Evening star., 1936-04-26
CLUB PUT IN LINE
BY TURN TO RIGHT
Shift Slight, but Distinct,
Advocated by Four D. c.
Star LinkSmen.
BY w. r. McCALLUM.

W. Ass N1CShAASNAs
IT'S all in a good beginning in golf,
if you care to take the word Of
four of Washington's more promi-
i nent golfers about it. If you don't
start the swing right you can't ex-
pect to finish it right.
On the threshold Of new year
when thousands of hopeful linksmen
are looking for some helpful hint to
cure their golf ills, they might with
benefit take tip from quartet OF
our better-known club-swingers on
what to do at the very beginning OF
the swing to get started right, at
least.
We set out to learn what the four
think about the first movement in the
golf swing the start of the movement
after the waggle and the address have
been concluded. All of them-Wiffy
Cox, Roland Mackenzie, j. Monro
Hunter, one of the big hitters of the
world. and District amateur cham
pion Roger Peacock-agreed on one
thing: You must start the swing with
a slight motion to the right, slight
break of the body initiated to get the
right hip out of the way for the back
swing"
All good golfers, from Bob Jones
down, have the same movement. 1t
is so nearly universal that it must be
right, for all along the line there
isn't a single good man hitting the
ball today who doesn't employ the
same method.
How 1t Is Done.
IN A few words, it is distinct move
ment to the right of all the body
factors which enter into the swing
long before the hands have started
their upward path toward the top Of
the backswing. The effect of this
turn of the body toward the right
Is to drag the hands tiny bit, forcing
them to come back in the proper
groove.
The whole thing is so slight as to
be almost indistinguishable, particu-
larly in the case of fast swinger,
but it's there just the same. Call it
q hip shift to right, lateral motion
of the body, or what you will, all
good golfers have it. even Tommy
Armour. the great advocate of hitting
with the hands.
Witty Cox stood with his big driver
in his hands-small hands for man
of his size and hitting power. What
is the very first movement in your
backswing?" we asked him.
1T is a slight movement of the hips
and body to the right" he said. "A
very small movement, to be sure. but
1t starts the movement of the right
hip out of the way of the backswing
You can't get in the right groove on
the upswing unless you lead your
hands with this hip motion"
j. Monro Hunter, the Edinburgh
Scot who pastes 'em so far you have
to use a spy-glass to follow the fleet
ing pill, addressed ball. His first
movement on the backswing was even
more pronounced than WHY'S. a
distinct movement to the right.
Monro Is a big man and a slow
swinger. 81 have feeling" he said,
'that to start the swing right must
get my body started around toward
the right, to get that right side out
of the way.
This automatically brings the club
into the proper groove on the upswing
and it must come down in the right
groove on the hitting side of the
swing Whether you call it lateral
hip shift or a movement achieved by
a body turn, it works the same way.
You must get that right side out of
the way on the upswing, just as it
starts the hands down on the down.
swing"
Amazes the Britons.
TEN years ago Roland Mackenzie
- went to England as member of
the 1926 Walker Cup team. He amazed
the British with the length of his
tee shots, hitting the ball to spots
which had his hosts dropping their
chins in surprise. Then, as now, he
started his backswing in the same
elusive manner which so many buffers
fail to catch.
THAT little shift to the right is
one Of the hardest things to teach"
Roland said. But it is absolutely
necessary to long hitting, You will
find all the good golfers using it. They
have to do it to get the right side
started in such way as to bring the
club-head back inside the line, so it
can go through the hitting arc from
the inside out.
IF they bring the club-head straight
up without this slight shift to the
right they can't get it into the hitting
groove without looping it into the
inside groove at the top of the swing
And the human anatomy isn't built
that way. The swing is too fast to
perfor"-. miracles with the wrists and
hands at the top and start of the
downswing."
Roger Peacock, an amateur golfer,
and a darned good one, obviously
cannot give golf lessons. But Roger
starts his backswing with a decided
movement to the right.
1T puts my hands in hitting posi-
ton" he explains.
More than any other local amateur
Roger gets his weight over to the
right on the upswing. But there's
a catch in it," Roland says. cit isn't
q stiff shift of weight. It's rather
breaking down of the right side COM
bined with body turn. I have a
feeling that my hips start the whole
swing"