Chapter XX: Afterword

It would be very easy for me now to begin to explain in the ordinary manner of golf books how the game is played, but to do so would be going outside the scope of this work, and interfering either with the proper functions of the professional, or the proper practice of the intelligent golfer.

I have, in this book, taken my readers through all those matters which are of the most vital importance to the game, and practically everything which is contained between the covers of this book may be better studied and digested by the golfer, be he a champion or a beginner, in his arm-chair than on the links. He who wishes to know golf to the core, must know what is in this book, all of which he can thoroughly understand without taking a club in his hands.

The whole fault of the false doctrine which has been so plentifully published about golf in the past, is that it has given the unfortunate people who have taken notice of it an incalculable number of things to think about. The truest and best tuition in golf is that which advances by a process of elimination and so proceeds that it gives the learner a minimum number of separate circumstances to think about during his game; in fact, if the tuition has been properly carried out the golfer will have astonishingly little to think of at the moment when he is making his stroke. This is the ideal condition of mind. The remark which the puzzled golfer made to me that when he started on his downward swing he had so many things to think of that he was "all of a dither" expresses marvellously accurately the condition of mind of about ninety per cent of golfers who think they have studied golf.

The golfer who studies this book soundly and intelligently will learn what he will learn from no other book on golf, and that is what a vast number of things there are in connection with the golf stroke which it is expedient to forget at the moment one is making it.

Let me give an illustration of what I mean. The golfer is told now that at the top of his swing he must get his weight on to his right foot, and that he must keep his head still. The merest attempt to do this produces a conflict at once. Then he is told that his left hand must dominate the right: here is conflict again. But when he learns that in order to keep his head still he must put his weight at the top of his swing on his left foot, the conflict vanishes, he finds that it is natural and easy to do; and he forgets to encumber his mind with the fact that it has to be done, so that it becomes just as habitual with him to put his weight in the right place as it is when he is walking. The same thing applies with regard to the instructions which he has always had drilled into him to allow the left hand and arm to usurp the position of the right. Here again he is distinctly exhorted to encourage these two members to enter into conflict during the stroke. Although I explained to him most clearly that this idea about the left being the more important member of the two is utterly wrong, and that the right is, and always must be, the dominant member in the golf swing, I did not tell him to remember this during the golf swing, and he is indeed a very foolish person if he attempts to remember it. All he has to do is to cut the false doctrine out of his mind, and nature will attend to the rest. So it will be seen that when one has grasped the truth in connection with golf one has advanced by such a process of elimination that there is left for the happy golfer when he addresses his ball very little to think of but hitting that ball.

Golf in the past has suffered from the multiplicity of false directions. It is by recognising these for what they are, and by forgetting them that the golfer will ultimately arrive at _The Soul of Golf_.

INDEX

Accelerating speed, Vardon on, 104

Address and impact similar, Braid on, 137

Address, Braid on, 133

Apportionment of back-spin, 263, 270, 271

Arm roll in stroke, 210

Arms measure distance, 46, 174

As you go up so you come down, 97, 219

Ayres, F. H., Ltd., 289, 324

Ayres, Mr. Rupert, 289-291

Back-spin at impact, rate of, 272
how obtained, 247
Professor Tait's experiment, 225
Professor Thomson's error, 246

Badminton _Golf_, 120, 158, 214, 218

_Badminton Magazine_, 222, 226

Ball, Mr. John, 153, 157

Ball, action of, during impact, 237
brambly, inaccuracy off putter, 287
centre of gravity, 292
centre of gravity, test for, 294
effect of marking, 302
effect of untrue centre, 299
flight parallel with earth, 265
guttie, truth of, 294
Haskell, 253
indented or dimpled, 286
instability of the golf, 284
smooth, flight of, 289, 311
tests, 296
the golf, 283
track of, on green, 286
unscientifically made, 261

Balls, dimpled, 291

Base ball, spin in, 233

Beauty of flight, 3

Billiard balls, excrescences on, 283

Billiards, blind spot in, 175

Blackwell, Mr. Edward, 153

Blindfold golf, 164

Blind spot, 168, 169, 173

Blow in golf horizontal, Professor Tait, 265
upward, 265

Body movement after impact, 167

Braid on distribution of weight, 119, 135
on influence of club after impact, 101
on putting, 50, 55, 58, 77

Braid's putting, 75, 76
uncertainty about wrist work, 208

Bullet, drift of, 235

Catapults, Sir Ralph Payne-Gallwey's, 296

Cleek, push stroke with, 194
Vardon's push shot with, 194

Clubs, all illegal, 322
construction of, 316
rusty, 333

_Contemporary Review_, 320

Corkscrew action in stroke, Braid on, 213

Croome, Mr. A. C. M., 198, 199

Cross-bow, Professor Tait's experiment, 266

Cross wind, Professor Thomson on, 240
Sir Ralph Payne-Gallwey on, 298
Vardon on, 256

Cut, principles of, 89

Cutting round a stymie, 73

Direction, demand for, 3

Downward swing, control of, 133, 278

Downward swing, Duncan and Vardon, 130

Drag for bolting puts, 62, 63
in putting, 60

Drive, tension of muscles during, 38

Duncan, George, 7, 82
and mashie stroke, 72, 82
and smooth ball, 289, 309

Dynamical problems, Professor Thomson on, 228

Elimination the secret of coaching, 352

English mental attitude towards games, 4

_English Review, The_, 267

_Evening Standard and St. James's Gazette_, 288

Eye, lifting the, 34, 35

Eyes, effect of, on weight, 167
function of, 162, 163
movement of, 166
Vardon on movement of, 168

Fallacies of golf, 95

Feet, movement of, Duncan, Vardon, and Braid, 134

"Flick" in golf stroke, 213

Flight of ball, 222

Follow-through, 128, 129
control of, 278

Forearms, action of Duncan's, 210
in stroke, roll of, 210

Freemasonry of golf, 6

_Fry's Magazine_, photographs in, 125, 138

Golf books, unscrupulous practices, 10

_Golf Illustrated_, 197
and Professor Thomson, 253

Golfers groping their way, Braid, 269

Grip, apportionment of power in, 150
old, 152, 153
overlapping, 152
suggested new, 151

Gutta ball, Walter J. Travis on, 253

Haskell ball, 253

Head, keeping still, 162, 163
Taylor on position of, 171

High tee for low ball, 246

Hilton, Mr. H. H., 153

Hilton, Mr. H. H., in _Concerning Golf_, 160

Horizontal stroke, Professor Thomson's idea, 244

Hutchinson, Mr. Horace G., on distribution of weight, 120
on top of swing, 158

Impact, action during, 182
and address similar, Braid on, 137, 277
an incident of stroke, 45, 99, 100
arc during, 244
duration of, 165
length of, 277
muscles at time of, 30, 31
"no control over," Braid, 278
Professor Thomson on, 242
Walter J. Travis on, 253

Impatience to play, 5

Instruction by elimination, 352

Knee, left, Braid's action, 137
left, not loose, 127
right, and Vardon, 131

Laws of swerve of universal application, 234

Left and right wrists together, Vardon, 216

Left arm, power of, 12, 140
Braid on, 142, 143, 148
Mr. Hutchinson on, 146
Taylor on, 144, 145, 148
Vardon on, 140, 141, 148, 149

Left hand, regulating grip, Vardon on, 150

Left wrist starts club down, Braid, 215

_Le Golf_, Arnaud Massy, 320

Literature of golf, 10, 334

Low, Mr. John L., _Concerning Golf_, 159, 256, 257

Low ball, high tee for, 246

Mashie, cut shot, 26
cut stroke, Vardon on, 191
for stymies, 70
stroke, Taylor's cut, 193

Mashies, short, for stymies, 330

Massy, Arnaud, 320

Master stroke, the, 178

Matter, definition of, 41

Mechanical accuracy demanded, 2

Mechanics of golf, 3

Mitchell, A., 327

_Modern Golf_, 59, 73, 83, 133, 210, 246

_Morning Post_, 198

Mystery, none in other games, 16

_Mystery of Golf_, 15, 125, 220

Newton, on principles of swerve, 223, 235, 228

"Nip" at impact, Professor Tait, 266

"Nose" of golf ball, 231

Palm grip, Mr. Horace G. Hutchinson on, 159

Payne-Gallwey, Sir Ralph, 292
tests, 296

_Practical Golf_, 120, 335 _et seq._

Press, influence of, 33

Professionals and journalists, 10
lacking in theory, 9

_Projectile Throwing Engines of the Ancients_, 292

Pull, the, 179
axis of vertical, Professor Thomson on, 237
Braid on, 188
explanation of spin, 240
Mr. John L. Low on, 258
true axis of, 240
Vardon on, 183

Push stroke, Vardon's, 194

Put, Braid on cutting the, 83
not a wrist stroke, 67
position of ball, 67
run on, 69
short grip for, 84
Vardon on cutting the, 87

Put, short, the easiest stroke, 48
Braid on the, 50
should be taught first, 48
Taylor on the, 50
Vardon on the, 49

Putter, short, 326

Putting, 11, 47
chief point in, 64
fundamental principles of, 53
importance of address in, 65
mechanically simple, 57
most important factor, 52
off heel or toe, 64
pendulum action in, 66
tests, 304
with drag, 60

Ray, Edward, 301, 309

Roll of ball on club, 238, 245

"Ruff," the, golf ball, 300, 309

St. Andrews, Royal and Ancient Golf Club of, 322

Schenectady putter, 320, 326

Self-consciousness, 20

Shaft, torsional strain of, 321

Simplicity of golf, 2

Slice, the, 179
axis of, vertical, Professor Thomson, 237
impact in, 252
Mr. John L. Low on, 258
pressure on rear of ball, Professor Thomson, 241
Professor Thomson on, 250
true axis of, 238
Walter J. Travis on, 190

Slow back, 96

Smooth ball, uneven flight of, 311

Snap of wrists in drive, 205

Soles, broad, of clubs, 328

Spalding, A. G., & Bros., 291

Speed, gradually increasing, 29

Spin, 181
effect on flight, Braid on, 260

Spread of golf, 6

Style, 19

Stymie, cutting round, 73
run-through, 343

"Sweep," a hit with iron clubs, 109

Sweep, the, 12, 98

_Swerve, or the Flight of the Ball_, 224

Swerve, principles of, 223, 233

Swerve, double, 293
Sir Ralph Payne-Gallwey on, 305

Swing, premature teaching of, 5
the short, 110
top of, Mr. Horace G. Hutchinson on, 158

Tait, late Professor, 223

Taylor on distribution of weight, 120, 171
on putting, 50
on the sweep, 103

Teaching by elimination, 352
of golf unsound, 43

Temperament, golf the test of, 7

Tension during stroke, Braid on, 133
of muscles during stroke, 38

Thomson, Professor, and smooth ball, 312

Thomson, Professor Sir J. J., 227

_Times, The_, 292

Topped ball, 279

Top-spin, alleged possibilities of, 280
how obtained, 233
in lawn-tennis, Professor Thomson on, 232
nearest approach to, 280
not used in golf, 280

Travis, Walter J., fallacies of, 335 _et seq._
on distribution of weight, 120

Under-spin not essential to long carry, 227
Professor Thomson's error, 246
properties of, 248

Upward concavity against back-spin, 267, 275

Vaile golf ball, 290
putter, 55
stymie stroke, 70

Vardon and blind spot, 169
on cross wind, 256
on cutting a put, 87

Vardon on distribution of weight, 118, 124
on follow-through, 131
on putting, 50, 75

Vardon's weight in follow-through, 131

Vertical axis of slice and pull, Professor Thomson on, 237

Waggle, the, 346
Duncan's, 346

Waist, pivoting from, 122

Weight, distribution of, 13, 25, 27, 97, 117, 171

Weight distribution, Vardon on, 118, 124
Braid on, 119, 121
fallacy, origin explained, 138
Horace Hutchinson on, 120
Mr. Haultain's explanation, 125
Taylor on, 120
W. J. Travis on, 120

Weight on right leg, test for, 122

Wind-cheater, 3, 179

Wind, cross, 242, 256, 257

Wrists, action of, 202
Mr. Horace Hutchinson on, 219
speed of, 217
turn over of, 107
Vardon on action of, 203

_Printed by_ R. & R. CLARK, LIMITED, _Edinburgh_.

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Transcriber's Notes:

Obvious printer errors were repaired.

Hyphenation variants retained as in original.

Copyright page showed no date.

Both "putts" (in quoted material) and "puts" (in author's voice) were present in the original.

End of Project Gutenberg's The Soul of Golf, by Percy Adolphus Vaile