| Show pI OP O of or S a ee r e GRANTLAND RICE Here Is 18 a point that a few tew hun bun bundred dred thousand golfers colter might take tole home and mold It Into a mental Pattern worth keeping Of ot all th the golfers colter v o have ever r seen een larry Harry Vardon had hal the tho trust truest touch ot of rh In his S the saing-the swint the th most cven backward and forward pace pac pa e with just the slightest hesitation at the top of ot his sving ond and larry Harry Vardon remains tho the only golfer goIter g who has haj ever eer er won se seven seen en natIonal open championships I Vardon won von Six ix British opens open and any number of second places In his hi three thre American starts tarts he ha haon h won on on one on and finished second twice just one on out There Ther has ha been no such record In roll golf gained by anyone any one else cl e Vardon had a steadier pace paco to this his swing twine than Hagen Jones or Duncan now kno know It was less Iss lIkely to var vary varv to han fo e Its it sped There Is more dash danh to the tho more slashing styles of ot flagon Jone Jones and Dun Duncan an But we w hove have seen sen ll 11 three on many mony occasions occasion In Increase crease the speed spee of their back swings In championship play and I also increase the tho swiftness of the for ard stroke 1 this hi often otten hap hap- happens hap happens pens under heavy hen a hen henone one Is eager to let get there Hagen Jones and Duncan are ar all likely to toI to grIp rip just Juit a trifle tighter and to I 8 saing InK just juat ju t a little faster as a th tho come Into the th stretch And the th tighter one grips the th surer one onela Is to hurry the th swing or at least ost to increase Its pace cac We e have hove followed Harry Vardon In many man rounds sod nd we e e cant can t recall re- re recall recall call a single find Instance of ot a a fast tast hurried or Ing or of ot any chonge in his hi backward pace There Then Is 1 still till I the he eternal picture of an even esen steady teady deliberate backward move move- movement ment m ut just Junt a slight alight pause at the top and then a still till unhurried downward sweep weep or blow biow that gathers gothers speed sped on the way woy through tho ball 1511 Vardon lies hll ha a tremendous Qua ous pair pall of hands hand II lie Ia locked these hands around the th club but without grIpping too tightly os a so BO many do The Th average golf golt- golter golfer colter er has the th grip of doom loom There Is 18 a last ast difference between a firm grip and a tight grip rip We W have O always alway believed that It woe was the es e een ven en pace pac of ot Vardon u s sS S swing SIng Ing that cv goe go e him the th of ot all consistency Why Wh li Is the head had so 90 often otten lifted Mainly be- be because because b cause a tight grip and a a fast swing awIng are ar sure ur to lead to the th fault fail of hitting too soon oon And almost presure pre ur is ap 01 plied the th head ha has n a tendency to toI I o I lift Lifting the head In Is usually the remit relIt of a previous fault not the th cause c u You lifted our head ha you you looked up a friend re- re remarks remarks marks You probably did Bu But Dut the tho th odds odd are ar that you lifted your I head because you youner ner atre ero sInging too fast grIpping too loo or 0 oer acre ere not In any way ny ay relaxed d On those das dais da s when hen proper tim tim- timIng Ing seems looms a natural thing thing- and one Is sufficiently relaxed reland there ther Is li lit lit- little littie tie tle trouble nith lb heid h lifting Watch and you will find this Is true truo But Dut on those days when your entire system system la ts taut tout and ond tense control of ot the tho th head Is almost Ito Ito- Impossible possible I Vardon had the th rarest faculty In golf colt ot of keeping a steady leady even I SIng S Ing goIng all the time In th the days of his hia greatness he was ony beaten baten because he could not apply lipply ppl this same detail to his short putts where fear or failure lack of ot con con- con 1 con e and a nervous tendency caused him to do with the th putter the exact e act opposite of ot nhat ahat hat he was doing with Ith every vry other club Ha HA gen i Is the tho th other type He H may hurry other strokes H Ho He may stIes allce here and hook there sending the hall all Into frequent trouble But Dut Butone once on the th gr green en there ther is a steady stady cn n eten beat to Hagen Ilagene s stroking that thatIs thatis thatIs Is aboe abo e au all rh aIry and that only Travers and IIa ails 1 Is equaled In Iii oth other r seasons Vardon had a tendency to jb ab abor or stab stob tab the th short hort putts Ia I-Ia H hAd no sound found stroking system up near the tin It was waa the on one place where his hi timIng tell fell away But Butth there r Is I always alway the th pIcture of Ha Ha- Ha Han gens gen's n J putter utter coming back evenly with perfect rhythm and then ai- ai al most gliding through the th ball with without out the th slightest sign slin of ot a jerk or ora ora ora a stab b or any hurried nervous mo- mo mo tion motion I Two ye r ago Gene h his almo almost t grooved to th tho practice Vardon ardon standard Long hard I tice and deep concentration ga gate this thi start But he h has ha never practiced as eg much sin anything lIke as an much and has hILS ha never shown the th same lame ram combined d a and concentration although Inthe ho h had one on great creat week In the last lad P G 0 A championship 0 over r er the tho th Pelham court course ha hu sadly mIssed th the concentration of ot 1922 lie II Is I too tIne fine fin a 0 not to make a determined effort to get et going again His Ills record In Inthe inthe H the th lat last two open championships British and the th United States State has ha ba ben bean far ar below blow the ho Ing th tbt any consistent con l tnt golfer colf r should hould mol make e has bos ha now reached r ached the th where he ho must mutt go to ick lck to lii 1923 way vaa or haul hat work and greot r on tho th main job nl at hand h ho he started out ut in 33 3 at Oakland Hills hilts recently he h look look- ed Cd like the th of ot old But after arter his first tint mistake he was through n and uncertain |
