Browning chief. [volume] (Browning, Mont.) 1941-1953, 1948-12-24

ball does.
Also it has top
man who stands Ben Hogan
far above any top
/ man in football. His name is Ben
Hogan, the l37-pound Texan, who
today is by all odds the greatest
I golfer in the world.
Hogan has proved his worth, not
in a few games each autumn, but
in many tournaments from the Pa
cific to the Atlantic and back, from
the massive lakes of the North to
! the Gulf. month after month alter
month. He completes against the
pick of the feld-not nearly so
many setups as football knows-in
the main.
Why is Ben Hogan the worlds
best golfer? We discussed this
matter with Al Ciuci, veteran golf
pro, star instructor and one of the
ablest students of the game.
Lets take the fellow apart"
AL said. "What makes a great
golfer-first, fine swing. Sec
ond, a smart head. Third,
stout heart on the competitive
side. Fourth, ability to work
for the top.
Hogan has all these things. He
has one of the finest swings in golf.
He has one of the best heads golf
has ever known, not even barring
Walter Hagen, one of the smartest
of them all. You can ask Gene Sara
zen and Bobby Jones what they
think of his competitive ability or
his willingness to outwork horse.
"In my opinion, Ben Hogan COM
bines more of the factors that
make a great golfer than anyone
l have ever seen play in the last 80
years-on back to Vardon through
to Jones, Hagen and Sarazen. At
1877 pounds, Ben isn't equipped
physically as well as they were,
but he has always been long
enough-able to hit a 500-yard
green with two shots"
This statement is completely true.
No one can say that from 1920 to
1880 Hogan could have beaten
Jones, Hagen and Sarazen. Certain
ly no one can say that Jones,
Hagen and Sarazen could have ham
dled Ben Hogan from 1914 through
l943
In the matter of scoring, Hogan
is we'll ahead of any rival. But
perhaps conditions have changed.
The Last .|!OUe
Hogan" Al Ciuci continued,
"made his last and smartest move
this past season. Through l947, Ben
had been bothered here and there
with hook. Not too much, but
enough to get him into trouble at
times. A hook can nearly always
get you into more trouble than
slice. 1t travels farther.
$50 this last season, Hogan de-
cided to give away a few yards and
play for a slight fade, rather than
hook. You can control a fade.
No one can control a hook stead
lily. From that point on, Texas Ben
became unbeatable. Now and then
he would drop a tournament against
band of brilliant scorers. Some
one would get unusually hot, or
Ben would have a slight lapse in
concentration or determination or
timing.
"NO one can keep at the peak
physically, mentally and emo
tionally all the time. They'll
tell you football teams can't
even do this three times sea-
son. But Hogan plays in 80 or
more big tournaments.
Hogan has marvellous use OF
his hands," Ciuci continued. His
left hand remains firm and strong
all the way through the swing. The
left hand controls the club head.
But in Ben's case his right hand
has one of the finest finishes I've
ever seen in golf. It lashes out
with terrific force, banking on the
left hand and wrist to keep the club
face where it belongs.
"Then watch Ben in putting. One
IF the biggest mistakes most put
tcrs make is letting the body or
knees move through the action of
the putt. Not Hogan. Ben locks his
body and knees before his hands
start the puttcr blade in motion.
"He turns over the physical
action of the putt to his hands.
He has already decided on the
correct line and the speed of
the green. These two details are
all set. So, for a final move, all
he has to concentrate on is the
smoothness of the swing, which
is rarely hurried or turned into
jab or stab.
"More golfers should follow this
method-I mean deciding in ad-
vance what the right line is--the
speed of the greenland then giving