Evening star., 1922-07-09

| Practically all golf authorities agree
that the long iron or spoon shot to
the green is one Of the finest in golf.
They: concede that the man who can
| put his ball near the pin from 170
yards away has q good chance to de-
! feat any hrst-class amateur. The
| shot combines all the thrills of golf.
Even a long drive gives no more
that ends fairly close to the cup.
Must Form Picture.
Perhaps the chief reason why the
matcr portion of all golfers today do
not pull Off more fine iron shots to
the green is because they fail to
| form in their minds a mental picture
| Of the way the club should strike the
ball and the fight and run OF the
ball. provided it is hit as 1t should
be. The waggle is not enough. The
ball must be struck perfectly if the
| shot Is to come of. and 1t must come
to ground In a certain predesignated
place IL 1t is to finish close to the
hole.
Hitting too soon is one of the too
frequent carses of half-topping or
sciaffing IN iron shot. with the result
that the ball does not go near the
make a mental picture of the club
meeting the ball and then going INTO
the turf after striking a distance of
| few inches with an iron shot and
slightly greater distance with firmly
struck mashie shot.
When an iron or mashie shot is
correctly struck the player can actu-
ally feel the ball Oh the club for an
appreciable distance. Registration of
| this effect on the sense of touch OF
the golfer will do more than any
| other one thing to prevent looking
up"-the common cause OF missed
! iron shots.
The firmly hit iron shot is pecu-
liarly different from the well hit
wooden club shot. in that the iron
| shot is distinctly hit. with the club
head going straight through the line
of the ball into the turf. II the
player can succeed in putting his
| utmost snap into the shot at the
exact moment he hits the ball instead
of wasting his effort in an exagger-
with the wooden clubs. he will secure
a satisfactory iron shot.
Firmness is the essence of success
with the iron clubs. With this in
| mind. the player will find that
shortened back stroke will be con-
ducive to greater frmness. At the
] same time the elbows must be kept in
as close as possible in order that the
wrists may function at the moment OF
| impact in the most efficient manner.
What II Essential.
Lengthening of the back stroke in
the effort to get greater distance is
! one besetting sin of golfers who do
! iron clubs With the hands held low.
the elbows firmly in at the sides and
| the wrists functioning at the moment
| Of the impact. there is no sweeter
shot in the whole game than a firmly
| struck iron shot.
| club play. but the golfer will notice
| that many of his shots with the wood
may be struck in a somewhat hap
hazard manner and yet obtain sur
| prisingly good results.
| Not so with the irons, however. An
| iron shot struck with sweeping
stroke is apt to go anywhere but the
right where" 1t must be struck, not
swept. If you have been making in
| effective iron shots. taking fufi
swing to propel the ball $50 yards or
less, try the short. crisp stroke. meet
ing the ball and then going through
| into the turf, and notice the results.
| You will not only find the ball get
! ting away better. but it will fly truer
and will stop when it hits the ground.
| Particularly in playing in cross
\ wind is crispness necessary. Under
these conditions, more than any
others in the game, firmness and
crispness are the watchwords. The
| ball not firmly hit in a cross wind is
apt to go anywhere. but IL hit well.
WIN an dTHpic uisOe, "oeSi ~
straight on the pin, fighting the wind
with the cut put on it by the natural
! lift Of the club.
Has Chance for Fame.
Walter Hagen. recent winner of the
British open championship, Is regard
ed as the player most likely to annex
the American title at the Skokie Club.
| Chicago, this week. If Hagen wins
| the American open he will do a
| thing no other professional has ever
been able to accomplish. 1t may be
assumed that the British open cham
| pion will make every effort to annex
the American title, for. aside from
| the prize money and the glory that
goes with the title he has won twice
previously. there will be the chance
| to make many thousands of dollars
for Hagen il. in his projected tour of
the United States with Joe Kirkwood,
| he is also able to add to his British