The Case of the Golfer's Gambit

I'll state right off that my seven rating is not due to the script itself, but due mainly to the performances of the two lead actors. Dennis Patrick had the incredible ability to portray the guy you love to hate -- and in this one he's at the top of his game, and of course, he doesn't make it to the final act. Alan Reed, Jr (son of the voice of Fred Flintstone), the defendant here, is rather believable as the young and somewhat naive golf pro. The ancillary characters are adequate, and the red herrings thrown in are well-placed. Burger playing a witness is a welcome switch. All-in-all, above average, but still sub-par...

Chick will do anything to win, using the rule book as a weapon. The dead guy, a nasty man, has no sense of honor toward anyone, including his long suffering wife. There's something sloppy and cheap about this episode. That golf club looked a bit long for a sand wedge. Am I wrong?

This episode of Perry Mason finds Perry defending one junior golf pro accused of murdering the senior golf pro at the country club played by Dennis Patrick. It was Alan Reed Jr.'s wedge that was used to club Patrick to death and it was junior pro Reed that was found over the body.

This episode was interesting for because none other than Hamilton Burger is a member of the club and earlier that evening presented Patrick with the first prize money for winning a tournament. Later on Patrick called William Talman with information about a possible case. Just as Talman is telling Patrick to see him in the office next morning at 12:27 am. he hears the sound of a struggle and Patrick is dead. It's Talman who summons the police who find the body.

Patrick was truly a slime ball who had a host of people who would have liked to do him in. In fact Raymond Burr shows that any number of people could have done the deed. The key is the missing prize money which Talman had presented in cash to Patrick.

A good episode and interesting to see William Talman in the witness box.

This is one of those episodes where no tears were shed for the person murdered. In fact I think the person that murdered the victim should have received an reward instead of mandatory jail time.

The mystery centers around a louse named Chick Farley (Dennis Patrick). Seems Chick use to be a pro golfer until he was thrown out because of some issue that disqualified him from playing. Due to his wife, a former women's champion, he is a member and president of Pine Hills Country Club. This is a person that will sell his soul just to be able to win a friendly round of golf.

He has ticked off nearly everyone he knows. He runs around on his wife, he steals from the pro shop, he is blackmailing the manager and has a caddie that is an ex-con that he threatens with sending him back to prison. Just an all around poor guy.

One evening he is hit over the head with a golf club belonging to Jim Harrell (Alan Reed Jr). Mr Harrell had already threatened Chick - and when the police arrived he is holding the golf club that was used as the murder weapon. In comes Perry, with a new hair-do, to saved Jim Harrell from the gas chamber.

This is a fairly good 'who-done-it' show with many suspects. I mean at least five people had a good motive in wanting to see the end of Mr Chick Farley. So the writers play this little mystery like a grand piano. A good watch for viewers and one where someone makes a bad oral mistake on the witness-stand.

Note- Perry is sporting a brand new hair-do for this show. Looks like he was already getting into the Ironside hair style. ---Plus in this episode Hamilton Burger is called to the stand to give testimony. He was a member of the Pine Hills Country Club and had first hand knowledge of some events.