| Lesson 1 | | | | me then, why I can't play golf." |
| I think I can most readily explain the requirements of | | | | "You can't play good golf for the simple reason that |
| good golf by relating the case history of one of my | | | | you do not know how to use your hands," I answered. |
| pupils, whom I shall call "D.M." | | | | "What's wrong with my hands," he asked. |
| When D.M. joined our Bel-Air golf club his handicap | | | | "For one thing," I answered, "you have a death grip on |
| was 10. After three months play over this exacting | | | | the club with your left hand. This grip, plus the fact that |
| course with its narrow fairways, D.M.'s handicap went | | | | you raise the club on the backswing with your left |
| to 13. This disturbed him considerably because he had | | | | hand and left arm, causes you to roll the clubface |
| a cerÂtain pride in his game, so he approached | | | | away from the ball on the backswing, and from this roll |
| me with this comment: "Joe> I guess I am going to | | | | away action the club falls into an open position at the |
| have to take some lessons." "Well," I answered, "you | | | | top of the swing. From here you pull sharply across |
| don't have to talk that way about the lessons, I am not | | | | the ball so that you produce high pop up shots, or you |
| selling castor oil on the lesson tee." | | | | push the ball away off to the right, or you slice your |
| When we got to the lesson tee, I asked D.M. to take a | | | | shots badly. |
| few practice swings, and then I had him hit a half a | | | | "Now, from this same open face position of the club at |
| dozen shots. | | | | the top of the swing, you might suddenly start doing |
| "What do you think of it?" asked D.M. | | | | the very reverse. Instead of bringing the clubhead into |
| "Not bad," I answered, "in fact it is very good: Do you | | | | the ball with this dragging, cross-cut, lagging action of |
| know exactly what your first move is in your swing?" | | | | the club, you suddenly start lashing out with the right |
| "I start the club away from the ball," D.M. answered. | | | | hand at the top of the swing. The club, with this 'too |
| "No, there is something you do ahead of that," I said. | | | | early hit' action of the right hand, is thrown outside the |
| Finally, after another half dozen shots I made D.M. | | | | point of impact. Often this 'too early hit' with the right |
| realize that his first move, the very first move he | | | | hand causes the clubface to turn over, to toe in as the |
| made after he assumed his position to the ball, was a | | | | ball is met and a series of topped shots, smothered |
| "forward press." | | | | hook shots or shots that go off to the left result." (This |
| For those unfamiliar with this term let me tell you that it | | | | is a common fault with beginners and is the reason |
| is as old as the hills, but aptly describes exactly how | | | | why they get so many white paint marks on the top |
| every good, reliable golfer starts his swing. The | | | | part of their wood clubs.) |
| forward press is a slight forward motion, a slight | | | | So, I explained to D.M. that while his footwork and |
| forward bending of the right knee. This forward kick | | | | body action were good, this faulty hand action caused |
| with the right knee enables the player to do a "reverse | | | | his shots to stray to the right or fall off to the left; in |
| press," a reversing of the knee positions, whereby the | | | | other words, they went any place but down the |
| player can balance himself on his right foot and right | | | | middle. |
| leg, so that the upswing of the club can be made with | | | | "You certainly hit the nail on the head," said D.M. "That |
| the right side of the body. And I want to say most | | | | is exactly my problem. I have no trouble hitting them |
| emphatically that if there is any trick to making a good | | | | but I don't know where they are going. What do we |
| golf shot, it is exactly this trick of getting onto the right | | | | do about it?" |
| leg and right foot before the club is picked up on the | | | | I then proceeded to show D.M. that after making the |
| back swing. | | | | forward press, which was his first move, he then |
| After I had demonstrated and proved to D.M. that he | | | | made move two, a reverse press (changing knee |
| had this little forward press as the first move of his | | | | positions and thereby shifting his balance onto his right |
| golf swing, I told him to never let anyone ever talk him | | | | leg and right foot), that he then made move three |
| out of that move, because with it he had developed | | | | (raised the club to the top of the swing) and then |
| the proper sense of footwork and balance to put | | | | move four (brought the club down into and through the |
| himself in a fine position to swing the club. At this point I | | | | ball). |
| emphaÂsized the fact that the proper way to | | | | I told him that was the natural sequence of motion in a |
| swing a golf club was with a sense of body action, a | | | | golf shot and that golf champions such as Harry |
| sense of body control. This sense of using the body to | | | | Var-don, Bobby Jones, Leo Diegel, Jimmy Demaret, |
| swing a golf club is nothÂing strange or secret. | | | | Jackie Burke, Paul Runyon, Lawson Little, Byron Nelson, |
| The basis of all athletics is that whenever one wants | | | | Sam Snead, George Bayer, Mike Souchak, Jay Hebert, |
| to throw something, to kick someÂthing or to | | | | and countless others, all had or have this one, two, |
| punch something, in fact, anytime one wants to get | | | | three and four rhythm in their golf swing. |
| power into his arms or legs, he does it by getting into | | | | I pointed out to D.M. that because of the tense death |
| proper position to utilize his body to generate the force. | | | | grip with his left hand, he kept raising the club with his |
| I pointed out to D.M. that this combination of proper | | | | left hand and left arm and throwing or rolling the club |
| footwork for balance and proper body action for | | | | into open position at the top of the swing. |
| power was the basis of every good golfer's game, | | | | Try as I might, I couldn't seem to get the idea across to |
| and that howÂever he had acquired that little | | | | D.M.-that his clubhead ought to be closed on the |
| forward press, it had made it possible for him to use | | | | backswing. When I asked him to keep the club closed |
| his body correctly and gave him the basis of a real | | | | on the backswing I was only asking him to keep the |
| good golf game. | | | | club square with the line of flight as he took it back. |
| After this long dissertation D.M. said, "That's great; tell | | | | |