Evening Star Newspaper, January 8, 1925, Page 30

30 SPORTS. Harris Attributes Success He Has Attained to Encouragement From His Mother BIG BROTHER MERLE, STANLEY'S EARLY HERO Bucky Advances a Bit in Chosen Pro- fession by Winning Shortstop Berth on Team in Sunday School League. This is the f ictorious strategist and onc which his of Hor rth installment of the autobiography of Stanley Harris, base ball manager in the history of the game and of the outstanding players in the 192} Washington club won the penmant for the first is from colliery boy to big league manager in eight most remarkable life stories America has ever produced. Chapter 1V.—Sunday BY STANLEY (BUCKY) HARRIS. didn’t lead to the speedy promotion I ex- I thought 1 ought to have a more responsible ce myself getting anywhere delivering mail, the office HE work i I T I place. couldn’t answering telephc “You want to go can't do a man’s work, vou know.” After a year as an office boy 18 cents hour the nine-hour velope tell mother the fir She w not, tears told me how muc day at dinne had had. 1T felt eca el it the to blame er cheeks hugged me, man, and comfort ves got wet, too, caused by the onion cream that Sun- onions time ing a bi elp haster T had »al leaving easiest job holding down nearly $10 old cased as if 1 He told me I boss vet if I thought less about playing the making had been his would be a min more of work and base bal That mouney y work—rhey they are old notl I continued Winter, play nights to keep ir Merle had told could to build up my less than 100 pound ball berth seemed a long way Still, T held to my dreams. Had I been older and known as 1s my brother about the ob- overcome reaching a in th I wouldn’t been so cocksure. I must have made a nuisance of myself with my talk about some day making good in the major leagues. But finally I made even Nick nley what T sincerely ved self. And that I did my work with- ny kicks from my bosses, shed work I dreamed 11 knew the batting and averages of all the st of u say these players cannot be, they do is not much. When how to do take a'mis 1L “What loat they know ght school in the asket ball Saturday good condition to exercise all I body. I weighed A professional ried plac sport, believe so fieldin the day. Mother knew wa My for Hughey semi-professional mine district. She nings had gone. She encouraged me to keep on when she realized what the game meant to me. “If you wish a thing as you do to play base ball, sonny,” she often ‘you ou; to succeed if you work hard and take good care of mbition not d been a pitcher in their days in the coal saw how far Jen- as much said Later, when lowed disappoin stared me t face never veakened in her stand. Whatever v have felt inwardly, she never showed by word or action. What suc- cess I have had 1 can lay fund; mentally to her unswerving faith, cheerful encouragement, sound train- tng and shrewd advice. I ouragement of a sort as ayer, too. When I went to work in No. 9 mine I had had the training most small-town boys get in ba I had played on scrub and finally earned a place as D on the St. Peter's Lutheran Church nine. It was in the Sunday Sehool Le We played twilight ase ball ing the g after orking b 1 was f intment fol- failure disapp ent and base teams ague urs, from the best the league, but I wasn't That season Merle was wlith the Charleston club in the South Atlantic League. Hughey Jennings had placed bim there. Between working at the pickers, playing base ball in the early evenings and running home In the player in the worst. old | School League Days. s and running errands. up too fast, sonny,” mother warned me. “A boy I was made assistant weighmaster at day. That boosted my weekly en- about the promotion until I brought ne to her and laid the money in her fap. Bucky Harris' big brother Merle. Merle, like their father before them, was a semli-professional ball player when Bucky was scarcely a young hopeful. Bucky learned a lot of things from Merle, and the big brother final- 1y helped him get the chance that started him, what Merle was doing. I got enough exercise to kill off aimost any one but a growing boy. If the paper was delaved in the mails I went back to work a sadly disappointed lad. Merle was my brother, a real, honest-to-goodness professional base ball player and my hero. Naturally, I idolized him. The other boys looked up to me. Some- times I thought they kowtowed to my base ball judgment because of my abilit; I know better now—it was Merle. Merle was not the only one from the mine section in professional base ball. There were Jennings, the Cov leskles, the O'Neills and “Chick Shorten, to mention a few. The fact that they had advanced increased my ambition. What the others had done I was convinced I could do. Little did I know of the fight they had had to forge to the front in the most com- petitive of our sports. But at that I guess it wouldn't have made much difference to me—I was too cocksure. My dreams con- tinued undisturbed as I read dally of Merle's doings and waited anxiously for him to return at the end of the season. (Copyright, 1925.) half-hour lunch period to get a Charleston newspaper and keep track of Tomorrow—Early Infield Lessons. Fifty Years of Base Ball One of a Series of Articles by John B. Foster Com- memorating the Fiftieth Anniversary of the National League. to Be Celebrated Next Season. XXXVIL—GREAT MANAGERS—JOHN J. McGRAW. Tma most successiul manager in the National League is John J. McGraw. He y be both spoken of and written of in the present tense hecause he still is manager of the New York National League team which he has conducted to ten championships. His first victor in 1904, he was succes won the championship, repeating in TIn 1904 no world serles because both McGraw, manager, and Brush, owner of the Giants, declined to play the Boston Americans. The players of the t also voted that they would not to play the Boston Americans. In 1905 the Giants von from the Athletics. In 1911 they Jost to the Athietics in the world and lost to Boston in 1912. In lost to the Athletics again, lost to Chicago. In 1921 and 1922 t defeated the New York Americans, and in 1923 lost to them. In 1924 their rivals were Washing- ton and they lost to them. As a world serfes manager McGraw has had but ordinary success. In extolling. the praises of McGraw as manager of a team that has made such a cord in the National League, the fact almost invariably is overlooked that he made one of the most brilliant campaigns in his career when he was manager for Baltimore in earller years. There came a time when the Baltimore club, chagrined at the poor patronage that was ac- rded at home, and fearing the city had lost its interest in base ball, de- clded to transfer most of its players to Brooklyn It also was decided that Hanlon, manager of the Baltimore team at that time, should go with the players to Brooklyn and assume the manage- ment of the Brooklyns. McGraw elected to remain in Baltimore for reasons known to himself, and when he cast his lot with the Baltimores he was made manager. The players who were left to him, naturally enough, did not represent the best that Baltimore had, and he was com- pelled to do what he could to pick up others who would be of assistance to him. The team that was left be- y was there was am prefer serie 1913 the and in 1917 He won again in 1905. 1 and in 1917 he added another pennant. 1922, 1923 and 1924. In 1911-12-13 In 1921 he hind when Hanlon departed from the City of Orioles and went to Brooklyn was not considered to be much of a prospect by the crities of those days, and they were somewhat inclined to jeer it and belittle its chances before the season began. The budding ability of McGraw made itself manifest that year. He took Baltimore along at a fast gait and finished fourth, and there was part of the season when he had the Brooklyn team and other teams of the National League which aspired highly completely at sea as to Where he might finish with his so-called cast-offs. It has been a wonderfully eventful base ball life for McGraw. He has had many successes, but all of his successes were not much better in the way of accomplishment than that season with Baltimore, when, un- known and laboring with all the se- vere penalties that are imposed upon a young manager who is trying to make his way into major league base ball, he took the underrated Balti- mores to fourth place in the race. He deserves as much for that one good year as for any year in which he ever won a pennant. He has no im- mediate intentlon of retiring, and will be at it again in 1925, trying for an- other pennant. His methods of achieving success are so modern and the results which he has won for him- self so recent that comment is un- necessary as to the demonstration of his_intelligent effort. No other manager in base ball ever has done what he has. That seems to be the most fitting praise to bestow upon his career. (Copyright, 1925.) Next—Adrian O, Anson, - THE - EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C., CLARK GRIFFITH AND BUCKY HARRIS, hey look happy. Guess why. This picture was taken in Washington just after the world series was decided, INVALID TO GOLF CHAMP Cyril Walker”, Chapter 5. Own Story of His Rise You're Going to Win!” as my partner, and after seeing how my clubs were working Pat 1\,‘05T of the time during the practice rounds I had had Pat Doyle spread the news among ‘the other contestants. The fellow that wins this championship has got to beat Cyril—the way he’s playing,” he said, Thursday prepared to get under way. T hoped he had the right dope, claims. All I knew was that T was 72-hole grind to start “I never felt more like plaving golf in my life,” I told Walter Hagen as we were waiting for our turns to drive off. He kidded me. “You'll have to beat me to win,” he joked. Naturally, on my practice form, T was conceded an outside chance to win, but Hagen and Bobby Jones, the 1923 champion, were the favorites. I was quoted at 15 to 1 in the betting. The odds on Hagen and Jones, if I re- member correctly, were, respectively, 6tolandS§ tol Is Paired With Hunter. Willie Hunter of the Onwentsia Club, Chicago, and I were paired to- gether and we got off at a most favor- able time, 10 o'clock. Now, a fellow usually is a bit nervous at the start of a big tourna ment. The first hole is important. If you get past it well you will settle down and be your normal self. I've always been highly strung and par- ticularly anxious as to how my putter will act in the initial stages. I got a nice drive on the first hole and a_ second that put me on the green 12 feet from the cup. This was propitious, but my first putt seemed ominous. 1 was only 12 feet from the hole, but I ran my ball five feet past it To have taken two more putts cer- tainly would have started me off in a bad humor and probably have af- fected my game for the rest of the day. I studled the play very carefully and the minute I hit the ball knew it was going down. I gained imme- diate confidence. Forget the Breaks. I needed this feeling on the very next hole, 465 yards long, par 5: for atter my second shot had run clear to the green the ball kicked off into a sand trap, spoiling a chance for a birdie four. Then, to make matters worse, after exploding the ball onto the green, I took three putts to hole out. “There's a break,” I told myself, but then and there T made up my mind that I would take all breaks forget them and go on to the next play without worrying. 1 made the third, fourth and fifth holes in par and then at the sixth came a bit of luck in my favor. A birdie three man me par to that point and put me in very good humor. Par golf followed at the seventh, elghth and ninth and I was out in'36. 1 was on my game. My irons were working in great shape. Goes One Over Par. The second nine holes at Oakland Hills offer more chances to g0 Wrong than the first nine. Par is 37. I took 38. This gave me a 74 for the round, exactly what I had obtained in the Spring_competition at the Rockaway Hunt Club. Bobby Jones had done a 74 and Walter Hagen a 75. Bill Mehl- horn led the fleld with a 72. I was pleased with my position. I was well up among the leaders, but not confronted with setting the pace, always a nerve-racking proposition. 1 opened the afternoon round less nervously, plaved more confidently and as a result went out in 35, one under par. Two birdies—a three on the rather difficult sixth and a three on the sev- enth—contributed to this result. In the former instance I sank a six- foot putt and in the latter a 12-foot one. But mainly this good run was due to my short frons. My wood and long iron shots were very satisfac- tory, but a spade mashie and my mashie niblick were giving me won- derful service. Had I not done the ninth in one over par I would have had a 34. My plan of playing short of the flag so as to avoid downhill putts over slippery surfaces was proving extremely effective. Test for Will Power. Going out in 35 was fortunate for me, because I did not come in in such fine shape. The last nine holes of the day gave me a lot of trouble. That 1 escaped without disaster was due to the fact that I held inflexibly to a determination I had made before the start of the tournament. I had resolved that I would play a safe, sane game throughout and never allow myself to press. I soon had opportunity to test my will power. On the 400-vard tenth hole I pushed my drive intd a bad rough at the right. I was 180 yards from the flag, but the shot, due to a high wind, was equal to a 200-yard one. The temptation was to try for a long ball, but I suppressed the de- sire. Taking my mashle, I played to a safe position in the fairway, and, although I was still 150 yards off the green, I now got on it with a mashie and was down in two putts for a five. I had lost ground, but not ma- terially. Above all, I had kept my- self under control. Takes Three Putts. I dropped another stroke on the eleventh by taking three putts for a five and followed this up by taking three putts on the long twelfth for a six. I was adhering to my system, but my putting touch was temporarily gone. Sometimes my approach putts ‘were too long, sometimes too short. Although exasperated, I kept my head. On the thirteenth, a one-shot hole of 140 yards. I got a beautiful tee shot seven feet from the cup and with a bit of luck would have made a birdie two, but had to take par. On the 470-yard fourtesnth I was- re lon morning, June 5, as the tournament but, of course, I wasn’t making any in tip-top shape and ready for the warded by reaching the green in two and holing my second putt for a birdle four, two over par for the second nine holes and one over par for the after- noon. The fifteenth is a dog-leg, and if You take the short cut to the left You must have a 220-vard carry to get over traps located there. Tem- porarily I departed from my con- servative policy and tried the short cut, but T had bitten off more than I could chew and I found the traps 1 was in & bad lie, under a bank, and d to play to one side to get out, actually losing ground. And I took another five hole. Two Pars Needed. hard luck was not quite over. the sixteenth I hooked my drive to rough. This was the lake hole. I Lad to shoot next over the lake, which spread in toward the right side of the My green. Playing safe, I left m bad trap to play over after c the pond, but I crossed it safel was down in five. Up to this point the inward trip had been a tough one and I was beginning to wonder if some breaks wouldn't come my way. I needed a par 3 and a par 5 for a 75, which, everything con- sidered, would be good enough. 1 got my three on the seventeenth after overrunning the green, by chip- ping out rough so as to leave myself a nine-foot uphill putt and then holing out. And then, on the eigh- teenth, 478 yards, 1 was slightly short in two, chipped my third four feet from cup and sank the putt for a birdie four. I had duplicated my morning score of 74, giving me a 148 for the day and putting me in second place. Bobby Jones and Bill Mehlhorn were tied for first with 147. My position couldn’t have been better. In the locker room, where I ran into Jock Hutchison, Emmet French, Bobby Crulckshank, Joe Kirkwood and others, Interest in my chances was picking up. Pat Doyle came in enthusiastic. Didn't I tell you, 1ad?” he yelled. ";'lnu're going to win this champion- ship.” Everybody was asking the opinion of my playing partner, Willie Hunter. He declared I had a great chance. But it was hard for me to realize it. Tomorrow—*“The Greatest Day of My Life” (Copyright, 1925.) g D. C. ISREPRESENTED AT BIG GOLF CONFAB Two Washington clubs will be represented at the annual meeting of the United States Golf Association which starts tonight in New York and continues through Saturday. Dr. J. T. McClenahan of the Wash- ington Golf and Country Club, chair- man of the greens committee of the organization, and G. H. Chasmar of Columbia, also chairman of the greens committee of his club, will attend. In addition to these men, Washing- ton will also have as delegates to the meeting Drs. R. A. Oakley, C. V. Piper and K. F. Kellerman, sr., of the Department of Agriculture, all connected with the greens sections of the United States Golf Association, and Dr. Walter S. Harban of Co- lumbia, former chairman of the greens committee of that club_ and a former vice president of the U. S. G. A. ‘Wynant D. Vanderpool of Morris County is slated to succeed himself as president of the association, while the rest of the ticket is as ronsti- tuted last year. e T As EBONITE “Strings" 10 a Stick, So 1t Winds Araund the Gears Beware Dow’t Use Grease, because it packs, channels and leaks out over your tires, and has no lubricating value. Tx;y EBONITE. It's pure oil. It is in a_class by itself. Stops noisy, grumbling, grinding gears, saves re- pair bills. Beware of substitutes. Sold by dealers every- where, in five - pound cans, and at authorized service stations. (1T's SHREDDED OIL FOR TRANSMISSIONS AND DIFFFRENTIAIS CHAMPION IN BOUT THAT REFEREE STOPS NEW YORK, January 8.—After Ed- die (Cannonball) Martin, recently crowned bantamweight champlon of the world, and Augic Pisana, Coney Island bantamweight, had fought al- most three slow rounds of a scheduled six-round bout at the Ridgewood A. C., Brooklyn, last night, the referee waved the men to thelr corners and declared a “no-contest.” fartin _weighed 118 Pisana, 122. In the semi-final Vincent (Pepper) Martin scored a technical knockout over Billy Miller in the sixth round. They are junior lightweights. URBAN SHOCKER TO BE OPERATED ON TWICE YORK, January 8.—Urban Shocker, traded to the New York Yankees by the St. Louls Browns, will have two operations performed before reporting for the southern trip, according to a telegram re- ceived by Ed Barrow, business man- ager of the club The former star will have his tonsils oved, and a tumor taken from his right shoulder, the latter an ailment which he claims hampered his pitching last season With Shocker in shape, and the Yankees are confident that he will be, the former world champions expect him to account for 20 victories at least during the coming year In 1922 the Browns had a vision of pennants for a time, with the sturdy moundsman winning battle after battle WALTER NOW HAS EYE ON THE VERNON CLUB LO0S ANGELES, Calif., January 8.— Walter Johnson, pitching ace of the Washington Nationals, is here from Reno, Nev., on a visit which base ball ns interpret as being for the pur- pose of trying to buy a half interest in the Vernon club of the Pacific Coast League. Johnson said he would be here sev- eral days, and might have an an- nouncement later. pounds, and NEW of the Browns THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 1925. Inside Golf By Chester Horton. The game of golf is a good deal Iike two foot ball lines, you being one line, the game the other. One of theso lines is the weaker 1in Starting in to im- prove at golf as n whole is a good deal the same thing as under- taking to make one good shot. It is Iargely in the beginning of the task. The golf swing that ix started right, as J have often point- ed out, is likely to finish right. Near- 1y all golfers tee off for m round With the feeling t the first | GUESS | GOl THROWN FOR A LoSS THAT TIME /! ters how played. They take these holes “warm up.” This Is one of the sub- tle Influences in golf that keeps many poor players forever in the poor ranks. The reverse of thix is the fact. The first few holex are the all- important holes. By ull means, make every effort to play them well. Your play on these holes has a very definite effect on all the rest of your game. Always start right, whether with a stroke or a round of 18 holes, (Copyright, 1925) NEW RACE-STARTING DEVICE IS SUCCESS SAN DIEGO, Calif, January 8.— Marshall Cassidy's moving gate, lat- est innovation at race tracks, was tried in the first race at Tijuana yes- terday, with what horsemen called complete success. Starter Cassidy sent away 13 three-year-olds in per- fect alignment. The gate, or webbing barrier, was attached to posts on two automobile trucks, moving slowly ahead of the horses up to the starting post for a distance of about 100 feet. The bar- rier was sprung when the horses were about 25 feet from the post. Starter Cassidy, a son of the late “Mars” Cassidy, veteran starter, be- lieves that with the moving gate he LINK VS. TURNER. Young Shad Link, Baltimore wres- tler, meets Joe Turner tonight at the al Theater. can send away flelds without the te- dious del many times prejudicial to the chances of heavily weighted or nervous horses AL WATROUS TELLS: When Melhorn’s Mashie Niblick Went on Rampage HE T greatest run of amazing shots I ever saw must be credited to Bill Mehlhorn, 1924 Western open champiop and a prominent con- tender in all the important tournaments. 1t was just before the national open at Skokie, near Chicago, in 1922. 22. Mehlhorn was paired with Whitney Bowden, an amateur, against Leo Diegel and Frank Godchaux, another amateur, in a practice round. I played along with them, although I was not in the match. Birdies and syndicates and individual bets allowed me to get some interest in the round, however. There was a crowd of players wait- ing at the first tee, so we drove off from the tenth. It was at the four- teenth hole that Mehlhorn began to turn loose his fireworks. The fourteenth measures 325 vards. After a good drive, Bill's half mashie niblick shot hit the hole for a 2, but the pin kept the ball out, leaving him a two-inch putt for a 3. On the 350-yard fifteenth he had hard luck, his drive going into a sand trap in front of the green, an elevated affair, but what did he do, after taking the precaution to have his caddie pull the pin, but pull off an explosion shot which ended in his ball again lipping the cup. It came out, but this time left him only an inch putt for his 3. The sixteenth at Skokie is “barn” hole, 370 yards in length. got a long dri and followed with a full mashie niblick green. Once more he hit the cup and again the pin kept him out. ‘When he came up h all was hang- ing on the very edge, one-third in the hole. The wonder was that he even had to putt for a 3. The seventeenth hole, 360 yards in length, necessitated a full mashfe niblick stroke against a strong wind after the drives. Godchaux, playing ahead of Mehlhorn, dropped his sec- ond shot three feet from the hole. “Say,” said Bill, addressing his partner, Whitney Bowden, “take a look at that.” the Bill up to the At the Sign of the Moon Close Daily at 6 P Semi-Annual Gemmce. SALE Y to 1 Off SUIT OR OVERCOAT Made For You Prices Start At 202 See our showing. It is the only way you can appreciate the value. Higher Grades at Proportionate Savings Full Dress Suits To Order, Silk $ 45'00 Lined ... Mertz & Mertz Co. 906 F Street “That's not close,” replied Bowden, “you can get inside him.” And what do you think followed? Mehlhorn merely put his ball In the hole for a 2! Before his remarkable run began Bill and his partner were 2 down. | Afterward they were 2 up. Three | birdies and an eagle had turned the In the first nine holes best-ball trick for the foursome they made a 27. Some shooting! SPORT S. WALKER SHADES McTIGUE IN CLASH OF CHAMPIONS Welter King Scores in Decisive Fashion and Would Now Also Wear Light-Heavyweight Crown Were By the Associated Press N EWARK, N. J,, January 8 Mike McTigue, world li State last night. Walker defeated the newspaper men at the rin ing laws of Jersey forbid a decisic pion only in his division, despite t McTigue retained his champlonshiy which only could be taken from him | by a knockout or foul. He fought | defensively, and his poundage and{ long arms withstood the best his| smaller and younger opponent could | muster. On boxing points alone won, but McTigue refused to any damage The welterweight champion hard to land a decisive blow which would topple the 175-pound crown | from the veteran brow of McTigue, | who kept well covered and fought a safe and sane fight | McTigue had every physical advan- tage over Walker, weight, height, reach and experience balancing favor; yet it was Walker who m the fight by his aggressiveness. There was no division of opinion among the newspaper men. A m Jozity gave Walker eight rounds, call- ed three a draw and gave McTigue one. In a slashing semi-final, which was docketed for 10 rounds, Bobby Bar- rett, Philadelphia, knocked out Jack | Rappaport of Newark In the eighth round. A terrific right to the chin sent Rappaport down for a full count He was out for five minutes Mic Walker | accept tried heavywe Decision Permitted in New Jersey. key Walker, welterweight of the world, would be holding another crown today had he boxed zht champion, in New is cham- ond and still very how to bl roll h skip o Aft gone. He well knoy crowd, all agog Mickey was re pectantly ur When, it then the welter k third th or both, were and lifeles: And the : it or nc seas o Mickey. H BY FAIRPLAY. NEW YORK, January §.— Walker and Michael McTigue, the two rampant Irishmen who came to- gether last night in the Newark Ar- mory, were none the worse today for thelr 12-round encounter. If they had been any the worse that fact would have dnoe nefther of them any credit. It would have indicated that both possess constitutions whick a shrinking Spring violet would scorn to own and a physical toughness that would not stand comparison with that of a jackrabbit in fairly good health How the Irish fans fought to pay | their money to get into the building to see the two Mikes try to kill each other! They were dripping with fighting spirit. The coming struggle between the Irish champions had whetted that fighting spirit to an edge where they even wanted to fight themselves. And some of them did They fought to pay their money to get in, mind you. After the fight the: would have fought to get it back again, if there had not been so many police about. The writer had this fight doped out long ago. McTigue, having more than 10 pounds in weight on Walker and in addition a superb defensive boxer, never had any chance of being hurt by the welter champion—who, by the way, is not such a hitter as most peo- ple seem to think he is. Again, a defensive boxer of Me- Tigue's type seldom has the ability to hand out real punishment, else, of course, he would not be a defensive fighter. key Offers Hardly a Thriil. So the fight worked out the way any sensible person might have doped | it had he used his bean. The | or 12,000 fans who fell for the 11,000 | eleventh and polnted the ye All the Iris RICHARDS AND MOLLA TOP NET RACKETERS NEW Richards, and Mrs. national title and women's Metropolitan ¢ Dr. George Richards, ar next to Mrs ten January tennis YORK, Mol Miss M Mrs. Mrs Goss, RIDING AT FORT MYER. Starting tomorrow afternoon, r exhibitions will be held every Frid at the Fort Myer Ridin 1 tickets will be mailed the adj £ the post. GRID GAME. Sch ppe hedul TECH GETS | Tech w 1925 gr City C | Homew, 14, device has been perfected to re- lease the outside front wheel 350,000 owners of 4-wheel brake Buicks know the supreme ease and safety of this Buick feature. Buick Motor Company Division of General Motors Corporation WASHINGTON BRANCH Fourteenth and L Streets N.W. Telephone Franklin 4066