ON THE GOLF LINKS

Chronicle (Levin), 6 August 1946, Page 6

ON THE GOLF LINKS

RAIN DETERS PUYERS C'OJVIPETITION POSTPONED Just prior to the commencement . -of play at the Levin golf links last • Saturday afternoon, heavy rain fell and this fact no doubt deterred many of the usual local golfers j from attending. As many have t received thorough drenchings for I t.hft -last three Saturdays, the match committee decided to cancel bhe fourball round which was scheduled to be played. Many friendly games were played, however, as the weather remained fine and the links. were in fairly good conaition considering the fact that rain had fallen througnout thp week. This match will be played at some future date. I Next Saturday's Match The • president's te"opny, which . was due to be played on Saturday last, will now be played next Sati urday afternoon. The competiU^nj ' chosen will be in the form cf a. i j flag match, the draw for partners j taklng place at 1.5 p.m. trom Ihe I clubhouse. Inter-Club Game With the exception of a home i I and an away game against the ] i Otaki Club in August. and Septem- j j ber respectively, the Levin Club has ! j almost completed its inter-club fix- ; tures for the present season. /.U, j participants in these matches will ! agree that they are always we!- ' i comed, and provide good fellowsnip between all district clubs. With a full scale of members, the cluo committee has done an exceilenti ! job in its first year of post-war I golf in catering for their players j and trying to arrange interesting I matches. I With a return to normr.l c.m^di- • tions, which should be by next season, the local committee should ' experience little trouble in furtheri ing other inter-club matches, .ur1 ticularly with clubs other than those drawn from this district. I Such games, particularly when th? I opponents are regarded as beiug j superior in play, are wondei-rrlr, i beneficial in all respects, and a iwealth of knowledge is often gain1 ed even if the player concerned is ! temporarily out-classed in play. j "Top Dog" Trophies The " above competition was resumed last week-end when tne ! holders, S. C. Franklin and T. .1 . Coutie, successfully defended their title against a strong challenge from B. J. Eager and S. F. Atkins. The challengers were in a com- , fortable position after the comj pletion of nine holes. when they lled by a margin of two up. but gc-nd team work by the holders' soon i reduced this and they finally i emerged the winners by a three and one margin. Next week-end /the holders are to try and resist a .'challenge from W. C. Childs and K. ' BuU/ a" combination of high and low handicappers. Useful Hints 1 Taken from various golfing ; journals, the following hints on ; dilferent types of play mav be (U i interest to local golfers. Just Swing the Club-head: !f yon 'swing the club-head smoothiv. /ou j also pivot, you cock your wr'sts ai the top, a proper shifting of woight takes place and your head does not I p'op up as there is little tens: .n :'n j aetual swinging. There is ro sud- ; den tightening, no quick hitfcing, no j lunging and no over exert'on. So ' golfers, just try swinging the c1 ub I smoothly and easily and you will i be '§urprised at the results. j Lifting the Head: This is one of the main reasons for bad play i o / the' short game. . A method )f o;r- , ing the fault is for the player, when standing over , the ball with tne head down after judging the ilis- •. tance to the hole, to glue the eyes on*. the grass directly behind the i ball , where the club-head will hit. ! immediately after the ball is hit. J Do hot let the eyes follow tne ball. 1 but keep the head down and Jc-ok i at-fehe divot that has been taken in jplaying the shot. Then lift the | head and see v/here the ball is l-going. By practising this for five 1 minutes with a few balls, you will . Ifind that it is not necessary to lift Ufie head immediately after the" ball j has- been hit. ! 'The \ Swing: The shorter the '.swing, '-.the greater the accuracy. I This applies to the use of both iron t and: wooden clubs.

i Judging the Distance : Perhaps t the biggest mistake occurs when a j player does not have a good Idea of I what distance his clubs are capsable of reaching with the average* i yljots, especially with the many ; asSy"ted iron sizes. One good way | ' is to'liearn the power of your clubs.! then keep a careful check on the distance ' * - required in practice. i Rather than ■jus.t shooting haphaz- ! ardly at the. pin with any club, the player should be , careful not to i.over estimate the distance each i club can obtain. The distanees to } go by is average, not that length I that • can be obtained through ! pressing. This applies especially to an iron shot. In case of doubt always use the heavier iron, as the stroke will then be more natural and less likely to go wrong. On Putting : Most golfers fail to putt accurately because of little details that do not seem to be important. One poipt that should. be remembered is to keep the head directly over the ball. If this is done, the putt can be lined up more accurately than in any other wav. | The wrong way to line a putt is to i staiid erect and look at the ball on • ! a slant or at an angle in contradici tion. to the line to the hole. It is 1 almost impossible to bring the club

back in the proper groove and send ihe club-head through after the ball.