GOLF.

Press, Volume LVIII, Issue 17430, 15 April 1922, Page 9

GOLF.

THE CRAMPED GOLFER. HOW P2EEDOM AND POWBB MAY BE OBTAINED. (sf£CXaixy vtmrnar job "thb moss.") (Bt Abb Mrromxi!.) At the risk of being thought a golfing heretic I suggest that the eye-on-the- ■ ball and the head-still theoiy can bo overdone. It is good up to a point, but bad when it becomes an obsession, as it | undoubtedly is in the case of many players. For when the head is kept still, the body is likely to be rigid and the shoulders do not make the complete turn as th© club is taken back*, Anything which prevents the free pivot of the body from the waist upwards comes under ".things to bo avoided, and by keeping the head too steady many players incline to lift up the club instead of swinging it back and allowing it to go up. almost of -its own accord. Watch any long driver among your friends and you will, I am certain, see that at the top of the swing he is looking at the ball over his left shoulder. In order to get into that position there must be a certain amount of freedom granted to the body all the time the club is going up. It is not much J rood standing like a poker in an eneavour to make sure that the body does not sway. As a matter of fact it. does not matter whether a player ® wa, y® or not so long as he brings nis head and) shoulders back to the position which they occupied opposite tne ball _m the address. I know that I sway back a little on my right foot. In fact the right foot leans over a little on the outside edge of the shoe, and this seems to give me extra freedom when the club is going up.

Importance of Balance. Freedom is an entirely different tiling from hitting loosely and wildly at the ball. One can be free and yet have the body under control to prevent it swaying too far. Whenever the swing becomes cramped and rigid I find that the left arm, instead of reaching out to its fullest extent, is forced totwnd at the elbow far sooner' than it would have had the player allowed himself a little freedom oi the body as the club went up. To drive well, the club is swung up and it comes down behind tbe balf with what I might term "a long, flat bit in-the swing,'' but whenever the club is lifted up the player is apt to hammer the ball into the ground. To guard against this, some players, instead of keeping their weight well poised on the left foot at the moment of impact, lean far back on to their right, with the result that they hit under the ball or. get what they call "a confound6cl slice " I think that if, players—or those who do not drive really well—-would give a little more attention to obtaining a good balance of the body, their accuracy would be increased beyond their expectations. If the body is not under control it follows that the club-head cannot meet the ball accurately. _ _ It must wander from its true and original path. There are many golfers who seem to be able to hit the ball pretty well almost. I might say, with both feet off the ground. Lilpe us all, they have their happy days when driving ,is a joy, but when their timing fails, their game is far worse than that Of the golfer who realises what good balance means in relation to the swing. We have all read about the player who was so keen upon keeping his eye on the ball 'and the head steady that he invented a little machine which told him whenever his head moved. I have not met the gentleman, but I fancjjr . tbaft.'ia carrying out his scheme his swing must have become rather cramped. He may—in fact I am sure he -will—drive tbe ball down the middle, but lie will not drive it far. j

Bringing the Shoulders Bound. It is very doubtful whether the body really assists us in driving, but it does assist us to make the swing .smooth., Not only this, but when the shoulders are pivoting nicely at the top of the string, there is a certain feeling of power which is absent when the club has been lifted up and the shoulders have not come completely round. We are not given much time after we start the club head 1 away from the ball before it has started again on its downward swing. The speed of the head at the moment of impact is very great, and if we have not enough freedom we somehow or otliier hurry the down swing. Some players would aay they lifted their head and missed the ball; others might say that they., jumped at it. Both might be correct, but. I think the true answer would be found in the fact that there had been a lack of pivot and a shortened back swing. As a result, tho club has not travelled so far, and before the player has made up his mind to hit, the chib head has come down to the ball. ■

One of dur great golfers has almost perfect balance while swinging, but as the club Ihead goes Jaack hia head moves slightly away with it. Then, however, as his hands go up and the club head travels over the snoulders t his head moves backwards to its original position. (Jnbe at .the top of the swing the head is kept guite. still, and the first movement down is a movement of the club head, principally by tho wrists throwing th« club head rather away and behind tlhe shoulders or back.

It is not given to many golfers to have a good baJanoo with freedom of action, but I think—and I have thought so for a long time—that a little more license coukT bo claimed by golfers, especially in their upswing. It is absurd, of course, to expect. that the player who throws all his weight on to his right leg and tihen on to his left in a see-saw movement, will become an accurate driver. He would at times be a very long driver, but I fear he would miss many more shots than he would hit properly. There is, hoWever, a happy medium in this soe-saw movement, and if a player's head were to move backwn,rds an inch, or so aa the club gees up,; it would help him to swing the'club freely. Without this freedom golf becomes a forceful game, and this is just what it; should not be. • 4 What length 6f swing a golfer make? is a personal matter. Some of us like to take the • club- a little further than others, but those with a short swing would find if they allowed themselves a trifle more freedom it would increase their length, and also help tihem to apply a little more power. -