Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-03-08
FIND SPHERE CUTS
DISTANCE GREATLY
High Handicap Players See
Game Hurt-Long Hitters
Little Affected.


sional alike-have had time
to become accustomed to
the new 1.68x1.55 ball, they have
reached some fairly definite con-
illusions regarding its action and
whether they like it by comparison
with the old ball.
After talking with number OF golf
ers of all classes. We have come to
the conclusion that the new ball gener-
ally satisfies the better golfer, but that
the high handicap man suffers in dis
lance from the tee and on the big shots
in a degree that does not compensate
him for the easier handling OF the ball
around the putting green.
Here are the conclusions gained from
talks with a croSs-section OF the golfers
around the Capital:
The ball, under normal conditions,
played by q man who has q smooth,
well grooved stroke, Is only q shade
short of the old ball.
To the man who occasionally hits a
lengthy tee shot, and generally only
half hits his tee shots, 1t shortens his
distance materially.
To the big hitter, who poles the ball
out for an average of 225 or $50 yards,
the difference is hardly noticeable as
between the new ball and the lid. He
is required to play more three-quarter
shots, where he would have taken full
swtpe with the old ball.
TTHE professionals agree that the new
i ball responds far better to 3
sweeping type of swing than the old
ball, and hold the view that the hitter
pure and simple will have much more
difhcult time of 1t with the new sphere
than the man with a smooth swing
whose club strikes the ball merely as an
obstacle in its path. In other words,
the player whose swing has only one
objectiye-to hit the ball hard-wtll
have more trouble controlling 1t than
the sweeping swinger.
March Is here, and February Is gone.
Both months bring high winds ana
consequent trouble in controlling the
flight of q golf ball. Pros and amateurs
alike agree that the new ball does not
bore through the wind like the OLD
sphere, that 1t is harder to play into
q wind and harder to control in side
winds. 1t is long down the wind, and
the pros agree it is easier to handle to
and around the green.
ny and large, there Is going TO be
ID great number Of dissatisfied custom
ers this year. These will largely
come from the ranks OF the high
handicap nen-the men who constitute
about 05 per cent Of the membership OF
any golf club, and who are the true
backbone of the game. They VIII hit
one Of their very best tee shots next
Summer when ground conditions be-
come normal and they VIII md they
are 20 or 80 yards short CT their best
efforts of last year with the old pan:
They viii End that their haH-mlsSeo
shots win not jump and run to the
green as of yore, that their average
score Jumps up a couple of strokes, and
that they cannot get home in two shots
on holes they used TO reach In Two
But IN the main they win ind, ac-
eordinr To Freddie Mcleod and Bob
Barnett, two keen students Of the game,
that they viii have to modify their
mental picture Of the swing from
punching hit to a sweep. The punch
will not do with the new Dali. Tne
sweeping stroke will do. Smoothness
viii nav dividends with the new sphere,
as it did In somewhat lesSened measure
with the old.
AHoNRo HUNTER, the big Indian
WI Spring professional. makes no
bones about his aversion to the
new ball. He simply says he does not
like It and lets 1t go at that. But
Hunter agrees that he will have TO make
his stroke smoother with the new sphere
this year and forget the mental PIC.
tlire of a punching hit He has not
played much golf this year, but has
found out that he cannot punch the
new ball the way he used to punch the
old.
Freddie Mcleod began playing ex-
cl,lsfvely with the new ball in october
of last year. He quickly found that the
ball, although 1t looked innocent enough,
was tricky. And he also found that he
had TO discard the old idea Of q hit,
lust as Monro Hunter has found out.
Bob Barnett's swing never was distinct
" a hitting swing, but Bob, according
to what we observed of his game in
FLORIDA, has come around entirely to
the sweep, even more than the others.
Hunter now believes the ball must be
swept away. So do Arthur Thorn and
Sandy Armour.
ALL the pros agree the new ball
"A handles well around the green, but
its lack of distance does not make
Jp for its ease Of handling. Roughly,
they have found that from a normal
tee shot, II the second shot calls for
niasInie, they would rather play COM
fortably easy No. iron or even light
No. 8; that II the shot calls for big
No. 3 iron shot, they would better play
with a comfortably hit No. 2. And so
on down the, gemut Of the shots.
The new ball simply will not go as
far as the old.
---------e