Yeah, I thought that was the reason when I watched the film, but if you read the passage, up a bit, that I quoted from the book it says "The old man said you would, but that's a luxury I can't afford anymore.." which suggests to me that there is another reason rather than Tom not being good enough, I have gone over nearly every reason, and I still haven't came up with the right one... any other suggestions? Thank you everyone who posted, it good to hear others viewpoint.....