19th Hole: The Readers Take Over

WHO TO AND WHEN
Sirs:
Congratulations on a fascinating article (It's Not Only How To, It's Who To and When, July 10) on the step-by-step procedure of putting a football into the air. It gave us fans an idea of the thousands of things that race through a quarterback's mind during the seconds in which he must handle the snap, drop back and set up, read the defense, pick up his receiver and throw a precise pass.

It should be a lesson to those who too easily criticize this key figure. We should all show more appreciation of great quarterbacks, especially Johnny Unitas, the greatest of all.
PAUL J. RESZUTEK
Colonia, N.J.

Sirs:
You've got Johnny Unitas on the cover for the July 10 issue and we're in the midst of the baseball season. It's not even the All-Star break yet. But football, I love it.
TONY PINCIOTTI
Toledo

Sirs:
A very good article, indeed, if you happen to be a year-round football fan. Personally, I cannot see Johnny Unitas on your cover in the middle of the baseball and boating seasons, much less the eve of the Olympics. Maybe next January before the Super Bowl you can get Bill Muncey and Henry Aaron to give us a few tips on their respective sports.
MARK VADASZ
Long Beach, Calif.

GAB AND JAB
Sirs:
When you captioned the picture "The gabbing Ali, always in top condition, talks on" (Agony and Ecstasy, July 10), I hope you were talking about his mouth being in good condition, because that's all. When and if he faces Frazier you can spell Ali M-U-D.
RANDY KOLDYS
South Egremont, Mass.

Sirs:
Tex Maule excellently described the Muhammad Ali- Jerry Quarry fight, but he could have called it a championship fight. Muhammad Ali showed the world that he, not Joe Frazier, deserves the heavyweight crown.

Since the Frazier-Ali fight, the official champion has fought two mediocrities in states that require only perfunctory physical exams. Before Frazier became champ, he never indicated an unwillingness to fight, or a desire to visit Louisiana or Nebraska. Ali whupped Frazier very thoroughly, yet not enough to impress the resident judges or certain elements of the general public.

Muhammad Ali has recovered from his "defeat" and gone on to beat Ellis, Math-is, Foster and Quarry. They may not be all-time greats, but, given the current state of boxing, they aren't too bad. If another active fighter has the same record, his name escapes me. The only reasonable challenger left is George Foreman. Let Ali fight Forman for the heavyweight championship.
RAYMOND S. THOMPSON
South Bound Brook, N.J.

Sirs:
I must contradict Mark Kram. Roberto Duran's foul certainly dwarfs the dimensions of his victory. Although he was the superior fighter for 13 rounds and clearly the victor, the needless and obvious low blow was appalling and should not be ignored. What is boxing coming to when the referee is forced to physically stop the fight after the bell and when a man may hit below the belt without fear of penalty? He says, "The complaint by the Scot provokes no credibility or sympathy." Are we to assume Mr. Kram does not believe that Buchanan was hit below the belt? Are we to assume he doesn't care that the Scot was dealt a low blow after the bell? This type of apathy, on the part of boxing officials and even among such astute observers as Mr. Kram, is not only harmful to the sport as a whole but could be harmful to the individual fighters who would, and legitimately so, be wary of entering the ring with the unreprimanded low blow a strong possibility.
HARRY BAULD
Medford, Mass.

CHECKMATE
Sirs:
Bobby Fischer is maybe our best, but he is a poor representative of the U.S. (A Sudden Stalemate in Reykjavik, July 10). I hope he loses.
BRUCE HICKS SR.
Cardington, Ohio