Oldest Golf Champ

When he was 26, Jack Westland was runner-up at Chicago in the National Amateur Golf tournament. He lost to Francis Ouimet, 38, one of the oldest men ever to win the title. After that, Jack Westland settled down in Everett, Wash. as a commendable tournament golfer and successful insurance salesman.

This year's National Amateur was to be held at the Seattle Country Club, almost in his own backyard; Westland, now a grey-templed 47, decided to take his eighth crack at it. He had also decided on a crack at politics as a Republican candidate for Congress from Washington's Second District. Instead of practicing putts, he had been out buttonholing supporters and cruising around Everett in a car covered with signs proclaiming: "You Can Trust Jack Westland."

Apparently he didn't need practice: one day last week Jack Westland found himself in the finals again, after 21 years. In the seven earlier rounds, such former champions as Billy Maxwell (1951), Sam Urzetta (1950) and Charles Coe (1949) had all gone down. Jack's opponent was Spokane's young (23) Al Mengert, who had diligently been reducing his score ever since he got out of the U.S. Air Force last June.

After going one up over Mengert on the cold, clear morning 18-hole round, Jack, who had chain-smoked all the way, seemed to feel his age. He got his stiff muscles rubbed down in the locker room. At 2 o'clock, before a gallery now grown to some 8,000, Jack and Al teed off again. Some openly doubted that the older man could weather the afternoon round. Al Mengert, though wet-browed under the strain, went one up over Westland on the ninth hole to lead for the first time.

Westland just went on playing a painstaking, precise game that brought, not applause, but "Gee, gee, gee" from the gallery. Soon he was two up. Then on the 16th hole (468 yds.), Jack sent his second shot into the light rough just off the green; Mengert's sailed into a sand trap. Westland arched his approach to within a scant yard of the cup. Mengert exploded out, then overputted the hole. Jack sank his short one. That was it.

The winner, 3 and 2, and oldest U.S. Amateur champ of all time, tossed his blue cap high in the air. His wife Monica, who has never seen him play ("I'm bad luck"), rushed from the clubhouse radio to give him a hug. People kept yelling "Hi, Mr. Congressman!" and the photographers converged on the champ, shouting: "We've been waiting for a week." Said Jack, with a grin: "I've been waiting 21 years."

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