There is no club that can be made to serve in so many different situations as the mid-iron. Standing as it does in the middle of the list of clubs it can be pressed into use as a substitute for any club from the putter to the driver. Naturally, I do not mean to say that it will do the work of any one club so well as the club especially designed for the particular situation at hand, but, if a player were forced to play a complete round of the course with only one club, in nine cases out of ten she would select her mid-iron as the one that would best accommodate itself to the difficulties of the game. The mid-iron is a substantial club a little longer as to shaft and less lofted as to face than the mashie, but not so uncompromisingly severe as the cleek. If one may be allowed to ascribe to it human qualities, it might be said to have a kindly and obliging disposition that endears it to the hearts of golf players as a safe and reliable friend. It is possible to put quite well with this club, if the player holds her hands well down the shaft, and stands rather in advance of the ball so that the face of the club is brought into an upright position; from the tee it will carry the ball a respectable distance and, in fact, it is occasionally selected as the proper club when, for example, the distance to the hole is short and the green is in an elevated position; through the fairway it is generally useful, and, perhaps, may pick a ball handily out of a shallow sand trap.

Although I have mentioned first what may be done with the mid-iron to show the possibilities that lie in the club, it is not to be supposed that a player would use it in any unnatural way from choice. It is only in a "one-club" match that the player could be forced to use the mid-iron in a bunker, but, as I have said before, in case the player did, perchance, engage in one of these rather eccentric contests, it would be the mid-iron with which she would set forth to do or die.

Properly, the mid-iron is used in making approach shots when the distance is too great to be covered by a mashie (and I may say here that it is extremely foolish to try to force a mashie beyond its natural capacity); on the fairway when the lie is not good enough for a cleek or brassie, or where the ground rises abruptly; and in the rough grass, if the ball happens to be in a particularly unentangled position. It is dangerous to believe that the mid-iron may be used often when the ball is "in the rough." On account of its longer head and less sloping face it is far less safe than the mashie or niblick, but, if the ball happens to lie in an open space, it may be used. On account of the greater distance that can be gained by using the mid-iron it is a temptation to favor it in place of the mashie, but, if there is any doubt at all in the player's mind, it is far better to play safe. "Play safe" is a good rule to follow in general, although there are, of course, occasions in match play when the player sees that the winning or losing of the hole depends on one shot, and then it is necessary to take a risk.

In playing both iron and cleek shots, the question that first arises is where to stand in relation to the ball. I say "the question" because I believe that only experienced players address the ball with the conviction that they are standing in exactly the right place. A beginner, or a woman who has not become firmly settled in her habits of play, is inclined to change her stance from time to time if her shots are not going well. When she has "topped" the ball, she will probably say to herself, "I must stand back of the ball a little more," and when she sends it too high in the air she will say, "I must move forward and try to keep the ball down." In this way she will change from one position to another endeavoring to correct her faults, but with no clear understanding of what really causes her bad strokes. That there is no absolutely fixed rule about where to stand in relation to the ball while making iron shots is easily perceived when one reads what different expert players say on the subject. Taylor, "Taylor on Golf," page 231, says: "In playing the ordinary stroke with the cleek the ball is in a position fairly equidistant between the two feet. There is no hard and fast rule in this respect; it is a matter to be settled by the individual player; but the distance should, in the majority of instances, be as I have just stated." In speaking of the mid-iron, page 233, he says: "In playing with the iron the stance is different from that taken in the case of any other club. The right foot must be advanced, and the left thrown back, with the ball on a line that will be nearer the right foot than in the playing of a stroke with the cleek." Vardon, "How to Play Golf," page 122, maintains that: "For a cleek or iron shot, as for a stroke with a wooden club, the ball should be on a line with a point a few inches inside the left heel." It is hardly worth while to give more quotations because to do so would simply be repetition of the same differences.

The opinions given by the group of players who have written books on the subject of golf seem, on this subject of the relation of player to ball, to advocate the ball being nearer the left heel, equidistant between the feet, or closer to the right, according to the manner that each writer has found the best. Probably the reason for this difference of opinion lies in the fact that no two human bodies carry out the action of swinging a club and hitting a ball in exactly the same way. The ball is a fixed object, lying quite still upon the turf until it is struck; the player, therefore, must take her position opposite the ball in such a way that, allowing for her personal peculiarities of movement, she will hit it squarely and cleanly. It is easy to concede that what would be the best position for one player might not be equally good for one playing in quite a different manner, so it must be left to each player's own decision where, within, of course, certain limitations, she will stand in relation to the ball. Her decision, it is hardly necessary to add, should be based on a close observation of how she obtains her best shots.

George Duncan, in his article on "Iron Club Play" in "Golf Illustrated" makes the following statement: "We now come to the much-discussed 'push' shot, which should be used for every shot with an iron club from the three-quarter shot with the cleek down to a chip shot with the mashie. All these shots should be played with one object - that is, to put back-spin on the ball, which is the only way to make it fly straight and at the same time to get stop on it after its pitch."

The method of making the "push" shot has been described over and over again, and it is not my purpose to say anything about the stroke in detail at the present time, although I shall discuss it in a later chapter, but this extremely positive and unqualified assertion of Duncan's that it should be used at all times, especially when we remember that he is writing for women, can hardly be allowed to pass unchallenged.

The "push" shot is difficult to accomplish and, although it is most useful in some circumstances and should be at the command of every first-class player, it is obviously ridiculous to say that it should be used at all times and with all iron clubs. The ball played with "push" flies straight and low until the force of its forward impetus begins to slacken; at this point the influence of the back-spin becomes apparent in its flight and the ball rises in the air and finally drops and rolls but little. It is a beautiful shot but it is not the one required at all times with any iron club. In this description of how to play the "push" shot (following the statement just quoted), Duncan says, "In the correct stance for this shot the right foot is a little in advance of the left, with the ball more nearly in a line with the left heel than with the right, and the hands in a dead line with the ball.' If we turn to "Modern Golf," by Mr. P. A. Vaile, and look at plate 40, we see Duncan addressing the ball for the "push." A very accurate description of his position is printed below the picture; I will quote from that.

Mrs. Ronald H. Barlow Iron shot from a roadway.

"The ball is nearer the right foot than for an ordinary cleek shot, that is to say, the player is more in front of the ball than for an ordinary shot. It will be observed, however, that his hands are in front of the ball, that is, they have not moved back to keep in line with the head of the club."

If it were worth while to follow the text of Duncan's article further, and to compare what he says with what his picture shows him as doing, it would be possible to perceive other contradictions besides the ones just noted concerning the relative position of the player to the ball, and the position of the hands; but enough has been said to show that Duncan does not himself do what he advises women to do. It is difficult to account for this but such, nevertheless, is the case. Without wishing to criticise Duncan in any way, it goes to prove what I said in the preface of this book - that what men have written for women about golf is very unsatisfactory. I might add that, in this article that has been under consideration, Duncan has not really described the

"push" shot, as the reader is led to suppose, but the regular iron or cleek shot.

As a general rule for ordinary strokes with the iron, the ball should be equidistant between the two feet or a little nearer the left, and the left foot should be drawn back somewhat so that the player faces a little toward the hole. The value of the open stance becomes apparent after the ball has been struck, because, in making all straight shots with iron clubs, the club should follow through in the line to the hole, and not finish above the left shoulder as it does after a drive. Sometimes, after an iron shot, the club-head finishes high in the air and sometimes pointing toward the pin, but, in either case, the fact that the feet are placed with the left drawn back makes it easy for the player to turn toward the hole after the ball is struck, and to allow the club-head to follow through in the proper direction. Care should be taken in addressing the ball that the sole of the club shall rest truly on the ground. The grip should be very firm, and at no time should the hands relax, as the slightest looseness may result in the club's head becoming turned. The hands should be held so that they are in a line with the ball, that is, that the line between the hands and ball should be at right angles to the ball's intended line of flight.

Some players maintain that the hands should be slightly ahead of the ball for making all iron shots, but I believe that the position of the hands depends upon the position of the player in regard to the ball. If the player is standing so that the ball is nearer her left heel than her right, or if the ball is equidistant between her feet, the hands should be in a line with the ball as already described. If, on the other hand, a low ball with back-spin is desired and the player stands so that the ball is nearer her right foot, then the hands will be held in advance of the ball. The danger in holding the hands forward is that the player is very apt to "top," or, if her faults lie in another direction, she may bring her hands through so far ahead of the club that, when the club-head hits the ball, its face is turned back and out, and the ball shoots off to the right.

The question of taking turf after iron shots is a somewhat vexed one. It is maintained by some that turf should always be taken, but it seems that that is a hard duty, especially to impose upon women. If we consider for a minute the theory of iron shots, we can easily clear away this uncertainty. In order to get the benefit of the slope of the club's face it is necessary to get well under the ball; in other words the face of the club should meet the ball at a point midway between its lower and upper edges or a little higher. To accomplish this, and, also, to put back-spin on the ball by striking it with a descending blow, the stroke is made so that the lowest point of the arc described by the club's head is an inch or two ahead of the spot on which the ball lies. The ordinary grass on the fairway generally allows enough room for this without necessitating cutting the grass out by the roots, so, in ordinary circumstances, it is not incumbent upon the player to try to dig up a section of turf. If, however, she does take up a divot after the ball is hit, well and good; no harm is done unless she digs so deeply as to ground her club and prevent a proper follow-through.

The backward swing should be steady and comparatively slow with no slackness in the hands or wrists. The length of the swing should be determined, as always, by the distance the ball must carry. With a mid-iron, a half or three-quarter swing usually serves the purpose; if greater distance is required than can be obtained by a three-quarter swing it is well to use some other club. It does not follow that a player must never make a full swing with a mid-iron, but the mistake to be guarded against is that of forcing the club beyond its natural limitations. If the player tries to get the last possible foot of distance of which the club is capable, she will probably over swing and lose control of the club. Beginners at the game, especially, are apt to make the mistake of over swinging; they make too great an effort, use too much strength.

One of the most difficult things in the game of golf is to learn exactly where to check the backward swing, and, as it is impossible for one person to teach this to another, each player must learn for herself by practice and observation of her strokes.

When a full shot is being played the club should not go back of the shoulders as it does when wooden clubs are used, but the swing should be fairly upright in character. The shaft of the club at the highest point of the swing should be above the player's head, or, more strictly speaking, above the back of her neck. The peculiarities of the construction of iron clubs demand this type of swing, and it is well that they do because it is much more accurate than the flatter one employed for wooden clubs.

As the club is carried back the body must necessarily turn at the same time. It seems useless to state dogmatically just what portion of the body should begin to move at certain fixed points in the club's journey. All of the joints of the body are capable of being twisted with the exception of the knees and the elbows. From the ankles to the neck the body may be screwed around, but, as the knees refuse to screw, the left knee must bend in the only way it will go. There is nothing difficult or complicated about all of this - a child will do it quite naturally and gracefully. It is because, as our bodies mature, we are inclined to become stiff and awkward that so many instructions about how to turn the body have been considered necessary. In the long run these directions are confusing, and tend to make the player more stiff and self-conscious than she was in the beginning. For this reason I do not intend to go into the subject at all beyond emphasizing two fundamental principles. These are that the head must be kept steady and that the body must not sway from side to side. If the player will absolutely obey these instructions, she will not go far wrong in swinging the club. Ease and grace will come, if they come at all, by practice and self-confidence. It is better to keep in mind the thing that must be done rather than the way in which the thing must be done. In the case under consideration the club must be carried back only far enough to insure the ball's going a predetermined distance after it has been struck, and it must be brought forward again so that the ball shall be hit fairly and squarely as planned when the ball was addressed. If the player does these things, she need not worry about the turn of her body. As I have said before, good form is a means to an end, not the end in itself.