High Tension Golf

That's not what you said a moment ago.

Go to hell. Next question.

How can you become tense?

I am already tense, as I thought I clearly explained. What you mean is, how can you become tense?

All right. How can I become tense?

Apart from golf, there are certain vastly annoying things one comes into contact with in everyday life which can make him reasonably tense in a very short time. I mention some of them later on in the story.

Let us now take up that much neglected but extremely important aspect of golf—the swing. The swing determines direction and spin and, to a large extent, power. Examining the swing from an anatomical standpoint, here are the external and internal movements:

As the club is raised, the upper body turns, and the cervical vertebrae in the spine shorten to cock the head at an acute angle. With the hands holding the club in a viselike grip, the shaft is raised to a horizontal position directly over the right shoulder and parallel to the head. The muscles in the right forearm contract as the grip is altered to assure the clubface being brought down square to the ball.

The left arm is bent slightly by tightening the biceps; the elbow should be in front of the chest. Now, with the clubhead poised, the player pauses to review the steps involved in the downswing and to plan his strategy for the hole.

In a sudden, rapid uncoiling motion, the left hand forces the club around from behind the back, the right hand is startled into following, the spine unwinds to snap the right shoulder around and under, the player heaves himself into the shot, and the wrists scoop up to give the blow extra distance. The ball is given a terrific blow, and the club rises up again in a sweeping lurch motion. The player now looks up, further action being determined by the flight of the ball.