The Birmingham age-herald., 1922-08-06
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WHAT MAKES \ G0LFERf

The same thing wins golf cham pionships that wins friendly matches on any course, or that takes a player l out of the duffer class and makes him a fair golfer.
 This same thing is-getting the ball up to the green.
 l | mean by that that the first two shots on any hole are the easy shots | of the game, assuming that the first I of these is a drive shot and the sec- ] ond one with the brassie. After that, ! the real department of the game comes in..
 ] If you could have stood at the first or the tenth tee during the recent national open championship at the ] Skokie club you would have been l bored, dare say. after an hour or so watching the players drive. Both these tees are at the clubhouse, so 1 that great crowds watched the drives from these two points. All the play l CTS accomplished their drive in about | the same way, with about the same results. You would see any one of the more than 300 stars take his l stance at the ball. Then gracefully he drew back his club. You would see the clubhead whisk down, then hear a crack. as rifle shot Away went the white sphere. 225 to e5o yards down the falrway. There was no variation until Abe Mitchell or Walter Hagen stepped up. The only variation then was a greater dis tance down the fairway.. and even this wouldn't have meant much to you if you had been watching the Fdrives an hour or so.
 Drive the Easiest Shot
 In other words these good players never dubbed drive. They never ef- fered the variety of slicing or pull ing one now and then. The drive to. them is the same as II Is to any other player-the. easiest shot of all once tsyou get onto It.
 '.But down on the sfairway and uy, ito the. green--that's another story. Here is where the difference between the really fine players and the rull- ners-up begins to show itself. It is iron club play. from mid iron to butter, that makes the golfer.
 The hardest shot of all. next to 'he putt is the play from just off ;he edge of the green. Many players will be surprised that I make this state ment, but 1t Is true. When the ball lies 25 yards from the pin the good player will clip or roll 1t 80 near. to, the hole that he has an easy putt a sure putt. The poor player will merely lob or knock it onto the green. He then has two butts. possi- bly three. It .is not very difficult to get from the tee to lie off, the edge of the green. The average player may note if he is observant that. often it takes him more actual strokes to get through the last 20 yards, from the edge of the. green to the hole. than he required from the
 
 first round of the championship play this year I lost II butts that should have been holed. The common assumption was that my butter was not working. The fact is. my ap- proachinR was not tfp-top- I have always been able. in approaching. 10 lay myself an easy putt When. I 90 to the pin and have i5-foot putt. or a 10-foot putt before me. know. that my approach is poor. The good approacher will never leave himself a 10-foot putt. just as the .hilliaI d. lists never allow the balls 10 get far apart on the table.
 Edge of Green shots
 One would have to see some of the country's very finest players go about their approaching to grasp the great importance of these close to-the- green plays. Jim Barnes. for in- stance. always goes right after tSe hole from off the edge of the green. When we played together during the tourpament Jim holeds out from a sand trar some 30 yards from the pin. | That is the way to play such shots, | Any time yoa are in reach of the pin 1 go after it. From a mashie or pig | ger distance down the fairway I aI- ways Hay for the hole. not mereis l the green. I give the ball two chances at the hoie--the chance that | my own accuracy may hole 1t and the | chance that 1t may accidentally | roll in,
 Any good pro can show wou how to | drive. The brassie. calls for the same | swing. But the pro cannot make an | approacher out of you any more | than you can expect to buy good l shots in sporting goods store. Your | own practice plus your own atti tude and carefulness in such play 1 ing are the sole factors by which yon | can learn to approach accurately l But you will be d good golfer after YOU learn it.