Evening star., 1940-01-28
Little Pro Describes
How He Gets Great
Distance OFF Tee
Makes Up for Shortage
Of Leg Leverage With
Lot Of Body Turn
By WALTER McCALLUM.

BY WALTER McCALLUM.
Little fellows like Ben Hogan and
George Diffenbaugh. who hit golf
ball a very long way, haven't any
thing that any one else cannot de-
velop if the aspiring long hitter
goes at it in the right way. Benny
and George and few million others
have hands, legs, arms and feet, but
they happen to be two of the out
standing big hitters among golfers
of any stature. I asked George how
he does it.
ITO get right down to cases." said
the snowbound Kenwood pro, there
isn't any knack that will convert a
short hitter into big slugger. You
can't say the hands do it, or the
legs or the shoulders, or the wrists.
I've looked at lot of long hitters-
rangy fellows such as Cliff Spencer,
moderate-sized guys such as Sam
Snead and little fellows like Hogan
or Cyril Walker. That Walker, by
the way. could smack the ball.
"I find that long hitting doesn't
come by any specific formula. 1t
comes from a combination of lot
Of things. Wrists, arms, legs and
shoulders enter into it. And timing
enters into it more than anything
else. The power behind golf ball
comes. you know, in about 2 feet
of clubhead travel. But to generate
that power you have to move into a
preliminary windup. That's where
the backswing comes in. After you
hit the ball it doesn't make any diff
ference what happens to your club
or your body or anything else, and
I mean after the ball actually has
left the club. Because the ball stays
on the club face of driver. for in
stance, around 6 inches. 1t isn't a
case of a smack and an immediate
getaway.
Depends Lot on Body Turn.
"I am short in height. But I'm
pretty well put up around the shoul-
ders. My legs are short, but my
body from the hips up is normal.
Without lot of leg leverage, I have
to get a lot of body turn. That's
where think get the distance I do
when I catch one on the nose"
George is just about as long hitter
as you'll find among the smaller
men. remember the day he hit one
into the middle of the sixth green at |
Congressional The hole is $50 yards |
lo1.g and part Of the path to the |
green is downhill It's quite a poke,
at any time. Arthur Thorn was
putting on the green.
"Waddye mean, hitting one into
us?" yelled Arthur.
THAT wasn't my second shot; that
was my drive" said George.
EXCUSE me-" said Arthur Then |
George 3-putted the green for the
usual par 4.
"The hard part of ito most |
players-is getting their hands back
into hitting position after good
pivot" said George "They get all |
mixed up in the backswing, trying to
pivot and they don't get back to the
ball with their hands in the right
position"
What parts of the game are the
most Important" I asked George.
THE tee shot and the putt" he
said. Have you ever noticed that
II you hit a good tee shot it braces
you up and usually you do all right?
And even if you don't get hold OF the
ball from the tee, good putt covers
q mistake or two in iron play? Yep,
I'd say the tee shot and the putt are
the most important
George Expert With. Chip Shot.
In addition to being one of the
longer hitters, George happens to
be a master of the chip shot.
Jokingly he attributes his skill in
that branch of the game to the fact
that he's so close to the ground.
You don't win the District open
championship twice in a row-as
George did-unless you have plenty
Of ability with all shots.
But George would like to be able
ITO do something about his putting.
Several times over the last few years
he has missed important puts,
twice to qualify for national cham
pionships. That's one angle of this
game where any one can go wrong"
he said.
"You know there are a lot of
people playing golf who can't hit a
tee shot at all. I think that the
average golfer gets more real thrill
out of a well-hit wallop from the tee
than from any other shot. He may
top an iron shot up against the flag
and he may sink long putt, but if
he happens to outdrive his foursome
his chest swells up and he thinks
he's mighty man.
LAS long as this game is played
more people will get bang out of
the tee shot than any other shot in
the game. And there isn't any rea-
con why more people shouldn't hit
the ball farther. There's no single
answer, but if you can combine a
good free pivot with proper hand
and arm action you've gone long
way toward holding your own in any
slugging contest"