To write a chapter of general remarks on the game might become a very serious undertaking were no limit placed upon the nature of the subject. This book is intended as a guide to golfers in playing, and hence the general observations I have to make will be strictly confined to what may be of service in this way, and to such matters as cannot be conveniently dealt with in any of the previous chapters - matters which apply to the game as a whole, and not to any specific part of it. The chapter will necessarily to some extent be disjointed, but this I cannot well avoid.

Accidents will happen to the best of players: clubs will break, and balls will be lost. What can be more annoying, or can handicap a golfer more severely in a match, than the breaking of his driver just after starting for the round, and the having to play the rest of the game without an efficient substitute? To provide against breakages and similar contingencies, it is well to carry a spare driver and brassy. In playing friendly matches, and in practice games, the breaking of a club is of less importance than in playing in a competition; and, in the former cases, one may choose rather to run the risk of breakage than to burden himself with extra clubs. The carrying of additional clubs is no doubt a consideration where caddies are not to be had; and, if he objects to this, he must weigh up the advantages and disadvantages in his own mind, and act accordingly. With regard to balls, it is a safe plan never to take out fewer than half a dozen. Not only is there the risk of losing one or two, or of them splitting or becoming unplayable, but it is a fact that the life of a ball is of very short duration. A few hard strokes, or a badly topped one, and the 'life' is out of the ball, after which it will neither drive nor putt so well as it ought to. Speaking for myself, I may say that, when playing an important match, I seldom or never use the same ball for more than four or live holes; and of course, if I happen to hack one in a bunker, I put down a fresh one at the first opportunity. I know many amateurs who follow this rule in playing in club competitions. The old balls do well enough for practice.

In golf there is a great deal in fancy. If one takes a dislike to a club, he will never play well with it while the dislike lasts; and, on the other hand, if he takes a fancy to any particular club, be it driver or brassy, he will probably play better with it than with any other club he can get, and will use it to good purpose for almost any kind of stroke. In such circumstances he cannot do better than humour his fancy.

Undoubtedly the best and speediest way to learn golf is to obtain the services of a professional who is willing to act as a ' coach,' or to ask the assistance of a brother golfer who has attained some proficiency. An experienced eye will point out faults and the remedies for them, which it might take a beginner a long time to discover for himself. There is no better method of acquiring a good, free style, than by practising swinging the club, a mark of some kind being placed on the spot which the ball should occupy in actual play. Even for golfers who have long passed the initial stages, there is no better exercise than this; it brings up and hardens the muscles, and will add some yards to the length of the drives. There is very little good to be derived by a beginner from playing rounds of the links until he is able to handle his clubs properly; he will derive much more benefit from practising the various strokes. After he has acquired the proper style of swing, he can take a few balls and go to an unfrequented part of the links, where he will interfere with no one and no one will interfere with him, and there practise drives, brassy shots, and iron strokes. He will attain proficiency much more rapidly in this than in any other way, because he will more readily see where he makes any mistake, and he can again at once play another stroke of the same nature, correcting his previous error; whereas, if he is playing a round of the links, the stroke he desires to perfect may occur only twice or three times. Of course, to practise putts, it is necessary to be on a putting-green; but opportunities for this can usually be obtained by choosing a day and hour when few players are on the links. There is no better mode of acquiring instruction than by watching the play of a good golfer. A great deal is to be learned from seeing a good match. After a beginner has got to the stage of know-ing the game, he cannot expect to derive much good from anything but steady practice, and he must not be disheartened because he practises a long time before becoming perfect. The game will come to him all at once, more probably than by a slow process of improvement. Some day he will find he can play a much better game than he has hitherto done, and from this point onward improvement will be more rapid, until, by continued practice, he reaches a state of proficiency. He must not be disheartened because he sometimes goes off his game. Such a temporary lapse is common to all golfers.

It is of great advantage to be able to play straight, and to be able to play the ball to any place desired. The most famous golfers have been remarkable for this more than for long driving. Long driving is not within the reach of all; it requires physical strength - principally strength of wrist - but straightness and precision of play can be cultivated by any one with a good eye and hand, and conduce more to good golf than long driving.

Golf, like all other outdoor games, is affected to a very great extent by the weather; but it is possible to play during all seasons of the year and in all weathers, unless, indeed, the ground is deeply covered with snow. A slight covering of snow of an inch or so deep does not prevent devotees enjoying their game, red balls instead of white being used. I do not mean to say that the game is under such circumstances a test of skill, but it is then a healthy exercise if nothing more. The weather may be said to affect the game in two ways: firstly, indirectly, by changing the condition of the links; and secondly, directly, by interfering with the play. Upon the first head it may be remarked that, as will be obvious to every one, dry weather and sunshine make the ground hard, and the putting-greens exceedingly keen. Under these conditions the long game can be played to most advantage, as the ball will usually roll a considerable distance on the hard ground; but the advantage obtained thereby is more than counterbalanced by the increased difficulty in playing the short game - approaching and putting. It is not easy to make approaches, especially pitched approaches, lie near the hole, and with keen, slippery greens putting becomes very uncertain. On the other hand, when the ground is soft or wet after rain, the balls fall almost dead off drives and long strokes - they practically run no distance; but this again is compensated in the short game-approaches can be boldly played with success, and putts can generally be run up to the hole with confidence. Upon the second head, heat and cold affect players differently, and so does wet; but the chief factor to bo reckoned with is wind. Wind not only affects the player, but it also catches the ball. A big man fares worse in a windy day than one of less stature, because, in the former case, it gets a greater hold of his shoulders and interferes with his swing. On very stormy days some men have difficulty in keeping their feet during the swing. But on the ball the effect is most visible - in driving, in approaching, and in putting. Driving with the wind, it is of course possible to get longer strokes, while against the wind the distance is very considerably diminished; and in this latter case, if the ball is not truly struck, and if there is any slicing or pulling, the effects are much intensified. If the ball be accurately hit, wind, whether blowing against the line of play or across it, will deflect the flight to a comparatively trifling extent. With a cross wind blowing from the player's left a sliced ball will certainly be a long one, but its course will be nearly semicircular; and if allowance be not made for this, the ball may be found as far from the hole as is the tee from which it has just been played. Similarly with a wind blowing from the player's right with a pulled ball. With favouring winds experienced golfers occasionally heel or pull their drives intentionally, with the object of getting longer strokes. Before attempting to do anything of the kind in a match, it is as well to make sure that the advantage to be gained is worth the risk, and also to be tolerably certain that success will attend the effort, as the condition of a golfer who plays for a pull but happens to get on a slice or heel instead is not to be envied. Playing for either heel or pull is a dangerous habit, and not to be encouraged save under exceptional circumstances. When it is done, due allowance must be made for the deflected flight of the ball. This as regards driving, and these remarks apply, though in a lesser degree, to approaching. As regards putting, a putt with the wind will require only a gentle tap as compared with a similar putt against the wind; and if the wind blow across the putt, allowance must be made for the ball being blown off the direct line. In driving with the wind a spoon or lofted club may be used with advantage, so as to get the ball well up in the air, and secure the benefit of the wind drifting it along towards the end of the carry. But in driving against the wind the lower the ball can be kept the better. A deep-faced club with a stiff shaft is best for this. Some players prefer, when driving tee strokes against the wind, to play a hanging ball, and others stand more over the ball - that is to say, they keep it nearer their right foot. I think the latter device is good, but the former is too risky. As I have said in a previous chapter, a lower tee should be taken, and be sure to play with a good follow-through.