The club having been selected, attention should be given to the grip. There are only two possible positions for the hands in driving, and they are shown on the opposite page. The position of the left hand is the same in both cases. The shaft of the club must be gripped firmly in the palm in such a way that when the ball is addressed, the fingers, with the exception of the third joint of the first finger and the second joint of the thumb, are invisible. There is no other way of holding the club in the left hand. And yet I have seen numbers of beginners who have been coached for weeks, holding the left hand underneath the club to such an extent that the first and second joints of the fingers are plainly visible above the shaft. The most casual trial will prove that the latter method is quite incompatible with an easy swing.

Position Of The Hands - With The Club In The Fingers Of The Right Hand.

With regard to the right hand, there are two opinions among the experts. Generally speaking, the best players hold the club lightly, but not loosely, in the fingers of the right hand in such a manner that the thumb lies across the upper surface of the shaft, with the first joints of the fingers barely visible. This has always been the accepted book form, and the beginner will probably find it wise to adopt it, unless the second way is distinctly easier for him.

In the second illustration it will be observed that the club is grasped firmly in the palm of the right hand, and the hand is held under the shaft, so that the second joints of the fingers are clearly visible above it.

Although I should favor the first position, there can be no doubt that the second way has been made enormously effective in the hands of many of the best players, both professional and amateur. It is a marked peculiarity of the St. Andrews players, who probably learned it from the Kirkcaldy brothers; but it is certainly not confined to St. Andrews. Mr. John Ball, Jr., to mention no others, holds the club tightly in the palm of the right hand; and if the poll could be taken, it would be very hard to say upon which side the majority of first-class golfers would be found. Two of the finest drivers in Scotland, Mr. Edward Blackwell and Mr. F. G. Tait, certainly incline to the second method, and yet the first is invariably recommended in books.

Position Of The Hands - With The Club In The Palm Of The Right Hand.

The books and the professional advisers can hardly do otherwise, however, because one of their first maxims is that the club must be held loosely in the right hand. Now, it is plain it cannot be held very loosely in the second way. The fact is, that the old maxim, which is thrown at the head of every beginner, is responsible for an untold multitude of misfortunes. I would rather say, hold firmly with both hands and choose whichever method pleases you best, only remembering this, that the first admits of an easier and rather more graceful swing, while the second enables the player to employ the whole force of the right forearm - and that is the secret of most long driving. At present, however, we have nothing to do with long driving. We shall be very well content if the ball is struck clean, irrespective of the distance.