19TH HOLE: THE READERS TAKE OVER

TO PICK A ROSE
Sir:
Your Dec. 22-29 issue has been topped by only one other, and that is the one covering the World Series (Nov. 3). Thanks for picking the most deserving Sportsman of the Year—Pete Rose.
MIKE WHALEY
Shepherdsville, Ky.

Sir:
Your selection is most heartwarming and realistic. If ever one person represented what all of us would like to see in an athlete, it is Pete Rose.
W. Y. ALLEMAN
Hanover, Pa.

Sir:
Bravo! Pete Rose is a creditable example of sportsmanship, talent and attitude.
KEVIN PROVENCHER
Manchester, N.H.

Sir:
I am returning your Sportsman of the Year cover because the picture is the worst likeness of Fred Lynn that I have ever seen.
RICHARD TRAUB
Savannah

Sir:
You expended more than a thousand words explaining why Jack Nicklaus was the Sportsman of the Year and then you picked a hot dog.
GREG CARDAMONE
Conshohocken, Pa.

Sir:
Pete Rose, the all-American kid? Boo! Bah, humbug!
MICHAEL R. HUHN
Hawthorne, Calif.

Sir:
The only award I'd give Pete Rose is the one for Most Cocky Man of the Year.
KAREN CONONIE
Pittsburgh

Sir:
I've never had the privilege of meeting Rose, and I was pulling for the Red Sox in the World Series. However, from what I've seen of "Mr. Hustle" on TV, baseball in particular and the whole world in general could use a lot more like him. Congratulations.
ELWOOD G. LAWSON
Richmond

FOREMAN'S STORY
Sir:
Thank you for printing George Foreman's article (Man, Big George Is Back, Dec. 15). I laughed all the way through it. Why won't Foreman simply admit that he was beaten by a much smarter, quicker and more powerful man in Muhammad Ali? I'm sick of all his excuses. George probably will get another shot at Ali, and in the process, unfortunately for him, he'll prove once again that Ali is the undisputed king of the boxing world.
ANDY MOSCOW
New Orleans

Sir:
While I respect George Foreman as a fighter, I found his story a waste of paper. Let's see his fists do the talking against such top contenders as Ron Lyle, Joe Bugner, Joe Frazier and Ken Norton.
RICKEY WYATT
Ellenboro, N.C.

Sir:
The difference between Ali and Foreman is that one tells it like it is while the other tells it as he wishes it were.
PETER D. KIRLES
Indianapolis

Sir:
George Foreman's article was very appealing for the simple reason that his personal story of the encounter in Zaire has now been told. My compliments.
MARK NELSON
Fort Walton Beach, Fla.

MERGER
Sir:
Curry Kirkpatrick hit the nail on the head (Now the Incredible Shrinking ABA, Dec. 15). Pro basketball is in trouble and a merger would solve a lot of problems. The ABA can't survive with six teams, and if it fails, the marginal players in both leagues will be out of work. I say keep the teams as they are, put them in one league and play ball. However, I guess that solution really is too logical.
MIKE WESBROOKS
Pampa, Texas

Sir:
Cotton Fitzsimmons can't believe that David Thompson, Marvin Webster et al. wouldn't draw in Atlanta—the Hawks practically offered them the franchise to sign. What he should have said is that Denver and other ABA clubs would add too many losses to his side of the ledger.
REED SUGG
Morganfield, Ky.

THE GREAT ANGELO HANK
Sir:
That was a fine article on Hank Luisetti (He Changed a Game Single handedly, Dec. 15). I feel the evolution of basketball can be broken down into three phases: 1) James Naismith invents the game; 2) Luisetti adds offensive mobility with the jump shot; and 3) Bill Russell underscores defense.
BOB BRESHEARS
Sanger, Calif.

Sir:
I got a special chuckle from Ron Fimrite's article because my father was a student at Stanford when Hank Luisetti played. I was often reminded of "the great Angelo Hank" and his court exploits, but I figured old Dad was just an impressionable college kid. I never dreamed Luisetti was the basketball player of an era. If I ever have a son I don't think I'll tell him about O.J. Simpson. He'd never understand.
DAVE CRAWFORD
Santa Clara, Calif.

OLYMPIC TRIAL FUNDS
Sir:
"Score One for the AAU" (SCORECARD, Dec. 15) is incorrect about the funding of athletes' expenses for Olympic selection trials for the 1976 Olympic Games and Olympic Winter Games. The United States Olympic Committee is the sole authority for determining any expenditures of USOC funds.

When Philip O. Krumm assumed the presidency of the USOC, he pledged that our committee would draw up a plan to assist in underwriting the expenses of the athletes at the Olympic Trials. This plan was presented to the USOC executive committee on March 22, approved without a dissenting vote and promptly announced to all the print and electronic media.
F. DON MILLER
Executive Director
U.S. Olympic Committee
New York City

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