"Putting is an Inspiration"

Putting, unlike the other strokes of the game, does not invite success through the medium of carefully - graded instruction, patiently and persistently followed. It looks too easy to the idle spectator to need advice or tuition, and only a little of either is really necessary; but the application of that little is all-important for the gratification that comes of sound play on the putting-green. Your scornful friend will soon begin to modify his contempt after a few minutes' acquaintance with the putter; and should he "arrive" by getting down just one or two long putts, you may confidently invite another friend to stand sponsor with you for a fresh name to the "Proposals for Member-ship" of your club.

Putting certainly looks easy. There is none of that careful regulation of the swing with all its fine points of detail that is essential for the long low drive or the deadly iron pitch. Some of the best putters bring off astounding strokes with an abandon that suggests indifference and even contempt.

Therein lies the secret; the keynote of successful putting is confidence—the con-fidence that is begotten of nerves that are not "nerves." It may be taken as almost axiomatic that if you wish the ball to be in the hole or anywhere near it, you must play it as if the contrary event would cause you the greatest surprise and even pain. At any-rate, the converse is true; only take the stroke with a sinking feeling of dread that it will be unsuccessful and you will rarely be disappointed.

Putting has been aptly described as an "inspiration." The good putter simply cannot help it; he is, as it were, to the manner born. But the weak putter need not despair. Let him take to heart one or two essentials; assiduous practice, unchecked by disappointments, will be followed by gradual improvement and its resultant satisfaction, for few will dispute the assertion that golf-matches are won on the putting-green.

First then, cultivate confidence. You will find on certain days that nothing goes wrong; the ball seems bent on getting into the hole. At other times, with all the painstaking and study at your command, it acts in the most eccentric manner, now tearing past the hole with no suspicion of its whereabouts, now crawling its weary way to a standstill just far enough away to create a new uncertainty as to the result of the next stroke—an uncertainty that usually resolves itself into the certainty of another failure. On such days a little postprandial introspection will convince you that the most probable cause of your ill-success has been an over-bearing anxiety, a dread of failure born of want of confidence that has, for the moment, diverted the motor nerves from their intended function.

At this point, the essential rule of the game must be recalled — "Keep your eye on the ball." As in "approaching," the nearer one gets to the hole the greater is the temptation to let the eye stray towards it too soon. So with putting; and this tendency is another of the contributories to the missing of short putts. The advice already offered to prevent the untimely removal of the gaze from the ball is equally applicable here—let the eye re-main fixed, after the departure of the ball, long enough for a sensible impression of its resting-place to be formed. There will be ample time, as well as a much better chance, to witness its disappearance into the hole!

"Attitude" is less to be considered in the use of the putter than of the other clubs. No hard and fast rule can be laid down, for it may safely be asserted that no two players observe the same style. A rigid body with a motionless head is, however, essential; putting is much too sensitive an operation to withstand any swaying of the trunk, while the fixity of the eye naturally involves the loyal co-operation of the head. The stance is a matter of experiment; "comfort" is usually a safe guide. An open stance with the right foot well up to the ball will be found to be a good position. The trunk should rest easily on the legs, the shortness of the club necessitating considerable relaxation of the knee-joints; the right forearm should rest lightly on the right thigh.

Extravagant postures, such as a "tripod" attitude or the holding of the shaft near the socket, may, in individual cases, bring off desired results, but it is wise to start your practice on the assumption that you are a normal person. The club should be held rather towards the lower part of the leather, but in this matter, much depends on the weight of the club; a sense of proper balance should decide this point. The real grip of the club should be with the right hand, the left being used to steady the club; other-wise, any excessive agency of the latter will produce erratic tendencies on the part of the ball. Practice with the right hand alone will demonstrate the force of this advice— there may be met some players who rely very effectively on this method of putting. Care should be taken not to grasp the club in the palms; it should be held, like the other clubs, along the base of the fingers, with a firm but not tenacious grip. The elbow-joints, like those of the knees, should be bent and fairly loose.