Club Times: March/April

1 9 The Last of

g o l f

Bobby Jones, the autumn of 1921 marked a golfing low point. His poor temper had deteriorated to such a state that he received a letter from George Herbert Walker, the President of the United States Golf Association. At the U.S. Amateur in St. Louis in the fall of that year, Bub exploded after a poor shot, threw his club which then struck a female spectator, splitting her leg open. Following this, Walker had written to my grandfather in stern tones and concluded, “You will never play in a USGA event again unless you can learn to control your temper.” Shocked and embarrassed at the letter, Bub wrote Walker and assured him that he would take the necessary steps to get his emotions in check. Having played in championships since 1916, Bub was discouraged at his inability to break through and win in what he called, “The Big Show.” His contemporaries didn’t share his low opinion. Walter Hagen had even said that he had no doubt that Bub would even win a U.S. Open before he won the U.S. Amateur. Bub’s traveling companion, the sportswriter O.B. Keeler, had told him, “If you ever get it through your head that when you step on the first tee of any competition you are the best golfer in it, then you’ll win this championship and a lot