19TH HOLE: THE READERS TAKE OVER
FROG PONDS
Sirs:
At last, the "biggest frog" (Ohio University) in that "small pond" (the MidAmerican Conference) has croaked loud enough for you to hear him (Biggest Frog in the Small Pond, Nov. 21). Your fine story was most timely for all "small" colleges similar to "little Ohio University."
FRED F. YODER
Evanston, Ill.
Sirs:
Miami University, though not in first place right now, is and always has been the team to beat in the Mid-American Conference.
It is also true that the famous coaching names you mention, such as Weeb Ewbank, Red Blaik, Paul Dietzel, Ara Parseghian and Woody Hayes, all came from the Mid-American. They all came from Miami. And you forgot one, Paul Brown.
ROBERT KURZ
JOHN BRICKELS
Oxford, Ohio
IRONY
Sirs:
In describing his shot to the green on the 17th hole, the famous Road Hole at St. Andrews, in the 1930 British Amateur, Bobby Jones states that he used a four-iron (A Life with Golf, Nov. 7 & 14). I don't believe that irons were numbered at that time, and my guess is that Bobby actually played a midiron.
NORMAN O. SEAGRAM
Toronto, Ont.
•"I had a one-, two-, three-, four-and five-iron, each numbered," recalls Author Jones of the Road Hole, "besides my own special 1½-iron, a mashie-iron, spade-mashie, mashieniblick, niblick and driving mashie. A. G. Spalding had brought out the first commercially numbered matched set of clubs in 1925, five years before this."—ED.
Sirs:
I am interested in almost every sport in the book except golf. But a fellow does not have to enjoy golf at all to get a thrill out of Author Bobby Jones.
MILES O. KING
Ashland, Ohio
IVIED WALLS
Sirs:
As a Princetonian I thoroughly resented the article entitled A Murder for Mother (Nov. 21). The statistics indicate that Princeton did far better than you reported. And as for the parties, they were just plain weary and dull. If Yales want to see some real parties, they ought to come down to Princeton for a weekend.
LINCOLN CHEN
Princeton, N.J.
Sirs:
It was hardly a contest? Give us the facts: First downs, Yale 20, Princeton 20; yards rushing, Yale 251, Princeton 292; yards passing, Yale 167, Princeton 94; fumbles, Yale 1, Princeton 4. Yale turned three of these fumbles into TDs, the only big difference in this game.
BENJAMIN A. HOOVER
Philadelphia
Sirs:
Ivy League clothes are the greatest, but their football—let's get serious.
JON A. BERGSTROM
JAMES W. LONDERHOLM
P. T. BELLOS
Kansas City, Mo.
Sirs:
If your self-professed experts would spend less time attending Saturday afternoon Ivy League parties and watch Big Ten football, you might learn what football is and how it should be played.
TOM KENEFICK JR.
Eagle Grove, Iowa
Sirs:
I think it worthy of note that in addition to the football team's victory Mother Yale rendered the Princeton Tiger completely toothless by winning the jayvee and freshman football games (the freshman by 40-14, their largest score since World War II), the freshman and varsity soccer games, the varsity Rugby game and the varsity debate. And the Yale Whiffenpoofs trounced the Princeton Nassoons in a touch football game to make it an 8-0 clean sweep for the Elis.
ALEX DOYLE
Baltimore
Sirs:
It is very amusing to see readers of SPORTS ILLUSTRATED claiming college football supremacy for teams from Iowa, Missouri, Mississippi, New Mexico and Ohio.
Obviously, the best team in the nation is Yale.
MITCHELL KELLER
Rowayton, Conn.
SOUTH BAY DIPLOMACY
YOUR EDITORIAL (Volley of Indifference, Nov. 11) EXPRESSES ACCURATELY THE HORRIBLE MISMANAGEMENT OF U.S. ATHLETES AS THEY ATTEMPT TO COMPETE IN INTERNATIONAL MEETS.
IN HERM0SA BEACH WE TRIED TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS PROBLEM. HERMOSA IS THE CENTER OF THE FINE SOUTH BAY BEACH AREA, A REAL SEEDBED OF FINE VOLLEYBALL PLAYERS IN THE U.S. TWO MEMBERS OF THE U.S. TEAM COME FROM HERE.
WE FELT STRONGLY THAT THE U.S. SHOULD BE REPRESENTED BY OUR TOP PLAYERS AND THAT LOCAL COMMUNITY SUPPORT WAS DEMANDED IF LOCAL RESPONSIBILITY WAS TO BE MORE THAN LIP SERVICE TO AN IDEAL. EVEN WITH EVERYONE PITCHING IN, WE KNEW THAT WE WERE DOING TOO LITTLE TOO LATE, BUT WE WERE ONE OF THE FEW COMMUNITIES DOING ANYTHING AT ALL. WE KNEW THAT EVEN WITH OUR HELP MIKE BRIGHT, A REAL COMER, WAS GOING TO BE FINANCIALLY STRAPPED BY THE TRIP. WE KNEW HE WAS EXHAUSTED FROM TRYING TO WORK TWO JOBS TO SUPPORT HIS YOUNG FAMILY AND TO TRAIN AT THE SAME TIME.
THERE IS SOME SMALL MEASURE OF SATISFACTION IN KNOWING THAT WE PLACED HIGHER AT BUENOS ARES THAN IN 1956 AT PARIS. I KNOW THAT WITH PROPER TRAINING THE SOUTH BAY CAN PRODUCE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP TEAMS, I KNOW THAT MEN'S VOLLEYBALL GOES ON THE OLYMPIC SCHEDULE IN 1964, AND THAT TIME IS RUNNING OUT.
IN HERMOSA BEACH WE TRIED HARD. YOUR EDITORIAL MIGHT BE FOOTNOTED TO THAT EFFECT. THERE WERE SOME PEOPLE WHO CARED ENOUGH TO CONTRIBUTE TIME AND MONEY. I AM PROUD OF THEM. I HOPE SPORTS ILLUSTRATED IS PROUD OF THEM, TOO.
JACK T. BELASCO, COUNCILMAN
HERMOSA BEACH, CALIF.
TARNISHED GOLD
Sirs:
The living room critic responsible for "Destruction Derby" (SCORECARD, NOV. 20) is certainly unwanted in the grand fraternity of hydroplane racing devotees. In fact, several thousand fans cared enough about the 1960 Gold Cup to spend the race week nights camped adjacent to the pit area. And this with the attractions of nearby Las Vegas.
When at least 200,000 Americans in Seattle alone remain in a fanatical frenzy over the sport through six months of every year, it is evident to me that there will be many more Gold and Governor's cups and Harmsworth trophies awarded.
JOHN L. HARPER
Lincoln, Neb.
Sirs:
To say that "the mere exhilarating chop that prevailed was a caldron of danger for the utterly unseaworthy hydros" is a gross misstatement.
The unlimited hydros are not the frail creatures described by your writer. I have watched the unlimiteds race in rough water at speeds that would destroy conventional craft if they could travel as fast.
The big hydros will hit 170 mph or better on the straights, and to ask their courageous drivers to race under the conditions that prevailed on Lake Mead would be comparable to requiring the Indianapolis "500" drivers to run on a track loaded with field rocks.
HARRY A. LUND
Oshkosh, Wis.
