Coming Golfers of Country To Be College Men Says Ouimet, Former Amateur Golf Champion

"The coming golfers of this country will be college men," remarked Francis Ouimet in an interview with the CRIMSON recently. Ouimet, one of the leading amateur golfers in the country, won the National Amateur Golf Championship of the United States in 1914 and regained his title in 1931 after 17 years of tournament play.

"The playing skill of the leading golfers of today is not much superior to the quality of golf displayed by the outstanding players of the pre-war era when I won my first national title. The difference between these two periods, however, lies in the fact that in 1914 there were only about four or five topnotch golfers. Now, on the other hand, there are over a score of players of championship calibre and this number increases each year.

"The three essential qualities that a championship golfer must possess are incentive, enthusiasm, and coolness under pressure. The absence of one of these qualities in the make-up of a golfer is an inestimable handicap. Such hardened campaigners as Walter Hagen, George Von Elm, and Johnny Farrell appear to have lost their incentive or driving power; that certain spark of enthusiasm has been lacking in their play recently, and consequently, they have failed to finish among the leaders. On the other hand, many young players such as Munger, Goodman, Dunlap, Fischer, Somerville, and many others have been winning recent tournaments. These comparative newcomers to tournament play make up for their lack of experience in their enthusiasm for the game.

"I consider Bobby Jones to be the greatest golfer that ever lived. There is no shot on the course he cannot, or rather could not, play to perfection. Whether he will ever be able to attain that peak again remains to be seen. George Dunlap, formerly of Princeton, and present holder of the National Amateur title, and Johnny Goodman, National Open Champion, are the best of the younger group of golfers.

"There is no shot in golf that can be classed as the most difficult one. Each shot takes as much dexterity and skill to perform correctly as the one before it, or the one succeeding it. The average golfer is inclined to neglect his putting, being of the opinion that it is the long shots that are important. This, however, is a fallacy. Many a championship has been won or lost on the putting green; it is there that coolness and iron nerves are necessary."