THE DISTRIBUTION OF WEIGHT
The distribution of weight is of fundamental importance in the game of
golf. If one has not a perfectly clear and correct conception of the
manner in which one should manage one's weight, it is an absolute
certainty that there can be no rhythm in the swing. One often sees
references to the centre of the circle described by the head of the
club in the golf swing. It will be perfectly apparent on giving the
matter but little thought that the head of the golf club does not
describe a circle, but it is convenient to use the term "centre of the
circle" when referring to the arc which is described by the head of
the club.
The all-important matter of the distribution of weight has been dealt
with by the greatest players in the world. Let us see what Taylor,
Braid, and Vardon have to say about this subject, for it is no
exaggeration to say that this is a matter which goes to the very root
of golf. If one teaches the distribution of weight incorrectly, it
does not matter what else one teaches correctly, for the person who is
reared on a wrong conception of the manner in which his weight should
be distributed, can never play golf as it should be played. It is as
impossible for such a person to play real golf as it would be for a
durable building to be erected on rotten foundations.
Now let us see what the greatest players have to say about this.
Vardon, at page 68 of _The Complete Golfer_, says:
The movements of the feet and legs are important. In
addressing the ball you stand with both feet flat and
squarely placed on the ground, the weight equally divided
between them, and the legs so slightly bent at the
knee-joints as to make the bending scarcely noticeable. This
position is maintained during the upward movement of the club
until the arms begin to pull at the body. The easiest and
most natural thing to do then, and the one which suggests
itself, is to raise the heel of the left foot and begin to
pivot on the left toe, which allows the arms to proceed with
their uplifting process without let or hindrance. Do not
begin to pivot on this left toe ostentatiously, or because
you feel you ought to do so, but only when you know that the
time has come, and you want to, and do it only to such an
extent that the club can reach the full extent of the swing
without any difficulty.
While this is happening it follows that the weight of the
body is being gradually thrown on to the right leg, which
gradually stiffens, until at the top of the swing it is quite
rigid, the left being at the same time in a state of
comparative freedom, slightly bent in towards the right, with
only just enough pressure on the toe to keep it in position.
That is what Vardon has to say about this important matter.
At page 53 of _Great Golfers_, speaking of the "Downward Swing,"
Vardon further says:
In commencing the downward swing, I try to feel that both
hands and wrists are still working together. The wrists start
bringing the club down, and at the same moment, the left knee
commences to resume its original position. The head during
this time has been kept quite still, the body alone pivoting
from the hips.
It is obvious that if the pivoting is done _at the hips_ it will be
impossible to get the weight on the right leg at the top of the swing
without some contortion of the body, yet we read at page 70 of _The
Complete Golfer_ that "the weight is being gradually moved back again
from the right leg to the left." Thus is the old fatal idea persisted
in to the undoing of thousands of golfers.
I have already referred to the wonderful spine-jumping and rotating
which is described in _The Mystery of Golf_. Many might not understand
the jargon of anatomical terms used in this fearful and wonderful
idea, so I shall add here the author's corroboration of my
interpretation of his notion.
At page 167 he says: "The pivot upon which the spinal column rotates
is shifted from the head of the right thigh-bone to that of the left."
I have always been under the impression that the spinal column is very
firmly embedded on the os sacrum--that, in fact, the latter is
practically a portion of the spinal column, and that it is fixed into
the pelvic region in a manner which renders it highly inconvenient for
it to attempt any saltatory or rotatory pranks.
We are, however, told that the pivot on which the spinal column
rotates "shifts from the right leg to the left leg." If the spine were
"rotating," which of course it cannot do in the golf stroke, on any
"pivot," which, equally of course, it does not, that "pivot" must be
the immovable os sacrum. What then does all this nonsense mean?
James Braid, at page 56 of _Advanced Golf_, says:
At the top of the swing, although nearly all the weight will
be on the right foot, the player must feel a distinct
pressure on the left one, that is to say, it must still be
doing a small share in the work of supporting the body.
Taylor, in _Taylor on Golf_, at page 207, says:
Then, as the club comes back in the swing, the weight should
be shifted by degrees, quietly and gradually, until when the
club has reached its topmost point the whole weight of the
body is supported by the right leg, the left foot at this
time being turned, and the left knee bent in towards the
right leg. Next, as the club is taken back to the horizontal
position behind the head, the shoulders should be swung
round, although the head must be allowed to remain in the
same position with the eyes looking over the left shoulder.
At page 30 of _Practical Golf_ Mr. Walter J. Travis says:
In the upward swing it will be noticed that the body has been
turned very freely with the natural transference of weight
almost entirely to the right foot, and that the left foot has
been pulled up and around on the toe. Without such aid the
downward stroke would be lacking in pith. To get the
shoulders into the stroke they must first come round in
conjunction with the lower part of one's anatomy, smoothly
and freely revolving on an axis which may be represented by
an imaginary line drawn from the head straight down the back.
Otherwise, the arms alone, unassisted to any appreciable
extent, are called upon to do the work with material loss of
distance.
At page 88 of _Golf_ in the Badminton Series, Mr. Horace G. Hutchinson
says:
Now as the club came to the horizontal behind the head, the
body will have been allowed to turn, gently, with its weight
upon the right foot.
We here have the opinions of five golfers, whose words should
undoubtedly carry very great weight. The sum total of their considered
opinion is that in the drive at golf the weight at the top of the
swing must be on the right leg. I have, however, no hesitation in
saying that this idea is fundamentally unsound and calculated to
prove a very serious hindrance to anyone attempting to follow it. So
far from its being true that the weight of the body is supported by
the right foot at the top of the swing, I must say that entirely the
opposite is true, and that at the top of the swing the weight of the
body is borne by the left foot and leg in any drive of perfect rhythm.
This may possibly be going a little too far, so we shall, in the
meantime, content ourselves with _absolutely denying_ that the weight
at the top of the swing goes on to the _right_ leg, and with
_insisting_ that at the top of a perfectly executed swing _the main
portion of the weight must be borne by the left foot and leg_. In so
positively making this statement I am confronted by a mass of
authority which would deter many people from essaying to disprove such
a well-rooted delusion in connection with the game, but I think that
before we have finished with this subject we shall be able to show
very good reason for doubting the statements of these eminent players.
There is no possible doubt as to the rooted nature of this belief in
the minds of these players. James Braid, in fact, emphasises it in
some places. He says in _How to Play Golf_:
When the swing is well started, that is to say, when the club
has been taken a matter of about a couple of feet from the
ball, it will become impossible, or at least inconvenient and
uncomfortable to keep the feet so firmly planted on the
ground as they were when the address was made. It is the left
one that wants to move, and consequently at this stage you
must allow it to pivot. By this is meant that the heel is
raised slightly, and the foot turns over until only the ball
of it rests on the ground. Many players pivot on the toe, but
I think this is not so safe, and does not preserve the
balance so well. When this pivoting begins, the weight is
being taken off the left leg and transferred almost entirely
to the right, and at the same moment the left knee turns in
towards the right toe. The right leg then stiffens a little
and the right heel is more firmly than ever planted on the
ground.
It seems to me that these famous golfers are confronted by a
mechanical problem in this matter. The veriest tyro at golf is
familiar with the axiom that it is absolutely necessary for him to
keep his head still. Many authors tell one that the swing is conducted
as though the upper portion of the body moved on an axis consisting of
the spine. All golfers, authors, and professionals, who know anything
about the game, will tell one that the habit of swaying, which means
moving the head and body away from the hole, is fatal to accuracy.
Harry Vardon, at page 67, says: "In the upward movement of the club
the body must pivot from the waist alone and there must be no swaying,
not even to the extent of an inch." A little further down on the same
page, we read: "In addressing the ball you stand with both feet flat
and securely placed on the ground, the weight equally divided between
them."
Now it seems fairly obvious that if one starts the golf drive with the
weight practically evenly distributed between the right foot and the
left foot, and seeing that it is an axiom of golf that one must not
move one's head, it is impossible for one to get the weight of the
body on to the right foot and leg without absolutely contorting one's
frame. Let us make this clearer still. We have our golfer set at his
ball, his address perfect, and his weight evenly distributed between
his two feet. As he knows that it is wrong for him to move his head,
we can, without interfering with his drive in the slightest degree,
stretch tightly a wire at a right angle to the line of flight to the
hole and pass it across within a quarter of an inch of his neck,
below his right ear.
The position of this wire will not in any way hamper the golfer in his
drive, but in order to fulfil the instructions which are laid down
with the utmost persistence by every golf book, that it is of
fundamental importance to keep the head absolutely still, it will be
necessary for our golfer to play his drive without allowing his head
or neck to touch this wire; but if he can do this, and at the same
time get the weight of his body, at the top of his swing, on to his
right leg, as advised by Taylor, Braid, and Vardon, and by Messrs.
Hutchinson and Travis, without making himself both grotesque and
uncomfortable, he will indeed have performed an unparalleled feat in
the history of golf, for, to put the matter quite shortly, it is
nonsense to suppose that it can be done. The thing is mechanically
impossible.
If a man starts with his weight equally distributed between his legs,
and then uses his spine or any other imaginary pivot to turn his body
upon in the upward swing, it will be impossible for him to shift his
weight so that it goes back on to his right leg. I am not, of course,
allowing for a person who has an adjustable spine, such as that
described by Mr. Arnold Haultain in _The Mystery of Golf_, which
rotates, according to the author, first on one thigh bone and then on
another. This spine is of such a remarkable nature that I must devote,
later on, a little time to considering its vagaries. At present I am,
however, dealing with a matter of practical golf and simple mechanics,
about which there is absolutely no mystery but a vast amount of
misconception.
When I first stated in _Modern Golf_, which, so far as I am aware, was
the first book wherein this fundamental truth was laid down, that the
left was the foot which bore the greater burden, it was regarded as
revolutionary teaching, but there is not a professional golfer of any
reputation whatever who now dares to teach that at the top of the
swing the weight is to be put on the right. There is, however, no harm
in fortifying oneself with the opinion of at least one of the
triumvirate expressed elsewhere. Personally, I think that the
mechanical proposition is so extremely simple and incontrovertible, as
I have stated it, that it is unnecessary to go further, but such is
the veneration of the golfer for tradition that as a matter of duty to
the game I shall leave no stone unturned, not only to scotch, but
absolutely to kill, this mischievous idea which is so injurious to the
game.
In _Great Golfers_, Harry Vardon says, speaking of his address and
stance: "I stand firmly, with the weight rather on the right leg." At
page 50 of the same book he says, speaking of the top of the swing:
"There is distinct pressure of the left toe and very little more
weight should be felt on the right leg than there was when the ball
was addressed." We see clearly here that Vardon's statement in _Great
Golfers_ that at the top of the swing "very little more weight should
be felt on the right leg than there was when the ball was addressed"
does not agree with his statement in _The Complete Golfer_ wherein he
states that "the weight of the body is being gradually thrown on to
the right leg." The unfortunate part about this contradiction is that
_Great Golfers_ was published before _The Complete Golfer_, so that we
are bound to take it as Vardon's more mature and considered opinion
that the weight at the top of the stroke is thrown mainly on the right
leg.
[Illustration: PLATE VI. HARRY VARDON
The finish of his drive, showing how the weight goes forward
on to the left foot.]
This leaves us apparently as we were, but seeing the contradiction in
Vardon's statement, we may with advantage turn to action
photographs of him taken whilst actually playing the stroke. Here we
see most clearly in such photographs as those shown on pages 86 and 87
of _Great Golfers_, that the body, instead of going away from the
hole, has, if anything, gone forward. This is sufficiently marked in
the photographs which I am now referring to, but in _Fry's Magazine_
for the month of March 1909 there appeared a remarkable series of
photographs showing ten drives by Harry Vardon. These photographs are,
unquestionably, of very great value to the game, for they show beyond
any shadow of doubt whatever, that Vardon's weight is never, at any
portion of his drive, mainly on his right leg. The first photograph
showing him at the top of his swing is a wonderful illustration of the
fact that at the top of the swing in golf the main portion of the
weight goes forward on to the left foot.
Before leaving this portion of our consideration of the distribution
of weight, I must refer again to the description given of this matter
in _The Mystery of Golf_. The author says:
The whole body must turn on the pivot of the head of the
right thigh bone working in the cotyloidal cavity of the "os
innominatum" or pelvic bone, the head, right knee, and right
foot, remaining fixed, with the eyes riveted on the ball. In
the upward swing the vertebral column rotates upon the head
of the right femur, the right knee being fixed; and as the
club head nears the ball, the fulcrum is rapidly changed from
the right to the left hip, the spine now rotating on the left
thigh bone, the left knee being fixed; and the velocity is
accelerated by the arms and wrists in order to add the force
of the muscles to the weight of the body, thus gaining the
greatest impetus possible. Not every professional instructor
has succeeded in putting before his pupil the correct stroke
in golf in this anatomical exposition.
For which we may be devoutly thankful, for if ever there was written
an absolutely ridiculous thing about golf which could transcend in
stupidity this description, I should like to see it.
As a matter of fact, the statement does not merit serious notice, but
the book is published by a reputable firm of publishers, and no doubt
has been read by some people who do not know sufficient for themselves
to be able to analyse the alleged analysis of the author.
Let us now subject his analysis to a little of the analysing process.
We are told that "the whole body must turn on the pivot of the head of
the right thigh bone working in the cotyloidal cavity of the 'os
innominatum' or pelvic bone." This is merely another way of saying
that the right leg and foot is supporting the whole weight of the
body, although the head must remain fixed. We have already considered
the similar statements expressed in _The Mystery of Golf_, and by much
more important people in the golfing world than the author of this
book, so we need not labour this point, but he goes on to reduce his
directions to the most ludicrous absurdity. We are told that in the
upward swing the vertebral column rotates upon the head of the right
femur.
Of course, I am not personally acquainted with Mr. Haultain, and he
may be speaking from his own practice, but assuming for the sake of
argument that he is a normally constructed man, the base of his
vertebral column never gets anywhere near his right femur, nor is it
possible for anybody's vertebral column to rotate unless the person is
rotating with it, which one is inclined to think would prove rather
detrimental to the drive at golf if indulged in between the stance and
address and impact.
As though we had not already had sufficient fun for our money, we are
told that "as the club head nears the ball the fulcrum is rapidly
changed from the right to the left hip, the spine now rotating on the
left thigh bone."
So far as one can judge from our author's description he must have
been in the habit of playing golf amongst a race of men who have
adjustable spines, the tail end of which they are able to wag from one
side of the pelvic bone to the other. Personally, I have yet to meet
golfers of this description. One feels inclined to ask the author of
this remarkable statement what is happening to the os coccyx whilst
one is wagging one's spine about in this remarkable manner.
This statement is about the funniest thing which has ever been written
in golf, and it has absolutely no relation whatever to practical golf.
It is merely an imaginative and absolutely incorrect exposition of the
golf drive, not only from a golfing, but from an anatomical, point of
view; and it is to me an absolute wonder how anyone, even one who
labels himself "a duffer," can attach his name to such obviously
inaccurate and foolish statements. One really would be inclined to be
much more severe than one is in dealing with such a book were it not
for the amusement which one has derived from a perusal of such fairy
tales as a rotating spine which, during the course of the golf drive,
jumps from one thigh bone to the other, steeplechasing the pelvic bone
as it performs this remarkable feat.
I have referred in other places to the looseness of Mr. Haultain's
descriptions in all matters of practical golf. At page 89 he confirms
one's impression, if confirmation were required, that his idea of the
fundamental principle of the golf swing is as ill-formed as are his
notions of anatomy, for he says: "The left knee must be loose at the
beginning and firm at the finish." At no time during a stroke in golf,
of any description whatever, should there be any looseness of the
body. During the production of the golf stroke the body is practically
full of tension and attention. It is the greatest mistake possible to
imagine that because one portion of the body is doing the work, any
other portion may "slack." One who makes this statement has not a
glimmering of the beginning of the real game of golf. I can readily
believe that to such an one golf is a "mystery."
The left knee is in harness from the moment the ball is addressed
until long after it has been driven, and it is a certainty that the
left knee has far more work to do than has the right, so for anyone to
cultivate an idea that the left knee may, at any time during the
production of the golfing stroke, "be loose," is a very grave error.
While we are considering the matter of the distribution of weight, it
will be advisable for us to devote our attention to the disposition of
the weight at the moment of impact. Speaking of the management of the
weight at this critical time, Vardon says:
When the ball has been struck, and the follow-through is
being accomplished, there are two rules, hitherto held
sacred, which may at last be broken. With the direction and
force of the swing your chest is naturally turned round until
it is facing the flag, and your body now abandons all
restraint, and to a certain extent throws itself, as it were,
after the ball. There is a great art in timing this body
movement exactly. If it takes place the fiftieth part of a
second too soon the stroke will be entirely ruined; if it
comes too late it will be quite ineffectual and will only
result in making the golfer feel uneasy, and as if something
had gone wrong. When made at the proper instant it adds a
good piece of distance to the drive, and that instant, as
explained, is just when the club is following through.
It is evident from this statement, that Vardon is under the
impression that the timing of this body movement should be so
performed as to come in when the club is following through. I have
shown before that the follow-through of a stroke is of no importance
whatever except as the result of a perfectly executed first half of
the stroke, if one may so describe it. It must be obvious to anyone
who knows but little either of golf or mechanics that nothing which
the body or the club does after contact between the ball and the club
has ceased can have any influence whatever upon the flight of the
ball, either as to distance or direction. Practically everything which
takes place after the ball has left the club is the natural result of
what has been done before impact. This cannot be too forcibly
impressed upon golfers, for it is not at all uncommon to find men
deliberately stating that the follow-through exerts a tremendous
influence on the stroke. It should be perfectly manifest that this
cannot be so. It is no doubt of very great importance to have a good
follow-through, but the good follow-through must be the result of a
good stroke previously played, otherwise it will be worthless.
Harry Vardon states that this timing of the body movement takes place
immediately after impact, for that is "just when the club is following
through." He has himself provided the best possible refutation of this
obviously erroneous statement. The timing of the body on to the ball
in the manner mentioned by him practically commences, in every drive
of perfect rhythm as are so many of Vardon's, from the moment the
stroke starts, for the body weight which is put into the golf drive
comes largely from the half turn of the shoulders and upper portions
of the body from the hips in the downward swing. This half turn and
the slight forward movement of the hips are practically one and the
same. If they are not, something has gone wrong with the drive.
Absolute evidence of the correctness of this statement is provided by
Vardon himself in _Fry's Magazine_ for March 1909. Here we see the
remarkable series of ten drives by Vardon which I have already
referred to. The first photograph shows most clearly that at the top
of the swing the main portion of his weight is on his left foot. As a
matter of carrying golf to the extreme of scientific calculation it is
quite probable that there is much more than Vardon's physical weight
on his left leg, for the rapid upward swing of his club is suddenly
arrested when considerably nearer the hole than his left shoulder, so
that the leverage of the head of the club will have thrown more weight
than that which the left actually bears on it as its share of Vardon's
avoirdupois. This, of course, is undoubted as a matter of practical
mechanics, but it is not of sufficient importance to enter into fully
in any way here.
It is, however, of importance for us to consider the photographs which
follow, for here we see quite clearly that very early in the downward
swing Vardon raises his right heel and bends his left knee slightly
forward, and in the third, fourth, and fifth photographs we see very
clearly that he is executing that turn of his body which carries his
weight forward on to the ball in a very marked degree. This point is
very clearly brought out in the instantaneous photographs of both
Vardon's driving, and in that of George Duncan's. It is positively
futile to say that the timing of the body weight in the follow-through
is done when the club is following through, because it is obvious that
this would not be "at the proper instant," and that it could not, by
any stretch of imagination, add "a good piece of distance to the
drive."
It is curious to note in this connection that on page 53 of _Great
Golfers_ Harry Vardon says:
Almost simultaneously with the impact, the right knee
slightly bends in the direction of the hole, and allows the
wrists and forearms to take the club right out in the
direction of the line of flight, dragging the arms after them
as far as they will comfortably go, when the club head
immediately leaves the line of flight and the right foot
turns on the toe. This allows the body to turn from the hips
and face the hole, the club finishing over the left shoulder.
Here it will be seen that Vardon brings the timing of this very
important forward movement back a little to "almost simultaneously
with the impact." Now this phrase may mean immediately prior to, or
immediately after, impact, and there can be no possible doubt which it
is. It must be _prior_ to impact if it is to exert any beneficial
effect whatever upon the stroke. To add any distance to the drive, it
is obvious that what was done in the way of timing the body on to the
ball must have been done _prior to impact_, and merely continued after
the ball had gone away, so that the finish was perfectly natural.
Now Vardon shows quite clearly in his drive that in his follow-through
his weight goes forward until it is practically all on his left leg.
So, for the matter of that, do the instantaneous photographs of nearly
every famous golfer, but some of them have a very peculiar
misconception of the disposition of weight at the moment of impact.
Let us, for instance, see what James Braid has to say about the matter
at page 53 of _Advanced Golf_. Dealing with this all-important moment,
he says:
I would draw the reader's very careful attention to the
sectional photographs that are given on a separate page, and
which in this form show the various workings of the
different parts of the body while the swing is in progress
as they could not be shown in any other way. They have all
been prepared from photographs of myself, taken for the
special purpose of this book. In some cases, in order to show
more completely the progress of the different movements from
the top of the swing to the finish, the position at the
moment of striking is included. Theoretically, that ought to
be exactly the same as the position at the address: and even
in practice it will be found to be as nearly identical as
possible, in the case of good driving, that is. Therefore,
for the sake of precision, the third photograph in each
series of four is a simple repetition of the first, and is
not a special photograph.
I may mention that this is a common idea of illustrating a golf
stroke. The author of the book shows the stance and address. He then
shows the top of the swing, and after that the finish, and he thinks
that he has then done his duty by his reader. As a matter of fact,
these are all positions in the swing where there is practically
"nothing doing" as the American puts it.
To illustrate the various movements in the drive, I took for _Modern
Golf_, and used, eighteen different positions, and there was not one
too many. It is quite impossible to illustrate the drive in golf by
three positions; and it is absolutely erroneous to attempt to
illustrate the moment of impact by a repetition of the photograph
taken for stance and address. From the golfing point of view it is
almost impossible to imagine two positions which are so entirely
dissimilar. From the point of view of a mere photographer there may be
some slight similarity, as indeed there is in all photographs of
golfers, but to compare stance and address with the position at the
moment of impact with the ball, is mere futility.
Let us quote Braid's remarks with regard to stance and address:
When in position and ready for play, both the legs and the
arms of the player should be just a trifle relaxed--just so
much as to get rid of any feeling of stiffness, and to allow
of the most complete freedom of movement. The slackening may
be a little more pronounced in the case of the arms than with
the legs, as much more freedom is required of them
subsequently. They should fall easily and comfortably to the
sides, and the general feeling of the player at this stage
should be one of flexibility and power.
Everything is now in readiness for making the stroke, and the
player prepares to hit the ball.... While he is doing this he
will feel the desire to indulge in a preliminary waggle of
the club just to see that his arms are in working order,
waving the club backwards and forwards once or twice over the
ball.... Obviously there is no rule in such matters, and the
player can only be enjoined to make himself comfortable in
the best way he can.
Now we see here that the main idea of the player at the moment of
address is to make himself comfortable--in other words, to get into as
natural a position as he possibly can in order to execute his stroke.
The whole idea of the stance and address is to get into a perfectly
natural position, and one that is quite comfortable and best
calculated to enable one to produce a correct stroke. We see clearly
that this is what Braid considers to be necessary at the moment of
address.
Let us turn now to _Advanced Golf_ at page 61, which we have already
quoted. Braid, at that page and on the preceding pages, explains
clearly that the whole idea of the golf stroke is supreme tension, and
that at the moment of impact the tension is greatest. He says: "Then
comes the moment of impact. Crack! Everything is let loose, and round
comes the body immediately the ball is struck and goes slightly
forward until the player is facing the line of flight." Is it possible
to imagine two more diametrically opposed conditions of the human
frame than those which I have described in Braid's own words? Yet we
find this fine player producing, for the guidance of golfers as to
what takes place at the moment of impact, the same photograph which he
shows them for stance and address!
Moreover, Braid himself clearly shows in his action photographs that
such a statement as this is quite wrong. If we had any doubt at all
about the matter, we might examine the photographs of Braid himself,
which show clearly that the positions taken up by him when addressing
the ball and when hitting it, are, as might easily be believed, widely
different, for at the moment of impact there is the supreme tension
and power which he advises as being a necessity for the production of
a long drive. It is true that James Braid's feet, particularly his
right foot, do not move from the ground so much as do those of Harry
Vardon or George Duncan; but it is nevertheless true that the movement
of his legs, arms, and shoulders show, at the moment of impact, a
position totally different from that taken up by him during his stance
and address.
It might seem that these things are not of sufficient importance to
warrant the critical analysis to which I am subjecting them, but there
can be no doubt that there are a vast number of people to whom golf is
of infinitely more importance than political economy, and to these it
is a matter of most vital importance that they should know what they
are doing and what they ought to do at this critical period; and in
dealing with the books which have been produced in connection with the
game of golf they have such a mass of contradictory and fallacious
teaching to wade through, that it is small wonder that they are, as a
rule, utterly befogged as to the proper principles upon which to
proceed.
Let us, for instance, examine these two statements with regard to the
follow-through. At page 55 of _How to Play Golf_, in his chapter on
"Finishing the Stroke," James Braid says:
The second that the ball is hit, and not before, the player
should begin to turn on his right toe, and to allow a little
bend of the right knee, so as to allow the right shoulder to
come round until the body faces the line of flight of the
ball. When this is done properly the weight will be thrown on
to the left foot, and the whole body will be thrown slightly
forward. The whole of this movement needs very careful
timing, because it is a very common fault with some players
to let the body get in too soon, and in such cases the stroke
is always ruined. Examine the photographs.
Let us now turn to page 62 of _Advanced Golf_. Here we read:
As for the follow-through, there is very little that can be
said here, which is not already perfectly understood, if it
is not always produced. After impact, and the release of all
tension, body and arms are allowed to swing forward in the
direction of the flight of the ball, and I would allow the
right knee to give a little in order to remove all restraint.
But the weight must not be entirely taken off the right foot.
That foot must still be felt to be pressing firmly on the
turf, showing that although the weight has been changed from
one place to another, the proper balance has not been lost.
Braid here says that the weight must not be entirely taken off the
right foot. Well, to all intents and purposes, it is entirely taken
off the right foot, as will be shown by photographs of any of the
leading players in the world at the finish of the stroke, and, indeed,
of James Braid himself. Braid says: "Examine the photographs," and I
have examined them. At pages 57 and 59 of _How to Play Golf_ Braid is
shown finishing a full drive or brassy shot. Here, without any
possible doubt, his weight is all on his left foot. At page 61 of
_Advanced Golf_ there are some photographs of Braid's boots and
trousers from the knee downwards, entitled "Leg action in driving."
One of these is entitled "Finish." Here it will be seen that the whole
of the weight is unmistakably on the left leg.
If one looks at the instantaneous photographs of James Braid in this
book and in _Great Golfers_ one will see quite clearly that in all
finishes his weight goes unmistakably on to his left leg.
Braid makes a very wonderful statement in _Great Golfers_ at page 175.
Writing there of the downward swing, he says: "My body does not
commence to turn till the club head is about two feet from the
ball--namely, at the point when the wrists come into the stroke." As a
matter of fact James Braid's body begins to turn almost simultaneously
with the beginning of the downward stroke, and as another matter of
practical golf the wrists also come in at the very beginning of the
stroke. With this latter point I shall, however, deal later on.
Let me here emphasise the fact that the body turn must commence very
early in the stroke, as indeed is quite natural. It is obvious that if
anyone were to postpone the turning of the body until the club head
"is about two feet from the ball" the rhythm of the stroke would be
utterly destroyed. In this matter I am contradicting Braid flatly
about his own practice. Therefore, I must refer any reader who doubts
the accuracy of my statement, and Braid himself, if he cares to
challenge it, to _Fry's Magazine_ for May 1909, wherein are shown
eight drives by James Braid. No. 1 shows Braid at the top of his
swing; No. 2 shows him before his club head has travelled a foot, and
even in this short distance we see that his body has already turned
very considerably. Any attempt whatever to follow out what Braid says
here and to postpone the turn of the body until the club head is two
feet from the ball, must prove disastrous.
Braid continues on the same page:
At this moment the left knee turns rather quickly, as at the
moment of striking, I am firm on both feet; the quickness of
the action makes it difficult to follow with the eye, but I
am convinced this is what happens. Immediately after impact I
commence turning on the right toe, bending the right knee
slightly. This allows the right shoulder to come round till
the body is facing the hole. It is most essential that this
should be done, and then no thought will be given as to how
the club will finish, as the speed at which the club head is
travelling will naturally take it well through.
Here we have, at least, very important corroboration of the fact that
one need not worry about the follow-through if the first portion of
the stroke has been correctly played. Braid says that at the moment of
striking "the player is quite firm on both his feet and faces directly
to the ball, just as he did when he was addressing it before he began
the upward swing. Anyone who thinks out the theory of the swing for
himself will see that it is obviously intended that at the moment of
impact the player shall be just as he was when he addressed the ball,
which is the position which will afford him most driving power and
accuracy."
This statement is so amazing that I must give definite instructions as
to where to find it. It is on page 54 of _How to Play Golf_, and I
think it proves conclusively that the idea which Braid is endeavouring
to impart to his pupils and readers is entirely wrong, and is not the
method which he himself follows in practice. Confirmation of my
opinion can be obtained from a study of the third picture in the
series of drives by James Braid in the May number of _Fry's Magazine_
for 1909, which I have just referred to. Here we see clearly that the
positions, from a golfing point of view, are utterly dissimilar, as
indeed is most natural.
Braid states that immediately after impact he commences "turning on
the right toe, bending the right knee slightly." I think it will be
found that even with James Braid, who certainly uses his legs in a
somewhat different manner from many of the leading professionals, the
right foot begins to lift before impact with the ball. I am inclined
to think that both Braid and Taylor are more flat-footed at the moment
of impact than most of the other professional golfers; but there can
be little doubt that the body is swung into the blow before impact,
otherwise it would be a matter of practical impossibility for them to
obtain the length which they do; while it is a certainty that for the
ordinary golfer it would be fatal to attempt to keep his weight in any
way whatever on his right leg at the finish of his drive.
This rooted fallacy with regard to the distribution of weight so that
at the top of the swing it shall be on the right foot, has obtained
its hold in a very peculiar manner. At the top of the swing the right
leg is practically perfectly straight, and, naturally, as the foot is
firmly planted on the ground and therefore held at both the heel and
the toe while the leg has turned with the body, there is a very
considerable amount of torsional or twisting strain on the leg. This
torsional strain, added to the fact that the leg is perfectly
straight, has led to the idea that a great deal of the weight is on
the right leg.
This idea has been confirmed to a very great degree by the manner of
contact of the left foot with the earth. At the top of the swing the
golfer pivots on the left foot, practically from the ball of the big
toe to the end thereof, or on that portion of his boot representing
this space. This naturally makes his contact with the earth _appear
light_. These two causes, taken together, have produced the fallacy
with regard to having the weight on the right foot and leg at the top
of the swing. In the one case it is a physical cause, namely, the
stiffness and torsional strain on the right leg, and in the other case
it is a visual deception. It stands to reason that, provided the two
surfaces will bear the strain, as much weight could be borne on a
point as on a surface immeasurably greater, but in the second case
there would be a greater _appearance_ of weight. This is exactly what
has happened with regard to the golf drive. It is executed extremely
quickly, and those who have attempted to explain it have not been able
to follow the motions with sufficient rapidity and intelligence, nor
have they been able to explain them accurately either from a
mechanical or anatomical point of view.
Until we can get some golfer who can pass the test suggested by me,
and play his stroke without touching the wire strained within a
quarter of an inch of his neck, after having taken his stance with his
weight evenly distributed between his legs, and at the same time play
it without contortion with his weight on his right leg, we may take it
that this tremendous fallacy with regard to the distribution of weight
at the top of the swing has been exploded.