Norwich bulletin., 1913-03-05
AMATEUR AND APRo" STYLES.
There Is Distinct Difference, But It
 Is Difficult 60 Analyze.

In the course of innun eral5le dis eHssiens at the 18th hole,'' where
 more golf is played than on the links, it Is frequently remarked. in speaking of one person or another. that 1t could be seen he was a. professional by his
 style, or that he had the regular pro-
 fessienal style" Such remarks as
 these would seem to indicate that
 there Is a general opinion that in golf there is rather a. marked difference
 between the styles of professional and
 amateur players
 Naturally the professional plays bet:
 ter than the amateur, but 1t is to be
 inferred from the foregoing questions
 that there is something about the methods of the professional that is peculiay to this class. It seems to be
 a distinction peculiar to golf, or, at
 any rate, 1t is one which would be quite difficult to establish in another
 branch of sport. Apart from the mannerisms common to individuals, there are few characteristic features of style in other sports which can be regarded as typical either of the anna teur or of the professional player. In golf, however, there is something about the style of the professional which the amateur seldom or never acquires. The distinction is rather difficult to analyze but 1t seems to consist in a bolder and more conf dent aspect in the address and great CT snap in execution on the part of the professional, The amateur seems more dimdent in his attitude and slower in play.
 Several interesting points of specu- latlOn are opened by the question of how far these differences in style re- fleet the mental attitude of the two classes with regard to the game. It is commonly supposed that the reason of the superiority of the professional golfer over the amateur is that he knows that he has living to make by the very manner in which he plays. On how Tell he can play depends his reputation, and it is reputation that cannot afford. therefore. to play badly in the generally accepted sense of tho term, consequently he Is continually trying to do his best. He Is always playing up to the concert pitch.
 The amateur, on the other hand r. Is contended. has not this constant spur to force him to put forward hi5 best foot, as 1t were. He does not take 1t very seriously if he does not play in a particularly brilliant fashion, and if he does he Is prone to embark on the theories and experiments with more or less disastrous results. In this way he is likely to lose conf dence in himself. and his style no less than his execution reflects his weak ness. Undoubtedly there is great deal in these arguments, but others are inclined to believe that the pro fessional styie and methods are really
 
 brye professional, models himself af- ter the leading professional almost entirely and in a purely initiative The amateur, on the other hand, if he does initiate the profes- siena1, does so with certain reserva- tions born of the fact that he is an amateur and cannot hope to emulate fhe skill of those who devote their lives to the game with anything but the ordinary degree of success. He ts rather more likely to model himself after some champion amateur. which may account for the perceptible diff ference that there is between the styles of the professional and amateur players.
 Considering the wide diversity in styles that there is among golfers, it 1 g remarkable that there should be l his general distinction between the 1 wo classes of players. There are, of 1 ,ourse, amateurs who use a style sirni- | ar to that of a professional, chiefly 1 through the fact that they have been l aught the rudiments of the game by | ba man to whom +hey are similar