Omaha daily bee., 1910-04-26
NEW ETHICS FOR GOLFERS
CanOhs Lay Down Rules as to Where
Ball Must Lie Before the Drive.
DISTRIBUTE WEIGHT OF BODY
IL should he Properly Balanced at
the Time OF Swinging Mt the
small, hut Elusive
Pellet.

small, but Elusive
PeIIct.
NEW YORK, April 25.-one Of the new
canons OF golfing style which no hereto
has yet dared to dispute is that which ad-
vises the player TO stand with his ball
more nearly in line with his right toe. as
the distance to be covered by the shot
dminishes Nowadays almost every one
drives with the ball opposite a spot half
way between his heels, or even two or
three inches In front But he plays his
cleek shots with the ball rather farther
back and in approach play usually stands
20 that the ball is almost opposite his
right heel.
All this is most orthodox. But It is some
what less usual to inquire why 1t should
be so. However, does not the answer to
this make plain the whole problem Of
stance, which is simply a matter OF equi-
librium and depends upon one simple rule:
However, you stand, you must have your
weight so distributed that your center OF
gravity Is opposite the ball at the moment
of hitting it.
The reason is not difficult to see, and
| perhaps, 1t may be a source of enlight-
! IleuL as NeA1 rs a nelpt 70 nave dBhh
brought to the notice of those golfers who
are in the habit Of pulling or slicing badly
one fundamental idea.
An ordinary golf club is constructed so
that II the ball is to be, hit squarely the
shaft must, at that moment OF impact be
at right angles to the direction in which
the player wishes his ball to travel that
is to say, the players hand must be op-
hal V,NN ,1tNh
face, as It comes in contact with the ball,
cannot possibly be at right angles to the
line of flight, and a glancing blow, re-
sultlng in pull or slice, is the inevitable
result.
1t is, however, easy for a golfer to prove
for himself how the natural position of the
hspds in holding any two-handed weapon
such as a golf club. depends upon the dis
tribution of the weight of the body. Let
him clasp his hands in front of him, then
shift his weight on to his left foot and note
how promptly his arms fall forward, like
some delicate pendulum, in accordance
with the change Contrariwise, If he throws
This weight on to his right foot and at
tempts at the same time to keep his hands
well to, the left as II he were going to play
''off his left toe" he will realize that the
powerful stroke is impossible.
1t is this factor which makes 1t so awk-
ward to play from an uneven or !=secure
! stance. The players weight has to be dis
trlbuted differently from usual owing to
the necessity of obtaining a firm footing
and the natural position OF his hands being
thus altered to play his ordinary stroke
becomes impossible. Every one has ex-
perienced the fact that where some hillock
or hollow in the ground prevents him from
resting the same proportion OF weight as
usual upon each foot, though the stance
is otherwise the same, he feels that he
simply cannot play the stroke according
to his accustomed method often he is con-
strained to play in some fashion quite un-
tried-and with complete success. Because,
as we must know, the most important
thing is not that he should stand in a par
/, ticular way, but. that stance and swing
should be suitable to each other Golf,
like fencing and other sports in which the
stroke demands great nicely of aim, de-
mands that the poise of the body be reck-
ored as Of the utmost Importance.
Driving with the ball we'll forward and
driving with 1t as far back as possible
have each certain advantages, but neither
is the slightest good unless the player Is
standing so that the natural position OF
the hands that position into which they
will fall at the lowest point Of the stroke,
Is exactly opposite the ball. II is hardly
necessary to prove that it is when the
hands are in this natural position that the
blow attains its greatest force.
In theory 1t is quite sufficient that the
body should be properly balanced at the
moment Of striking the ball. Accordingly
swaying the body is not necessarily fatal to
a good shot, In practice. however, the
case is rather different, because when a
player sways back with the upward swins
of his club the chances are, against him
swaying forward to exactly the right de.
gree in the down stroke. In any case, by
swaying he Is introducing a new and diff.
cult factor into his calculations, and the
! less this factor is allowed to affect the
conditions of the problem the better
; II is all very well to talk about the bad
results which come from swaying or an
awkward stance. bad habits into which
, many golfers have grown; what interests
) them the most is how to avoid these pit.
falls An early visit to the clubs profes.
! sional and a couple of lessons ought e
show the player just how to overcome his
errors.