St. Andrews Finish

Most famed, but far from the finest golf course in the world, St. Andrews in Scotland is a public links. An act of Parliament few years ago prevented indignant townsfolk from seeing tournaments played there for nothing. No act of Parliament has yet convinced the St. Andrews town council that Sunday golf is a fit pastime for right-thinking people. On Sunday the course is closed to golfers, open only to picnickers and strollers. Last fortnight St. Andrewsites, sprawling comfortably on the fairways, chatted cheerily about the tournament to be held there the following day. With no U. S. titans like Bobby Jones and Lawson Little entered, it looked as though the British Amateur Championship might at last come back to Scotland.

A few days later it looked as though the title might go farther away than it has ever gone before, to Australia. The two most feared Americans in the tournament had been disposed of fairly easily. One, a mysterious Theodore Bassett, had survived the first two rounds through a bye and a default. Then he had been eliminated because, when his name was finally called for the third round, he turned out to be at home in Rye, N. Y. The other, curly-haired Robert Sweeny, who lives in London and plays from a British club, had, after a terrific match, put out Scotland's famed Jack McLean at the 20th hole but, in another terrific match the next day, he had lost to James Ferrier. It was Ferrier now who seemed entirely capable of taking the title back to New South Wales. Amateur champion of Australia at 22, a huge young man whose crude swing is capable of propelling the ball 350 yd., he had won most of his matches with disheartening ease. When he disposed of Alec Hill, who had beaten beefy Cyril Tolley in the quarterfinals, there was no one left between him and the title except Scotland's stylish Hector Thomson.

At the end of the final's first twelve holes, Ferrier, putting brilliantly, was three up. Stubborn Thomson, son of a professional golfer, won the 14th, 15th and 16th and the afternoon round started with the match all even. Thomson finished the first nine two up. Ferrier cut it down to one up at the "Road Hole," the 17th, with a 4 to Thomson's 5. On the 18th green, Thomson's second shot stopped rolling six inches from the pin. Ferrier's stopped 30 feet away. Ferrier nodded, conceded the kind of match that makes old Scotsmen smoke their own tobacco when they tell about it.

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