Public Links

President Warren G. Harding was an average golfer. With sincere sympathy for other average golfers, he donated a trophy bearing his name to be played for by teams representing the municipal courses of the cities of the U. S. Another golfer, James D. Standish Jr.* of Detroit, put up a cup for the best individual player. Last week, on the flat Salisbury course that sprawls over some moors near Garden City, L. I., began the fourth annual Public Links Tournament. When the diggers, the hookers and the slicers had been cleared away, two stout golfers stood forth to do battle in the finals : stubby William Serrick of Manhattan, who uses a jigger for his long putts; Raymond McAuliffe--tall, redheaded, lately a caddy on the links at Buffalo, who stares fiercely at his little ball between puffs of a long black cigar.

As they stood on the first tee waiting to begin the afternoon round of their match, a Western Union messenger dashed up with a yellow envelope for Serrick. He opened it, turned pale, then bit his lip and shoved the missive into his pocket. He got into trouble on his drives, he overputted, topped his approaches. Later in the day, with McAuliffe 5 up, he spied his mother in the gallery. "They said you were sick," he whispered. The crumpled telegram read : MOTHER DANGEROUSLY ILL COME AT ONCE. McAuliffe, who did not need, as a matter of fact, the efforts of his unsportsmanlike supporters to rattle his opponent, added one more to his lead, took the match on the 13th green.

The Harding Trophy was won by a New York team with a total of 616 for 144 holes; four golfers from Cleveland, with 5 strokes more, were second; Pittsburgh, 629, third; then Washington, Chicago, Buffalo, Philadelphia, Detroit, Toronto, Newark, Dayton, Jacksonville, Baltimore, Boston, Toledo.

*A better-than-the-average golfer. James D. Standish Jr. of Detroit was runner-up to Charles Evans in the 1914 and 1915 Western Amateur Championships.