How to play GOOD GOLF

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 2, Issue 233, 25 May 1932, Page 6

How to play GOOD GOLF

J.

McCORMICK

BY

i Speciai/ly written eor the « Morning Post » 1 I by J. McCORMICK, | | Oeeiciae Coach to the Rotorua Goee Club § | (All Rights Reserved) § | ARTICLE VII. § | IRON PLAY | | In this article I propose to explain the uses of the irons. I = This is a very important department of the game, and one which = | is much easier to explain by practical demonstration than by writ- 5 | ing. Many a straight true drive down the fairway has lost its | | effect through an indifferent iron shot. The wood does the pre- | 1 liminary work, but it is the iron which puts you on the green. It | | is an axiom of golf than an inch of accuracy is worth a mile of S | length. The first essential of accuracy is to develop con- = | trol and judgment. Many otherwise exeellent golfers crash in | | matches simply because they do not know how to brace. and | | control the swing of their iron shots. Until recent years, more | | than four irons were rarely carried in the golfer's kit. They f | were mid-iron, mashie, mashie niblick, and putter. There wei;e 5 | eases, of course, where some players carried in addition a cleek, § | mashie cleek, or a jigger. • | 1 ' To-day, on account of the fact that clubs are so evenly S 5 balanced, many more are carried, and each club is numbered from | I one to nine. The nicety of balance in the clubs gives each so | | even a touch that you can scarcely distinguish the difference in § | weight between the longest and shortest. The clubs are also 5 | graded, and the loft varies so little on each one that you take S | praetically a full stroke each time and allow the loft to check | | the distance. |

= Number one club has the straightest face and the longest = | shaft, which means that it hits the longest ball. It is, however, E | the hardest to use, and for that reason is employed generally = | only from good lies. If you are confident of your spoon shots, = = then you may safely lighten your bag by doing without this club | = No. 2, which is commonly known as the "beginner's friend," is | = praetically the mid-club, and is very useful. Many holes are de- | | signed for a wood and an iron stroke, and it is No. 2 which is = | usually called upon for these particular holes. No. 3 has a 5 | little more loft than No. 2 and is slightly shorter. It is chiefly | | used when the distance is not sufficiently far to call for a No. 1 | § or 2. No. 4 is shorter again, and has still more loft, giving a | | shorter and higher stroke. This is a club which is often required. jjj | Actually, No. 4 plays what is really an exaggerated mashie. shot = | and very often serves this purpose on a round. I will assume E | that you are practising with these four clubs to-day, and will E = proceed to describe their use. | | As I have already pointed out, the iron clubs are shorter | I than the woods. It is therefore necessary for you to stand much | | closer to the ball when using an iron, at the same time bringing = | the heels closer together than is the case with the woods. As No. | | 1 iron, on account of its shorter shaft, brings you closer to the j= = ball than a wood, naturally No. 2, 3 and 4, on account of their jj § decreasing length, bring you still closer. But this closer stance = § and shorter club does not mean that you are to curtail your E a £ E swing. E = You should make full shots and full swings in every de- | E partment of the game. Naturally, when you are closer to the. = = ball, your swing will be shorter, but do not grip harder or stiffen | = the body to do it. § I A little thought will show you that if you are standing | | closer to the ball, the upward pull of the. arms for the swing will E | be checked much sooner than if you are standing further away. | | Players should always remember that the chin is the lock for the | § body and always hold the chin absolutely still so that the left | = shoulde-r touches it in the backward swing and the right on the = = follow through. | § All clubs are gripped in the same manner, and there is | 1 no difference in the grip for an iron and the grip for a wood. Do | 1 not fall into the common error of supposing that iron shots are | 1 hits and not swings. But remember this. Each club is made for = 1 its own particular stroke, and use it for that stroke. jjj = Having taken your grip in the two fingers- and thumb E | of the left hand, address the bafi by resting the club on its heel, | I and standing at the proper distance required by the length of the ^ | shafts of the various clubs. E | Balance easily in your staace allowing the knees to slacken, | = and at the same time gripping the ground with your heels. The | I feet, of course, should be fairly close together, and the head and = | shoulders drooped. | = Commence the swing by pushing the club head away with E | your left elbow and gripping with the two fingers and thumb of E 1 the left hand. In this movement the forearm, head and shaft S 1 of the club should all leave the ball together, sweeping the head | 1 close to the ground with the fae3 of the club and the back of the | | left hand turning outwards and over. Continue this movement | | until your left shoulder is pulled against your chin with the right = | hip easing back to take the weight. E E Now ease the club into the first two fingers and thumb § | of the left hand. This is the top of the swing, and at this stage | | you should have a straight left arm with the hands slightly above | | the shoulder, the toe of the club pointing towards the ground. In E | this position, observe how little foot and body is required to do. E = The right side has simply brace d back taking the weight, while = jjj the left side is drawn in with the left knee eased inwards and e | the foot only a fraction off the g 'ound. E | Let the club head and hands come quietly from the top of = E the swing keeping the body perfectly still. Carry the club down = E quietly until you feel it fall into the first two fingers and thumb, ^ I then deliberately pull at the ball. At this stage of the swing, | = the left foot^commences to come down, and as the club meets the = | ball, the heel is hard on the ground with the hip and knee begin- | | ning to straighten. = | After striking the ball, the club head should continue E 1 in its natural swing which means that it will be gathering speed | S pulling the right side inwards and bringing the right shoulder S i up against the swing. Both arms should be fully extended with = = the shaft of the club still away from the. palms and in the fingers g | only. Summed up briefly, the position should be this. Chin still, | | shoulder jammed hard against the chin, arms straight out and | 1 over, the right foot just eased off the ground. | E In all correct strokes in golf, the body should not make. a | I greater arc than the width of the shoulders. On a sunny day | I watch your shadow and make sure that your body movement is | I correct. A great deal of weak iron play is caused by too much | E foot and body work. You can overcome this fault by keeping the | | chin still and an absolute restraint upon the body until it is pulled | I into the stroke. In my next article I will deal with that very . | § useful club, the "mashie." S e,,i„„ii„i