Robert Tyre Jones, King of Golfers by Jack Hoag (Reprinted from a 1927 Golf Magazine)

Robert Tyre Jones, Jr., known to many as simply “Bobby” was arguably the greatest golfer, including Nicklaus and Woods, ever to take a swing at a golf ball. Jones’ collectibles range from signed items, books, press photographs, newspaper articles, magazines, prints, films, programs from tournaments he played, clubs made by Spalding, including commercial remakes of his famous “Calamity Jane” putter and scores of other items. Here is a 1927 Golf Magazine Article (highly collectible) that will add a new perspective on Jones.

Playing the most magnificent golf ever seen in an open championship, Bobby Jones of Atlanta, Ga., won the British Open title for the second consecutive time and his total of 285 for the seventy-two holes established a new record for the event. To play the famed St Andrews course seven under par was a feat that was never approached in the annals of golf and it won for Bobby the undying respect, admiration and friendship of the British public and the golfing world at large. (Par was 73 as #17 was played as a par 5).

Bobby is a great golfer, but it took something more than the golf he played to win the regard of the galleries who followed every stroke with breathless interest and their whole hearted applause was accorded as much to Bobby as a true sportsman and gentleman as it was a tribute to the extraordinary golf that he played.

Jones has always been a favorite with British golfers but, when he won the British Open Championship last year, Scotland adopted him for its very own and, when he went to St. Andrews to defend his title, he was made the favorite in the betting every round that he played and was followed by hundreds of golf mad fans. Just think what a tribute this is to Bobby. An alien golfer, on alien soil and yet the British public deserted their own favorites to follow him and he gave them an exhibition of golf that will live in the minds of all who saw it to their dying day. No matter what the future holds for Jones, he will never know a greater moment than he experienced when he stepped forward to receive the cup that is emblematic of the British championship and was acclaimed by all as King of the Golfing World.

What intense satisfaction must have been his. Bobby was far from satisfied with his showing in our National Open Championship and, as a matter of fact, he had not played up to his true game for a year. The truth of the matter was that Bobby was having trouble with his irons. At one time one of the greatest iron players in the world, Bobby temporarily lost his stroke with these useful implements. He played them well at times and won championships, but still there was a question of doubt in his mind and he felt that they were not to be depended upon. Every once in a while Bobby's ball would stray wide of the green due to faulty iron play and this established a lack of confidence that raised the dickens with Bobby's game. Of course much of this was mental and that made it all the more serious for without confidence in one's self nothing is possible.

Bobby realized all of this and he took his showing at Oakmont to heart. He practiced diligently and did all that a man can do to regain his old sense of touch and no one but Bobby will ever know what it cost him to master himself. Then came the British Open. Bobby had done all that he could to fit himself for this event, but this was the acid test of Bobby Jones. All golfers have their off year and some of them never come back once they lose confidence in themselves. "He that conquereth himself is greater than he that taketh a city," and Bobby realized this when he faced those trying qualifying rounds and then the long trek down the championship trial in quest of the title.

This championship meant a lot to Bobby. He knew that something was wrong with his game, the old confidence wasn't there and Bobby's first victory was over himself. Beyond this, nothing else mattered, if Bobby was the Bobby of old, he was the class of the golfing world and the British championship proved that he is all of this and more. What a victory was his that afternoon, when he stood in front of the clubhouse at St. Andrews while thousands of mad golf fans cheered him to an echo. Bobby had won the championship, and this was much, but he had won a greater victory than that and Bobby knew it. Never again will he know the soul crushing effect of fear for he has proved his ability to rise above it and from now until he retires from golf, Bobby will be the master of himself and his game.

A great literary light once said that the place to begin a story was at the beginning but the beginning of Bobby's march to his latest golfing triumph lies somewhere back in the dim past and we'll have to be satisfied to start with the qualifying rounds that made him eligible for this Blue Ribbon golfing classic. Thousands of golf fans followed "Wee Bobby" hole after hole through the drenching rain that fell during the first qualifying rounds. Bobby passed most of the time ducking out from under a big black and white umbrella long enough to play a stroke and ducking back again. Bill Mehlhorn contributed a 73 in this down-pour and Jim Barnes' card totaled 74, Ernie Whitecombe led the British contingent with a 72 but the best Bobby could do was a 76. This did not bother him, however, as he immediaely left for Dundee to purchase a hunting dog.

The second day's play saw Jones well toward the top of the list of qualifiers with a total of 147. Bill Mehlhorn scored 146 and Cyril Tolley, the great British amateur, led the field wit a total of 144 for the thrity-six holes. Ernie Whitecombe finished second with 45 and the eight American players who qualified were J. M. Barnes, Larry Nabholts, J. G. Anderson, Bill Melhorn, Tom Stevens, Walter Kennett, and Joe Kirkwood. The real championship started Wednesday and Bobby set a pace that sizzled, out in 32 and home in 36 for a 68 hat tied the course record made in 1923 by George Duncan, Jones established a lead that practically won for him. The psychology of such a performance and its effect on the balance of the field was beyond estimate and, from he time that Bobby turned in that wonderful 32 for the first nine holes, he was never headed.

It is estimated that over 10,000 saw Jones shoot his wonderful card. Bobby contributed a flock of birdies and eagles on that first nine holes that has never been equaled, at the thirteenth hole he was 5 under 4's. He reached the green in two on the 520 yard fifth and holed a 120 foot putt for an eagle three and birdies were so common that they scarcely caused a ripple of comment. An incident that shows how thoroughly the British public has imbibed the sporting spirit occurred at the sixteenth. Bobby was putting on this green which lies near the railroad and the engineer of a passing freight train stopped his train and his crew gathered on the roof of the cars and watched while Bobby holed his putt. How's that for British golf etiquette!

Bobby followed his 68 with a fine 72 on Thursday and this put him in the lead so far that, barring accidents, he had the championship won. Jones golf was not quite as spectacular as it was the previous days, but the gallery got fully as much kick out of it for the reason Bobby made mistakes and recovered from them brilliantly. In fact, his recoveries were little short of marvelous and he kept the croud on its toes every minute of the round. Bobby contributed one putt of 150 feet to make up for a poor pitch and he holed another putt of 90 feet from the back of the eleventh green for a birdie 2. There were a lot of fireworks in the round but Bobby was so far ahead by this time he had ceased to worry.

The thirty-six hole finals for the championship were played on Saturday, July 15th, and the largest gallery that ever assembled for a championship was on hand to see Bobby win. More than this, they wanted him to win and this was Bobby's greatest triumph, he had won the hearts of these sport loving people by his kindness and good golf and Bobby gave them an exhibition of golf that they'll long remember. As old Andrew Kirkaldy, the greenkeeper at St Andrews said, "I reckon I ken mooch aboot gowlf, but I nair have seen gowlf as this." Bobby contributed a 73 for his third round and this was probably his hardest round. He was driving beautifully, hitting his irons well, but his putter went back on him and putt after putt rimmed the cup and stayed out. He really did not find his true game until the fifth hole in the afternoon when he dropped a nine-foot putt and from there in he was a master of his putter.

At the sixth hole Jones holed a 20 footer for a birdie 3, but he lost a stroke at the eighth. Things looked a little blue at the ninth when he hooked into the heather and his ball found a bad lie, but Bobby was equal to the emergency and he dropped his ball close to the hole and holed the putt for a birdie 3. Coming home he started the fireworks with a sequence of 3s, two of them were birdies and he negotiated the difficult thirteenth and fourteenth perfectly. His brassie second carried over the big bunker and enabled Bobby to get his birdie 4 without much trouble. He dropped a stroke at the sixteenth due to poor putting but it ment nothing and he went on down the seventeenth and eighteenth fairways with victory awaiting him just beyond.

Never had St. Andrews seen such a concourse of people, they lined the fairways fifteen deep and in back of the greens there were thousands. It was a madly bunch of humanity which surged across the fairways for a position near the greens but Bobby did not mind at all. In fact, he took the antics of the golf fans with a calm exterior and gave them the best that he had. To win the title Bobby made the most gallant effort and when he returned to his hotel he was overcome with the excitement and strain under which he had labored. As the last putt found the cup 15,000 golf mad Scotchmen rushed across the green and hoisted Bobby to their shoulders. They were a howling, surging, crazy throng and they were cheering an alien golfer who had just defeated their best players and who was taking a much coveted cup overseas.

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