Evening star., 1934-12-02
PITCHING STICKS
HARDEST TO USE
Houghton and Thomson Tell
of Common Faults and
How to Iron Them.
BY w. r. McCALLUM.

~ YHAT is the hardest shot
\N/ for the average duffer
Y Y to play?" we asked AL
Houghton and Dave
Thomson, pros at the Kenwood
Country Club and the Washington
Golf and Country Club, respectively.
The two mentors were sitting In on
a little tanning bee, after a round of
golf in which Houghton had shot
another of his immaculate 7O's and
Davie, with 70, had blown enough
short puts to score a IS.
They are all hard" both of 'em
chorused. Davie shook his head.
That's a tough question" he buried
in his best High Country Scottish.
But I guess they are all hard for
the dufter, who insists on getting
himself into the most uncomfortable
position he can find. comforting his
body into posture even the Greeks
couldn't put in marble, and then try
ing to hit the ball with every muscle
strained and tense"
That's right" said Al. "but get
ting down to brass tacks, think the
average duffer has more real trouble
with the pitching clubs and the in
termeoiate iron clubs than he does
with the wooden shots. He can use
the old base ball swing with the
wood and get away with it, because
the face of the club is so big it gives
him confidence and he loosens up
those straining muscles. Besides, he
has big. wide fairway to shoot at,
and even if he misses the fairway he
isn't in such bad spot. But he has
a horror of bunkers and when he
picks up an iron club he hasn't such
wide target to shoot for. So what
does he do? He attempts to over
come one fault with another and by
the time he has stretched all those
muscles into an unnatural pose he
cannot hit even the fairway with
the shot-let alone the putting green"
No Strain on Muscles.
" YEP. that's right" said Thomson.
ITS the hardest thing We
IldNC " uO, " BCl IIIe average
golfing duffer to relax. He is so full
of theory, so crammed with ideas.
mostly wrong. that when he comes to
the pro our first job is to get him to
hit the ball naturally, with relaxed
muscles. And the biggest job Of all is
to have him swing like a boy, in nat
ural groove If he would only forget
his muscles entirely, swing the club like
he would swing an ak and remember
that the club-head is the hitting
object and not his hands or his
shoulders. he would get along much
better. But what happens? He
tightens all his muscles, his wrists
become locked as if in concrete slab,
a wild heave at the ball and he hits
it on the toe or on the top; he filings
the club away and gives up the game,
all because he wouldn't relax those
muscles. I have had men come in
from a round of golf complaining
that every muscle in their arms and
shoulders was sore. Golf is not an
athletic game Of that type. All the
muscles are used in the golf swing.
particularly those in the back. but
there shouldn't be any reason for
soreness in any of EN-. They are not
called upon for any strenuous work.
But you see many fellow come
in complaining of aching muscles
when he shouldn't have had anything
more than mild muscular work.
out"
"One of the hardest things I have
to contend with said Houghton. lis
to make your average golfer believe
that the golf swing is mixture of a
lot of small moves. And right at the
start of the swing you will find him
taking the club back with his hands
Nothing will wreck a shot quicker
than to have the first movement made
with the hands. The initial move
ment is made with the hips and the
body. and the hands follow along
naturally, as they have to do. Later
on in the swing the hands take the
club-head up but the first movement
is made with the body"