Gateway to Northwestern Ontario Digital Collections

Terrace Bay News, 3 Aug 1967, p. 8

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AGUASABON GOLF CLUB OFFICIAL OPENING AND CENTENNIAL OPEN TOURNAMENT AUGUST 4 - 7th. Schedule of Events - August 4 - Aguasabon Junior Centennial open. 18 hole tournament. Monte Carlo night in the curling lounge - 8 to 12 midnight August 5 - Aguasabon Ladies Centennial Open - 18 hole tournament. Cocktails in the Arena. 4p.m. to 6p.m. Dance in the Arena 8.30 to la.m. Roy | Coran Orchestra. August 6 - Official opening Ceremony - 9 a.m. Kimberly-Clark Mens Centennial open - 36 holes. Professional and Amateur Tournaments. Open Air Dance at Golf Clubhouse - 8 p.m. to 12 midnight. August 7 - Kimberly-Clark Mens Centennial Open Tournament. Barbecue at Golf Clubhouse commenc- ing at 2 p.m. Tournament entry forms and spectator tickets can be obtained at the Clubhouse. Everyone welcome. THE HOME TEAM "Now pay attention and you'll hear how { want the signals barked out!" TERRACE BAY NEWS THE August 3, 1967 SPORTS BEAT By Glen May Strike three The International Baseball League, the prime develop- ment program controlled -by the major leagues, will likely become a corpse within the next three years. ; If the IL doesn't fold in that time it will only be due to freight cars of money shipped in by the sponsoring major league teams. Subsidization has prevented collapse before, but this time, the goose will depos- it her golden eggs in her own front yard. It is. true that the major league clubs do need farm teams which allow their un- tried raw talent time to ma- ture. However, the business ty- coons who control the various major league squads appear ready to submit to the fi- nancial tko they are receiving from Jacksonville to Toronto. When an IL team 'is incapable of. attracting 1,060 fans to a game on a regular basis, ex-° penses cannot be met. Never mind salaries, ypkeep of the park, taxes, and those other financial obligations which come with the control of a minor league team. There are various minor chains throughout the United States where players can be seasoned. The major league moguls don't necessarily need the IL, and it has become apparent that the only facet which is keeping the loop alive, is. tradition. It is the oldest professional minor league in North America, pos- sibly the world. Tradition doesn't pay the bills. Most of the IL teams are stocked with two or three play- ers major league clubs are counting on to make the tran- sition to the big time. The rest of the minor teams are loaded with fringe players and have- nots. For years baseball fans have been subjected to a poor cali- bre of ball, but human beings are natural suckers, and so they paid the dollars to assist in the massive subsidization program. When _ 10,000 showed up for a game the big leaguers smirked and paid their bills. Today. when 300 show the major league moguls snarl and curse; they pay the bills but they don't like it any more. Fans are fed up watching what are supposed to be professional players make the same mental and physical er- rors committed by amateurs on the local sandlots. Spectators can watch the best in the busi- ness on television or walk down the street and watch the neighborhood kids for the price of a few yards of shoe leather. Scrapping the IL isn't going to affect baseball. "The kids coming out of college in the U.S. will still have a place to hang their glove. If the major league owners band together and_ unan- imously decide to form solid minor leagues they will benefit the rewards along. with the fans. The best prospects for each major league club will be placed on one of their farm teams, making for a top brand of ball. The duds will be relegated to the role of specta- tors. There'll be griping from the minors, but so what? Fi- nally, the customer will be get- ting full value for his dollar. As for Canada, the majors can forget every city east of Vancouver. In fact, a sugges- tion would be to forget 'Canada entirely. Canadians have been ex- posed to an inferior product for such a lengthy period they could not adjust -quickly enough to make the venture pay. Americans have always played baseball since they were toddlers while Canadians have played hockey. Canadians don't have more than a handful of major league homebrews to cheer along. This counts. And __ besides, there's too much competition from other sports now for baseball to survive. So, major league owners, he gentle, but be swift.

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