Golf from A to Z. By J. C. Macbeth. (Putnam, 5s.)
Reviewed by ROMANY With too many players golf has ceased to be a game and become a painful duty. It has developed an enormous authoritative, and often contradictory, literature of its own which everybody reads, few understand, and hardly any can follow.
Mr. J. C. Macbeth has published a text book admirably described in its title, Golf From A to Z. He has read everything and knows everybody. He never dictates, he just states and, where authorities differ, he gives them all. On the face of it that is more comprehensive than helpful, but it has its advantages; it lets the learner into the secret that there are as many Ways to the hole as there are people getting there. He always seems on the point of saying, but never quite manages to say— "Here's a ball, let's hit it."
He lays definite stress upon the invaluable fact that golf is a left-handed game; and runs counter to nearly all modern instructoas in his grand advice to begin with the short game and let the driving follow; it is astonishing how many golfers drive splendidly yet cannot play golf. Another wise observation is that the handicap player gets far more enjoyment out of the game than the scratch man. This is a book to have, to read once and consult often. It ought to teach a golfer to have faith in his own game, and show him how to develop it.