Five-Figure Exercise

Say the word Calcutta to most Americans, and they think of saried Indians bathing in the Ganges and sacred cows basking in the middle of dirty thoroughfares. But say Calcutta to the member of a golf club, and he is apt to look nervously to either side and whisper, "Shhhh! How did you know we were having one this year?" Until 1955, a Calcutta was an integral --and often the most fun--part of every golf tournament. A few days before a member-member tournament, or on the night before a member-guest, a properly anointed auctioneer would "sell" each team to the highest bidder. If the members were affluent and the bidding spirited, the pot sometimes went into five figures--which the "owners" of the winning teams happily pocketed. Then disaster struck. Two con men showed up as guests at a respectable Long Island club, posted grossly exaggerated handicaps, and bought a piece of themselves. They handily won their flight, and walked off with a large chunk of the $16,106.93 purse. Shortly thereafter, the United States Golf Association ruled that Calcuttas were strictly out of bounds, and most clubs stowed their auction hammers away in old closets. But for golfers who liked to gamble, playing in tournaments without a purse was as dreary as dancing without music So betting slowly crept back to the links, and today members in hundreds of clubs across the country are watching fellow golfers practice putts with more than a casual interest. Many clubs are playing it safe, allowing only modest parimutuel bets; others have returned to the auctions of old, only slightly toned down. Wary in some cases of local ordinances against gambling while drinking (most Calcutta auctions are held after dinner parties), nervous about the Internal Revenue Service's ruling that Calcuttas are gambling operations and therefore subject to tax, and anxious not to displease the U.S.G.A., most clubs now place a limit on the bids and a muzzle on the members. In fact, to hear most officials tell it, the only money that ever changes hands on a golf course these days goes to the caddies. As for that roll that was handed over to the winner of the tournament, well, he is probably the head of the local Red Cross chapter, and is simply taking the club's annual collection down to the bank. At 6 p.m. Sunday.

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