Willie Marshall, pro at Onwentsia, —now a champion looking for more honors still has them tucked away in a locker for —came occasionally for advice, the Rogers me, giving them attention once in a while Park lad having admitted recently to my to keep them from drying out—wooden wife that he looked upon the veteran golf clubs—and losing the dogwood or persim- editor of Chicago as a sort of a father. mon wood head. I gave him advice and he thanked me The mighty Harry Vardon made me for it. There it was that I asked the query happy when he visited my office at the time point-blank of W. A. Alexander if he he was making his first tour of the United would give the women a cup that should States. He won the world's open champion- stand perpetually as the symbol of the ship at the Chicago Golf Club, Dave Bell, Women's Western Golf Association cham- the slashing driver from Midlothian, win- pionship trophy and got the costly cup im- ning the United States championship. mediately. HOLD INDIGNATION MEETING Oh, well, the screen is bright for a mo- ment—what's the use of continuing with this Returned pros from the national open reverie? Pretty nearly every sporting world tourney at Myopia held their indignation character of any importance who came to meeting, denouncing the treatment they had Chicago naturally paid visits to the news- received at the Massachusetts golf course, in papers, and I had my share of callers." my office. It was there that I took up the cudgels for Willie Anderson, winner of the He is survived by his widow, Mrs. western open in 299, at Cleveland in 1902, the first time a championship on a full Katherine Stark Westlake, two sons, course of more than 6,000 yards ever had Edward, G., Jr., and William, and his been won in a total under 300, to get the father Richard Westlake. THE WESTERN OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP WHEN JIM BARNES of the White- Club of Minneapolis in 1916, and the marsh Valley Country Club holed his best in the western, outside of Smith's final putt of his fourth round of the work in 1905, was 286 by Walter Western Open championship at the Hagen of Rochester, N. Y., at the Blue Westmoreland Country Club of Chi- Mound Club of Milwaukee in 1916. cago on Sept. 15, he secured his second The Minikahda course measured win of the classic and set a record 6,150 yards, Blue Mound, 5916 and total of 283. Westmoreland, 6446. Eliminating a total of 278 made by Barnes won first prize of $300 and Arthur Smith of Columbus, when he took the special prize of $25 for the won the title in 1905 over the Cincin- best single round, a 67 on his first cir- nati Golf Club course, which cuit of the course, which cut was five measured approximately 4770 yards. strokes under par and two under the Barnes's score is the lowest ever made previous record of 69 made by Jock in a national or western open event. Hutchison of Glen View, when prac- The best previous mark in the na- ticing for the western open. tional was 286 made by Mr. Charles Walter Hagen, of Rochester, was Evans, Jr., at the Minikahda Golf second with 285 which netted him THE AMERICAN GOLFER199 $200, Jock Hutchison third with 286, breaking entry of over 140 and of this getting $100, Emmet French of York, number 136 started. It was the strong- Pa., fourth with 292, the prize being est field that ever has competed in the $75, while Fred McLeod, of Washing- western classic and with the addition ton D. C, received $50 for fifth prize of Mr. Charles Evans, Jr., Mr. Jerome with a total of 294. Travers and Mr. Ouimet, to strengthen Allowing that the Westmoreland the amateur contingent, and several course has few woods or shrubbery professionals who did not enter, it trouble and that its greens are large would have been a representative field and the approaches to them rather for a national open tournament. open, these facts do not detract from Given the choice of a trio of players the fine performances of the leaders, as the strongest championship possi- and the average of 70¾ made by the bilities it is probable a big majority tall Cornishman stands as one of the would have selected Barnes, Jock best performances in a championship Hutchison and Walter Hagen, and this tournament. Its brilliancy is em- selection would have been justified as J. M. BARNES (on the left) and FRED. MCLEOD on the home green at Westmoreland. BARNES getting a line on his final putt for the western open title. phasized by the fact that many of the Hutchison the last of the three finished professionals were unable to gauge the six strokes ahead of Emmet French, speedy greens. Conditions, however, who was fourth. were as alike for all as could be ob- Barnes owed his victory largely to tained. his record-breaking round of 67 on The size of the field led the W. G. his initial circuit of the course. In A. officials to extend play into the this round he was only off the course third day and this gave everyone ample three times. He was trapped at the time to finish in good light, and second hole, 404 yards, to the right weather conditions practically were of the green, but scored a par 4. At similar for every contestant. the long seventeenth, after driving 325 The extension was made by a record yards, he sliced his mashie pitch to a 200 THE AMERICAN GOLFER trap on the right and took five, one G.