1940: Golf

Although international competition was dormant in 1940, major tournament activity in this country was keener than ever, resulting in record-breaking sub-par scores throughout the season. In 1940 new champions were crowned in every important classification except that of the women amateurs. Tournament galleries, in general, were larger, and the game was increasingly popular among public links players and women.

During the winter and early spring, greater spectator interest and larger purses marked the annual tour of the professionals through the South. Stars of this circuit were Jimmy Demaret, Houston. Tex., winner of six tournaments, and Ben Hogan, 140-lb. White Plains. N. Y., pro who captured four. For the entire year Hogan was the leading professional money winner, garnering $10,655 in prizes. His average score for 71 rounds of competitive golf was 70.03. This consistency helped him win the Harry Vardon Trophy for 1940, emblematic of professional golfing supremacy over the course of the year's play. Hogan had 423 points. Sam Snead was second with 393 points, Byron Nelson third with 337 and Jimmy Demaret fourth with 292. A new low scoring mark was set by Craig Wood, professional at the Winged Foot Golf Club, during the Metropolitan Open Championship at the Forest Hills Field Club of New Jersey. Wood's four rounds were 64-66-68-66 to give him a winning total of 264. This is considered the lowest score ever made in tournament play on a regulation course.

Most important tournament plum of the year was taken by W. Lawson Little of Bretton Woods, N. H., when he won the United States Open Championship at the Canterbury Course in Cleveland by defeating the veteran Gene Sarazen, Brookfield Center, Conn., in a dramatic playoff. Little, who was U.S. and British amateur titleholder in 1934-35, tied with Sarazen and Edward 'Porky' Oliver of Hornell, N. Y., at 287. Oliver, however, was disqualified for starting his final round too soon. This act provoked a major controversy among golf writers and fans, but the United States Golf Association did not change its decision.

At Hershey, Pa., early in September, Byron Nelson of Toledo, Ohio, succeeded Henry Picard, the home pro, as P.G.A. champion, when he defeated Sam Snead 1 up in a brilliant final match. Picard was eliminated by Sarazen in a quarter-final match. Later in the same month Richard D. Chapman of New York, playing over his home course at the Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck, N. Y., won the National Amateur Championship by defeating W. B. 'Duff' MeCullough, Philadelphia business man golfer, 11 and 9 in the 36 hole final. This was one of the largest margins of victory ever recorded in the history of the tournament. In the semi-finals, Chapman eliminated Wilford Wehrle, Racine, Wisc., after being five down at the turn. McCullough beat Ray Billows, Poughkeepsie, N. Y., in his semi-final match. Billows had previously put out the 1939 champion, Marvin 'Bud' Ward of Spokane. Chapman was also the medal winner.

The only 1939 champion to repeat was Betty Jameson, a 21-year-old from San Antonio, Texas. She defeated Jane Cothran, Greenville, S. C., by a score of 6 and 5 in the final of the Women's National Championship which was held at the Pebble Beach Course in California late in September. Before the tournament women's golf lost one of its top-ranking players when Patty Berg, Minneapolis, Minn., turned professional. Miss Berg was engaged by a large sporting goods house to promote golf among the high schools and colleges. By joining the women's pro ranks, Miss Berg gave further impetus to the growth of 'open' championships for women patterned after the events held for men. In 1940 several territories held open tournaments with satisfactory results, Already in the pro ranks are such outstanding female golfers as Helen Hicks, Helen Dettweiler, and Mrs. George Zaharias, the former Olympic star Babe Didrickson.

Other important champions crowned in 1940 were Dixon Brooke, University of Virginia, as National Intercollegiate titleholder, with Princeton and Louisiana State tying for the team championship; Charles H. Jennings as United States Senior Champion; Robert Clark, St. Paul, Minn., as United States Public Links Champion; and Sam Snead, Shawnee-on-Delaware, Pa., as Canadian Open winner.

At its annual meeting, the United States Golf Association made the following rule changes: it further defined the requirements the linings (cups); it penalized players for testing the surface of greens preparatory to putting; it amended the definitions of professional and amateur golfers by uniformly fixing the eighteenth birthday as the time limit for excusing prior violations and providing that one who becomes automatically reinstated to amateur standing prior to his eighteenth birthday may not again be reinstated; and it changed directions for computing par by stating that 'each hole should be measured from the middle of the tee to the center of the green, following the general plan of the hole.'

The U.S.G.A. also reelected Harold Pierce of Boston, Mass., as president. The P.G.A. retained Thomas Walsh of Chicago as president, and reappointed Fred Corcoran as tournament manager. Opposition to the U.S.G.A. came from the Pacific Coast where the American Golf Association was formed as 'a national non-profit organization devoted wholly to the proper development of the game and the maintenance of player interest; to the preservation of golf's best traditions; to emphasize its worth as a community recreational activity and to streamline the game in accord with its inherent principles of democracy.' Fred O'Bannon was elected first president. Over sixty clubs affiliated with the A.G.A., which is making plans for several important events including a team match between the United States and Mexico.

Because of the war, matches scheduled between the Ryder, Walker and Curtis Cup teams of the United States and Great Britain were cancelled. However the P.G.A. appointed a Ryder Cup team captained by Walter Hagen which played a Red Cross charity match against a selected team of professionals led by Gene Sarazen. The Ryder Cup team won in a close match. This event raised $15,000, and Bobby Jones, coming out of retirement to play four Red Cross four-ball matches, helped to raise $6,000. Altogether over $50,000 was contributed by the P.G.A. as a result of such charity matches.

In Canada all national tournaments were cancelled except the Open Championship. In England many of the golfers not in active service played exhibition matches for the benefit of war relief funds and no tournaments were held.