A great many golfers who have risen well into the second rank, find that their game deteriorates tremendously in a high wind. Even the best players are often disturbed by the elements, and it seems to me that their difficulty arises from a very simple and very common fault.

In golf, as in archery, the man who stands most firmly on his feet will always, other things being equal, beat his opponents on a stormy day. It is obvious, therefore, that the higher the wind the more easily must the player swing his club, otherwise he is bound to lose his balance. Yet the constant tendency is to use an extra effort, especially in playing against the wind. Remember, then, the swing must be particularly easy, and special attention must be given to the follow through - your object being to hit the ball absolutely clean. On a calm day a ball may be sliced or pulled or hit high in the air, without great loss of distance. On a windy day, the slightest inaccuracy is ten times exaggerated, and the man who is accustomed to drive with a cut will find himself hopelessly out of the running. Consequently, your first care on a windy day must be to swing absolutely true, and this is impossible if any attempt is made to force the stroke.

Secondly, do not try to drive a low ball against the wind. It is no uncommon thing to hear even a first-class player excusing himself for a very bad shot, by explaining that he was trying to half-top the ball, so as to keep it near the ground in its flight. He ought to know that, wind or no wind, a ball that is half-topped will not fly so far as one that is clean hit. Moreover, in placing your ball in such a position as to hit it half on the top, you are almost certainly interfering with your swing, and the result may either be a ball that runs along the ground into the nearest bunker, or one that spouts into the air and is instantly checked by the wind.

Remember that a really clean-hit ball from a low tee never flies very high, and the cleaner it is struck the better will it keep its course, even in the teeth of a gale.

In driving against the wind, therefore, it is sufficient to bear in mind that you must swing easily and in your natural way. Any extra effort of any sort will assuredly prove disastrous.

Similarly, with a strong wind behind you, do not try to drive an abnormally long ball. If you do, you will probably lose your balance and fail to hit the ball clean, in which case all the advantage of the wind is lost.