"Spring Training" Golf Is
Plan the G a m e Could Use
By CHARLIE G R A N T
Professional, South Sid* Country Club, Decatur,
S another season opens in the central
and north states the professional sees
his members rush out to recover f r o m a
long w i n t e r of indoor living. Y e a r a f t e r
y e a r w e see these men and w o m e n w i t h
the same old bad g o l f i n g habits that w e
know w e can cure and have yearned to
treat.
But when the w e a t h e r ' s good the m e m bers want to play and they don't have
much time or inclination f o r lessons and
practice. W e in pro golf all know f r o m
experience that the better a member plays
the more he plays. I t ' s to our own interest and even more important than that, to
our clubs' best interests, to have more and
better g o l f played.
A
M o r e members are g o i n g on w i n t e r v a cations than ever before. T h e y play in the
sunland and come back with just about
the same g a m e s they've a l w a y s had. The
s t o r y is the same; no teaching of the correct g o l f i n g habits and no practice. Contrasted
with
these
observations
are
experiences m a n y of us have
had in
teaching indoors during the w i n t e r and
seeing some s a t i s f a c t o r y development of
g o l f e r s w h o h a v e to stay north in the cold
and snow.
III.
goes to the first tee w i t h no more than a
f e w practice swings.
The situation is
illogical and merely because it's something to which g o l f e r s have been accustomed there's no reason why professionals
should allow it to continue without exploring possibilities f o r g r e a t e r service to our
members and clubs.
B e f o r e our courses are open f o r play
with caddies available, or when the spring
thaws make use of the course unwise, the
spring training camps could be set up with
permanent or portable shelters and kerosene or electric heaters to m a k e g o l f e r s
comfortable.
The spring training 1 may be a good w a y
of g e t t i n g our assistants trained too.
O f t e n assistants are not worked much
until a l o n g in M a y then w e have the j o b
of training them so they will be most helpful to our members.
W e ' v e got the assistants on the payroll but f o r w e e k s
before the season g e t s under w a y they're
not doing the members, the pros or the
assistants themselves nearly as much good
as is possible.
G o l f e r s ' Situation Illogical
T h i s spring training would be a good
thing f o r the health of our members as
well as f o r arousing more interest in club
affairs. A f t e r a w i n t e r indoors a m e m b e r
generally needs some mild exercise to
shake the w i n t e r lead out. A n d as f a r as
training in better golf is concerned, we'd
have the members close to us and not
worried about g e t t i n g off the tee and deep
into the syndicate matches. H o w many
times have pros watched a m e m b e r shoot
off the first tee and said to themselves " I f
I only could g e t that man f o r ten minutes
and show him how to hold a club and
stand up to the b a l l ! " But you don't w a n t
to m a k e any suggestions when the m e m ber has a match.
T h e baseball, football, hockey and basketball clubs, w i t h professional or amateur
athletes supposedly in fine physical condition consider pre-season training an essential, but the g o l f e r w h o spends the w i n t e r
indoors and generally in sedentary w o r k
comes out to play a g a m e that calls f o r
some physical conditioning and finesse and
The courses where there are no practice
ranges could g r e a t l y increase their value
to members by having a spring training
shelter put up b y the first tee. A man in
the clubhouse w h o could serve sandwiches,
c o f f e e and other diinks should f a r more
than p a y his w a y .
T h e idea, I believe, has g r e a t possibil-
A s w e a l w a y s keep wondering how w e
can do better by g o l f e r s there may come
to us the idea that our members have six
months f o r play and about six months'
g o l f inactivity so w e can't expect much
p r o g r e s s athletically
a m o n g men
and
women w h o are not at the best years of
muscular response.
Is there an answer to our puzzle about
w h a t w e can do to improve our members'
g o l f ? I believe there is.
Simply expressed, the answer is " s p r i n g
training t r i p s " to the clubs.
ities in m a k i n g a v i d g o l f e r s o u t o f spasm o d i c p l a y e r s and w o u l d do q u i t e a l i t t l e
to m a k e the club m o r e u s e f u l t o m e m b e r s ; s o m e t h i n g that m u s t h e considered
in these d a y s of rising dues and o p e r a t i n g
costs.
I m p r o v i n g Sales
A n d as f o r p r o sales it s e e m s l i k e l y t h a t
w h e n a f e l l o w g e t s out f o r the s p r i n g
t r a i n i n g a n d sees p r o m i s e of a b e t t e r
g a m e he's g o i n g t o be in the m o o d t o b u y
n e w clubs. W h a t p r o h a s n ' t l o o k e d at his
m e m b e r s ' clubs a n d t h o u g h t t h a t if h e
could j u s t g e t s o m e m e m b e r s to h i t a f e w
balls w i t h clubs t h a t fitted t h e m m u c h
b e t t e r t h a n t h e clubs t h e y n o w a r e using
g o l f w o u l d be a d i f f e r e n t and m o r e a t t r a c t i v e g a m e ? I n the s p r i n g t r a i n i n g s h e l t e r
a p r o s p e c t i v e c u s t o m e r could t r y o u t clubs
w i t h o u t d a m a g i n g them.
T h e p r o f e s s i o n a l s a s p r o m o t e r s of g o l f
a n d as m e n responsible f o r the f u l l e s t enj o y m e n t a n d v a l u e of the g a m e t o t h e i r
m e m b e r s w i l l do w e l l t o s t u d y t h e possib i l i t i e s of the s p r i n g t r a i n i n g idea.
Club
officials w h o a r e seeking n e w ideas to
i n c r e a s e the i n t e r e s t a n d v a l u e of t h e club
also w i l l find t h e s u g g e s t i o n w o r t h y of
c o n s i d e r a t i o n a n d a c t i o n i n t i m e to g i v e
the m e m b e r s
another
attraction
next
spring.
This past winter there w a s much more
w i n t e r g o l f p l a y in t h e m i d w e s t than
d u r i n g a n y open w i n t e r p r e v i o u s l y .
It
w a s a p l a i n i n d i c a t i o n of g r o w i n g r e c o g nition of b u s i n e s s m e n t h a t g o l f is a g r e a t
t h i n g f o r o f f s e t t i n g the u n h e a l t h y confinement
of w i n t e r . B u t e v e n a t t h a t i t ' s
o n l y the h a r d i e r ones w h o w a n t t o w a l k
a r o u n d the c o u r s e in the b r a c i n g ehill of
winter.
T h e s p r i n g t r a i n i n g in a c o m f o r t a b l e s h e l t e r w o u l d be m u c h m o r e t o
their l i k i n g , a n d t h e r e t h e y
could
be
t a u g h t b e t t e r g o l f under the m o s t f a v o r a b l e c o n d i t i o n s w i t h o u t the c o m p e t i t i o n of
t h e course a n d t h e rest of the f o u r s o m e
c a l l i n g t o g e t o u t and g e t g o i n g .
W e s t e r n G A C o n d u c t s C a d d i e Forum
Western Golf Assn. will
conduct
a
f o r u m of caddie masters at Morrison
H o t e l , C h i c a g o , A p r i l 20, at w h i c h m a t t e r s of c a d d i e r e c r u i t i n g , t r a i n i n g , supervision, f a c i l i t i e s , r e w a r d s , t r a n s p o r t a t i o n
and o t h e r s u b j e c t s w i l l be discussed.
Clubs a r e u r g e d b y the W G A t o send
caddie m a s t e r s . F u l l d e t a i l s f r o m W e s t e r n
G o l f Assn., 8 S. D e a r b o r n , C h i c a g o 3, 111.
O U T D O O R PRACTICE W I T H I N D O O R
COMFORT
Bill Moran, professional. Concord C C , Wilmington, Del., practices under "shed" built for members
who don't want the weather to interfere with their winter and early spring practice. Built of DuPont
"Cel-O-Glass", a plastic coated wire mesh product, over wooden frame, the 24 f t . by IS ft.
structure alihouqh not completely transparent lets in plenty of light and heat but keeps out rain,
wind and the cold. Idea for the new shed developed from a recent luncheon discussion by a group
of Concord members headed by Grounds committee chairman F. S. Wilcox, Jr.