Women On The Golf Links.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 18008, 19 November 1926, Page 4

Women On The Golf Links.

THE ART OF PUTTING,

(By

CECIL LEITCH.

METHOD OF SWINGING THE PUTTER - . • HOW I IMPROVED MY PUTTING. ... IMPORTANCE OF KEEPING THE BODY RIGID. .... BE SURE TO FOLLOW THROUGH. Jt is often said that putting is a gift, and that good putters are born and not aiade. Some players go up to the ball, hit it in the most casual manner imaginable without any previous study of the line or the nature of the ground, and yet achieve results which are good at times. The ordinary mortal, noting all this, wonders whether she should adopt a similar method. But over several rounds the player who has made a close study of putting will reap her reward, and will find that a combination of concentration and determination is a great asset. The so-called born putter may be good when she has a day “on.” but on an “off” day she is a pitiful object, to watch as she seeks to discover the cause of her failures. Putting has been given a very outstanding place in the game. Newspaper accounts of a match invariably give the impression that bad putting was generally the undoing of a particular pJaver. Approaches may have found bunkers, drives may have been topped or sliced into the rough, iron .shots may have been missed—all these are entirelv overlooked. The explanation may be that putts “show up” more than shots played through the green. On the green, too, the player is given a chance to make amends for previous lapses. Spectators regard putting as the easiest part of the game. It is the simplest, because it calls for the short - est stroke; but it is also the most difficult by reason of the accuracy and delicacy of touch it demands. For several years I found my reputation as a putter decidedly unenviable. Adverse criticisms probably affected me, and made me doubly conscious of my weakness. Apropos ofmy experience, the remark made by a famous critic contained a world of truth. He said: “ It is no wonder the British cannot putt. They are everlastingly being told what bad putters they are compared with the Americans, and have lost their confidence in consequence.” Like every bad putter. I had my good davs, but they "-ere so rare as to be almost valueless. The rest ot my game also began to be affected as my efforts up to the green were nullified bv subsequent bad putting. One day when I was at my very worst, I heard a casual remark by an ex-open chamuion “ A good putter,” he observed. “ can get the ball into the hole even when he is putting badly. ’ The remark made a deep impression on me. and from that moment I determined to conquer my weakness.

THE NEED OF CONCENTRATION' The first- thing I did was to change from a putting cleek to two straightfaced putters- - a heavy one for slow greens or long putts and a flight one

for keen greens and holing out. Having done this, I entirely altered my stance and the method I employed to hit the ball. I made a closer study of the line and the nature of the turf before making up my mind what I would attempt to do, and I concentrated more deeply. Those changes speedily resulted in a greatly improved putting average, and I venture to say (touching wood meanwhile!) that putting is now’ a pleasure to me instead of a painful operation. I decided to put these changes to the test in actual play, and not during practice. To my mind, it is a simple matter to lay approach putts stone dead and hole out with regularity from a reasonable distance when nothing depends on the result. It is a very different story when the same shots have to be played during a match, and in an important event the yard putt is doubly difficult and the approach putt is ever terrifying. There are two distinct methods of swinging the putter—one with the w’rists and forearms, the other with the arms from the shoulders downwards. Generally speaking, those pla}*ers who use the former method hit the ball with a decided tap; those who adopt the latter method give the ball a smooth stroke, which imparts a decided roll rather than back-spin. Speaking from bitter experience, I can say I found the wrist method conducive to a jerky, hurried action. The arm action, on the other hand, reduces the tendency- to hurry to a minimum. In this so-called arm action the wrists are still brought into play 1o a certain extent. but they do not perform the lion’s share of the work. In the style \ have adopted, I stand square and close enough to the ball to allow’ me to look down upon it. My elbow’s arc slightly bent, and my grip is of the overlapping variety. The left hand does most of the work in taking the club back, and the right controls the forward swing. If I may so describe the action, J brace the left wrist as the ball is struck, and this practice is, I feel sure, largely responsible for the improvement in my putting. This action does not cause the club-head to stop as soon as it hits the ball—far from it. The swing is continued without any break. It is merely a check to the ’ bad habit of turning the toe of the club-head on to the ball at the moment of impact, and also prevents ' the dangerous habit of stabbing. Stabbing is sometimes effective on slow greens, but the player who strokes the ball smoothly and hits it squarely on the line chosen will benefit in the long run, especially when different greens have to be dealt with. > KEEP TIIE BODY RIGID! The importance of keeping the heal! | and body still when putting cannot be L overestimated. Even the slightest vari- ’ at ion in the position of the body during the stroke may spell failure. The hands and arms are all that should be ’ used, and the body should be kept 1 rigidly still with a firm stance in which the weight is thrown on to the heels. • Ti must be left to the plaver to decide } what stance and what, grip feel most comfortable and grie the greatest confidence. These who favour the finger grip for longer shots may find the : overlapping grip more suited to this - part- of the game, for it demands delir cacy of touch rather than strength. * Many pla3*ers could reduce their

putting average considerably- bv giving more thought to the line of the putt and the strength of the green. Especially when allowances have to be made for slopes, every’ player should study the line from behind the ball before attempting to play’ the shot. She should try- to find a particular blade of grass, about a foot in front of the ball, on the line which she thinks leads to the hole, and putt the ball over this blade of grass. The face of the olub must be placed square to the line, c-d J, ’e putt then becomes an c- ‘I .. •••’ght stroke. Some p 1 mak paring unnecessarily difficult by trying t<apply “cut” to counteract slopes. It. is very seldom that a putt calls for such treatment. The. reason why the blade of the putter is kept square to the line is to ensure true hitting. The club-head too must be kept close to the ground, and along an imaginary straight line behind and in front of the ball, for as long as possible. The backward and forward swing must be smooth and slow, and the club-head must follow through after striking the ball. An article on putting would be incomplete without some mention of the stymie. There arc very- few stymies which are. really difficult to negotiate, but very few players know how to proceed when sty-mied. They’ do not use the slope of the ground or the Avind to all the adA’antagc they might, nor do they know that a ball hit off the heel of the club will travel in a slight curve from left to right. Similarly a ball hit off the toe Avill tray’el in a curve from right to left. It is amusing to hear opponents complain when they’ are sty*mied. Such complaints are really’ a confession ot inability to pla>- the required stroke. If the lie of the ground, the yvind and the position of the opponent's ball are carefully studied, the plaver avj'll generally find a comparatively’ simply route to the hole. The lofting of a sty-mie has already’ been dealt yvith under “ The Work of the Niblick.” Tavo more hints may- be useful. When a long putt up a steep slope is demanded, it will be found easier to keep the ball close to the ground if the toe of the putter is raised and the ball is struck near the heel. For a putt down a steep slope. “ drag " can be imparted by raising the heel of_ the putter and by striking the ball off the toe of the club. One final yvord: Try io lay every long putt as dead as possible. There is nothing so racking in an important match as holing lor attempting t 6 hole) putts of 3. yard or a couple 6f yards. It is all very well to say. “ Ney-er up. never down.” “ Give the hole a chance, but always leave the ball dead if it fails to drop in.’* (To be Continued).