IF all golf courses were laid out upon flat ground many of the difficulties of the games would be eliminated. Fortunately this is not the case. I say "fortunately," because level courses are extremely uninteresting and any enthusiastic player is glad to have the problems of playing multiplied by legitimate difficulties. After the confusion that may have been implanted in the player's mind by false or irrelevant theories has been removed by her own clear thinking, she is glad of the opportunity for exercising her ingenuity in meeting the awkward situations that arise in playing a course where she must follow her ball up hill and down dale. Such a course as the one at Lakewood or at Garden City becomes monotonous after a time. Aside from the aesthetic pleasure that is derived from picturesquely rolling country, there is an exhilaration of spirit produced by the necessity of adapting oneself to the exigencies of diversified ground formation. It is distinctly more interesting not to play shot after shot in the same manner, but to be forced to use one's mind and skill in playing the regular shots not only in the regular way, but also in ways that present fresh problems of stance and swing.

As I have said several times before, women's besetting sin is lack of clear and concentrated thinking. Once a woman can be rescued from the state of mind that causes her to do this or that because some one has told her to, and has been awakened to the joy of thinking for herself, she has made the first long step toward becoming a good player. It must not be supposed that I am recommending an omniscient attitude for anyone. When a person believes she cannot learn anything more about a subject, she immediately confesses her own stupidity. The wise woman is she who listens to each theory and suggestion as it comes her way, but, sifting the true from the false, retains for herself only-such as she can in her own mind prove sound. It is by the efforts of body and mind combined that one gets the most pleasure and benefit from any game, and this is especially true in the game of golf. In fact, it is only after a player has ceased thoughtlessly to hit her ball along from hole to hole, her moods alternating between joy and depression as she chances to make a good or a bad shot, and has learned to make an earnest endeavor to understand the scientific principles of all that she does, that she comes to a realization of the full pleasure of the game.

After a player has established her method of holding her club and has mastered the different stances and swings that are required in playing various kinds of shots on level ground, she must be able to adapt what she has learned to conditions when her feet are above or below her ball, or when she must play up or down a slope. Roughly speaking, there are these four different ways in which she may be called upon to make her stroke when playing over rolling ground, but, of course, there are all kinds of gradations and modifications of these situations. To make successful shots from these uneven places requires experience in judging the special problem presented in each case and practice in modifying or changing the swing of the club to suit each condition. Any instructions on the subject must necessarily be of the most general character and can serve only as a starting point from which each person must proceed guided by her own good sense. It is hardly to be expected that a shot played under somewhat trying conditions will have the length that could be produced by the same club used in the ordinary way. A player must not expect too much of her shot when she is playing from very sloping ground. On the other hand, she must not allow herself to believe that she is excused for making a bad shot because of the somewhat awkward position in which she must take her stance. She must not try to accomplish the impossible, but she must not be satisfied with less than her very best.

Miss Muriel Dodd A full follow-through.

In my comments concerning the different strokes I have frequently emphasized the importance of maintaining a firm base from which to make the swing. When the feet are above or below the ball, or placed so that one is higher than the other, the difficulty of holding the body steady is much increased, but at the same time the necessity of steadiness becomes, if possible, even more imperative. The inclination to draw back from the ball when the ball is above the level of the player's feet, or to straighten the body when the ball lies below, is hard to overcome, but overcome it must be if the player expects to make even a fair shot.

When the ball is above the player's feet the club suddenly appears to have become too long for the player's comfort. To counteract this she will without doubt grip the shaft well down toward the lower edge of its leather wrapping. To what extent she will shorten her hold will, of course, depend upon the degree of the ground's slope and the length of the shaft of the club that she has selected to use. When the ball has a pleasant, open lie it is a temptation to use the brassie, but, on account of its long shaft, it is a troublesome club to handle when the distance between the ball and the player's hands has been greatly shortened. Generally when the ball is above the feet it is safer to use a spoon or a mid-iron, but, as I have said before, it is impractical to give detailed advice on this subject because the player must be guided by the special aspects of each different situation.

Having selected her club according to her own best judgment, the player must make it her endeavor to adapt herself to her surroundings in such a way that she will alter her usual method of procedure with that club as little as possible. She must be particularly careful not to hold her hands higher than is her habit because to do so will surely spoil her shot. She must be careful to address the ball squarely and to make her upward swing deliberately and firmly. On account of the ball's elevated position the swing will be proportionately flattened, with the result that the ball frequently is pulled. Allowance for this possible pull must be made as the player takes her aim. If the player's position is such that she necessarily feels somewhat cramped, it is just as well to forego some of the usual twist of the body. Every precaution for keeping perfect balance and control of the club must be observed.

When the ball is lying below the level of the player's feet, it is, I believe, even more difficult to make a good shot than it is when the ball is in an elevated position. The player either plunges forward at the ball or straightens her body at the last instant. Either action is disastrous and yet, in trying to correct one of these faults, the player is almost sure to fall into the other. It seems almost inevitable that, in stooping over the ball, one will either tip forward on the toes or involuntarily raise the head in the effort to maintain the balance of the body. In order to forestall these natural inclinations the player should try not to stoop over from the hips more than she usually does, but to get down to the ball by bending her knees. Correct balance can be maintained much more easily when the body is simply lowered in this way than when the center of gravity is thrust forward by the body's arching over. With knees decidedly bent it is not easy to make a full, free swing, so it is well to use caution and strive for accuracy rather than length. The character of the swing will in all probability be more upright than usual and, if a wooden club is being used, this will cause the ball to be sliced in a greater or less degree. As in the case described before when the ball is above the level of the player's feet, if she has any reason to believe that her shot will not be a straight one, she must make allowance for the curve of the ball's flight while taking her aim.

When the ball is lying so that the player must stand with one foot higher than the other her weight naturally will fall more on the lower foot than on the higher one. This unequal distribution of her weight will add to the uncertainty of her being able to pick up the ball cleanly from the slope on which it is lying. It will be necessary for her to plan and execute her stroke carefully so that she may be able to get as full a swing as possible, hit the ball squarely and follow through without striking the ground either before or after the ball is hit. To accomplish this the swing should follow the slope of the hill-side. When the ball's flight must carry it up the hill, it follows that the swing will be low and flat and that the club will reach out after the ball. The follow-through must not be cut off abruptly, for fear of hitting the ground, but must take its course up the slope until it comes to its natural finish.

In the case of a hanging lie, the player must stand so that the ball is very nearly opposite her left heel. The hands should be held rather forward of the ball and the swing should be fairly upright. The position of the player and the character of the swing must of course be arranged according to the slope of the ground. This is an exceedingly difficult shot to play, especially when the ground rises abruptly behind the ball. As there is great danger in this case of topping, the player must make a determined effort to prevent herself from raising her head or she will ruin her shot. The club must be brought down to the ball sharply and, in the follow-through, both club and player must follow out after the ball. It is not at all probable that this shot would be played with the brassie. Unless the downward slope is very gradual, the midiron would without doubt be the club chosen, as a wooden club would be entirely unsuited to the work.