Major League Moves

The Double 4 Method: To each of the aforementioned parts, there are 4 distinct moves, & if these moves are followed in the step-by-step procedure in which they are going to be presented, there will be no difficulty in learning and acquiring a perfectly natural, efficient golf swing in very short order. My good friend, Alton Brody, calls the above teaching method the "Double 4 Method," and I feel that his description aptly fits the case. It should give the reader the proper perspective of the golf shot—that there are two distinct sets of 4 moves each.

The first 4 moves establish the proper starting position, the second 4 moves actually produce or execute the stroke or swing of the club.Without further discussion let's learn the 8 moves that can create a perfect golf stroke. The First 4 Steps of the Position Step I—Place the club behind the ball, using the left hand only. Golf clubs vary in length—from the 33-inch length of a putter shaft to the 43-inch length of the driver shaft. All clubs have handles on a graduated scale of lengths.

It is perfectly natural that the player should first place the club behind the ball, and from the placement of the club he will automatically know just where to stand, which is the second move. However, before we explain Step 2, let me call your attention to the fact that there is a certain peculiarity in the construction of golf clubs. The face of the club, the part that meets the ball, is not parallel with the shaft. It is "hooked in," that is, it is angled so that it points off to the left a matter of two to five degrees.

This exists in all properly designed clubs. To those unfamiliar with this peculiarity, difficulties can be created at this very step. However, understanding the hooked-in face construction of the golf club, the player can and will place the club properly to the ball.

The proper way to place a golf club to the ball is to tilt the handle of the club slightly in the direction of the shot. The shaft, in other words, is leaning or tilted slightly forward in the direction of the shot. Because of this forward tilt of the club handle the left hand will be directly over the ball and not over the club head.

Players who fail to understand this peculiarity of golf club construction place the club to the ball so that the shaft is perpendicular—that is, straight up and down, instead of being tilted or leaned forward slightly. Obviously, only when the shaft is tilted forward slightly is the face of the club square with the line of the shot; and when the shaft is perpendicular, or straight up and down, the face of the club is aimed off to the left of the line of the shot. In addition to this failure of incorrect aim, there is one other important reaction that arises from the way the club is placed to the ball, and that has to do with the way the left hand fits to the club.