Opinion & Analysis

My 18 favorite quotes from Arnold Palmer’s first golf book

Published

8 years ago

Oct 10, 2016

This week St. Martin’s Press issues Arnold Palmer’s final book: A Life Well Played: My Stories. I’m looking forward to reading it.

Meantime, in the days since his passing, I’ve been tearily commemorating that well-played life by spending time with several of the King’s other books. Two of them—The Arnold Palmer Method (1968) and Situation Golf (1970)—are old friends of mine; they were basically my instructional library, in my earliest years of playing. But it seemed fitting, with the last at hand, to give special attention to the first: Arnold Palmer’s Golf Book: “Hit It Hard!” It was written, with the help of Bob Drum, at the end of 1960, which was unarguably Palmer’s greatest year.

Under the circumstances, the personal reminiscences, as well as the black-and-white swing-sequence photos of the 31-year-old then-reigning Masters and U.S. Open champ, tug at the heartstrings. But Palmer’s playing tips and advice on mechanics are also still worth pondering, since they reflect his life-long focus on the fundamentals and on keeping the game as uncomplicated as possible.

In heartfelt memory, then: a round of 18 quotes (lightly edited, in a couple of cases) from the pages of Hit It Hard!

1. I have read only one book on golf — the story of Bobby Jones, for it has been my ambition to try to be as good as he was — but I have friends who read every golf book that comes out. And they get something from each book: a tip on the stance or a new way to get at a shot. One fellow I know showed me a book that guaranteed to take 10 shots off your game. He read it three times, explaining, “I need to take 30 shots off my game.” I guarantee no such thing from the following pages. But I do think there is help in them for every golfer.

2. I’ve been swinging a golf club since I was three years old—just fooling around at first, then hitting balls around the house. Pretty soon I played from the yard outside the house (right at Latrobe Country Club) to the third green. Then I tried the fourth hole, and so on. By the time I was seven, I had some idea what the game was about, tried nine holes and also broke 55 for the first time. Next I went after 50, then 45, and finally, when I was 12 years old I broke 40. One of my first big thrills was shooting a 71 in my first high school match at age 14.

3. To me, the three most important things are the grip, the slow backswing to set up the hitting position, and the determination to hit the ball hard without trying to overpower it. I have found that proper execution of these three fundamentals helps the rest of the game fall in line.

4. Nobody should attempt to play the game without getting some instruction from a qualified PGA professional. Taking advice from your friends, who are usually trying to help, is like looking for a hat in a grocery store. You may find one there, but the food is better.

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5. Pretend you are about to sit down in a chair. The first movement you make before actually sitting down is the same as the stance used in addressing a golf ball. The knees are flexed, the weight moves from the balls of the feet toward the back, and the body relaxes—just what you are striving for in the stance. I have the feeling when I’m taking my stance that someone has just pulled a chair from behind me and I’m waiting for him to put it back.

6. On my drives I concentrate on moving the left shoulder under my chin with a slow, deliberate action until I reach the top of my backswing. Now is the time to turn on the power. I have the feeling that my left hand is pulling the club down. You should be able to feel the weight leaving the right side before you start thinking about hitting the ball. This prevents a quick uncorking of the wrists at the top of the swing and the resultant loss of all power. It also helps avert a slice, which takes all the distance from the hit. When the swing has started through and the hands are moving down, let the clubhead fly, making certain the effort seems late to insure the last-second break of the wrists.

7. Nothing robs you of power more than hitting from the top. The wrists are uncocked high on the backswing, and all that is left at contact is a stiff-armed motion that wouldn’t knock a glass off a slippery table.

8. A lot of players I know are constantly complaining about not getting distance off the tee. From the five-iron to the wedge, they hit perfect shots. But the rest of the time, the ball doesn’t move. I have noticed that all these players unconsciously strive for distance with the big clubs and accuracy with the shorter ones. On the shorter shots, when they are not intent on power, their backswing is a slow thing of beauty and their timing is excellent. Off the tee or with a long iron, they all start fast, trying to slug the ball.

If you have been having trouble with your tee shots—and the rest of your game is adequate—take a tip and try for accuracy instead of for distance. That way you might get both, since you’ll go back slow automatically.

9. Slow down that backswing and stay out of trouble. Either that or bring an adding machine along in the bag.

10. There is no way you can stop at contact with the ball and not follow through, unless you started putting on the brakes before the hit. That’s why there must be a follow-through—to insure that you move the club forcefully throughout the downswing. The natural momentum continues the club up and toward the line of flight.

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11. Don’t let the long irons scare you. The biggest mistake most golfers make is hitting these clubs harder than the others. Let me repeat—let the club do the work. The longer irons have little loft and provide distance. If you hit a seven-iron and four-iron with the same swing, the four-iron will go 30 or 40 yards farther. Let the manufacturers of clubs worry about the distance. You worry about keeping your swing the same.

12. The most common mistake made by the high-handicap golfer is that he babies these short-iron shots. The poor guy has been swinging from his heels, trying to get distance all day. Then, when faced with a short shot, he feels he must ease it to the pin.

Hit it crisply. Let the club get the ball the right distance.

13. The object of the game is to try to hit the ball straight; that will put you in the least amount of trouble. Trying to “fade” the ball on medium-iron shots or to “punch” it into the green are shots for experts who have developed special techniques. Some of these, I might add, don’t always produce the best results. And if these men, who do nothing but play and practice golf, have trouble making the ball behave, what chance does a sometimes golfer have?

14. Make every shot a full one and you won’t timidly let up on your downswing. You may hit over a few greens, but even this has its good points. It builds up your ego when you overshoot the putting surfaces and still chip back for occasional pars. You feel a lot better than approaching the hole a foot at a time.

Slow down on the backswing and pull to the ball with the left hand. Then finish high and watch it fly. It’s a good feeling.

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15. The ability to get in trouble is inherent with every golfer. The ability to get out of it without taking too many strokes and then to be able to forget it is the mark of a good player, to my way of thinking.

16. At one time or another I have putted every possible way, I think, except standing on my head. Some of them worked, some of the time. Some never worked. When I first went on tour, I travelled by car. They joked about the trunk of my car, but it was no gag. When I opened it I had to be alert because there were 25 putters jammed in the back and they might come tumbling out.

17. The rules and courtesies of the golf course are more essential to the game than a slow backswing or a new set of clubs. The backbone of golf is to play the game as a sport in the right way so as not to bother your fellow competitors or cheat them, intentionally or not.

18. That’s another thing to remember about golf. After you have done the best you can on a shot, you walk up to the ball again and face similar problems all over again.

It does you no good to remember the last shot, good or bad. The next one is the most important one now.

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19th Hole

Vincenzi’s 2024 Zurich Classic of New Orleans betting preview

Published

2 days ago

Apr 22, 2024

Matt Vincenzi

The PGA TOUR heads to New Orleans to play the 2023 Zurich Classic of New Orleans. In a welcome change from the usual stroke play, the Zurich Classic is a team event. On Thursday and Saturday, the teams play best ball, and on Friday and Sunday the teams play alternate shot.

TPC Louisiana is a par 72 that measures 7,425 yards. The course features some short par 4s and plenty of water and bunkers, which makes for a lot of exciting risk/reward scenarios for competitors. Pete Dye designed the course in 2004 specifically for the Zurich Classic, although the event didn’t make its debut until 2007 because of Hurricane Katrina.

Coming off of the Masters and a signature event in consecutive weeks, the field this week is a step down, and understandably so. Many of the world’s top players will be using this time to rest after a busy stretch.

However, there are some interesting teams this season with some stars making surprise appearances in the team event. Some notable teams include Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele, Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry, Collin Morikawa and Kurt Kitayama, Will Zalatoris and Sahith Theegala as well as a few Canadian teams, Nick Taylor and Adam Hadwin and Taylor Pendrith and Corey Conners.

Past Winners at TPC Louisiana

2023: Riley/Hardy (-30)
2022: Cantlay/Schauffele (-29)
2021: Leishman/Smith (-20)
2019: Palmer/Rahm (-26)
2018: Horschel/Piercy (-22)
2017: Blixt/Smith (-27)

2024 Zurich Classic of New Orleans Picks

Tom Hoge/Maverick McNealy +2500 (DraftKings)

Tom Hoge is coming off of a solid T18 finish at the RBC Heritage and finished T13 at last year’s Zurich Classic alongside Harris English.

This season, Hoge is having one of his best years on Tour in terms of Strokes Gained: Approach. In his last 24 rounds, the only player to top him on the category is Scottie Scheffler. Hoge has been solid on Pete Dye designs, ranking 28th in the field over his past 36 rounds.

McNealy is also having a solid season. He’s finished T6 at the Waste Management Phoenix Open and T9 at the PLAYERS Championship. He recently started working with world renowned swing coach, Butch Harmon, and its seemingly paid dividends in 2024.

Keith Mitchell/Joel Dahmen +4000 (DraftKings)

Keith Mitchell is having a fantastic season, finishing in the top-20 of five of his past seven starts on Tour. Most recently, Mitchell finished T14 at the Valero Texas Open and gained a whopping 6.0 strokes off the tee. He finished 6th at last year’s Zurich Classic.

Joel Dahmen is having a resurgent year and has been dialed in with his irons. He also has a T11 finish at the PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass which is another Pete Dye track. With Mitchell’s length and Dahmen’s ability to put it close with his short irons, the Mitchell/Dahmen combination will be dangerous this week.

Taylor Moore/Matt NeSmith +6500 (DraftKings)

Taylor Moore has quickly developed into one of the more consistent players on Tour. He’s finished in the top-20 in three of his past four starts, including a very impressive showing at The Masters, finishing T20. He’s also finished T4 at this event in consecutive seasons alongside Matt NeSmith.

NeSmith isn’t having a great 2024, but has seemed to elevate his game in this format. He finished T26 at Pete Dye’s TPC Sawgrass, which gives the 30-year-old something to build off of. NeSmith is also a great putter on Bermudagrass, which could help elevate Moore’s ball striking prowess.

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19th Hole

Vincenzi’s 2024 LIV Adelaide betting preview: Cam Smith ready for big week down under

Published

2 days ago

Apr 22, 2024

Matt Vincenzi

After having four of the top twelve players on the leaderboard at The Masters, LIV Golf is set for their fifth event of the season: LIV Adelaide.

For both LIV fans and golf fans in Australia, LIV Adelaide is one of the most anticipated events of the year. With 35,000 people expected to attend each day of the tournament, the Grange Golf Club will be crawling with fans who are passionate about the sport of golf. The 12th hole, better known as “the watering hole”, is sure to have the rowdiest of the fans cheering after a long day of drinking some Leishman Lager.

The Grange Golf Club is a par-72 that measures 6,946 yards. The course features minimal resistance, as golfers went extremely low last season. In 2023, Talor Gooch shot consecutive rounds of 62 on Thursday and Friday, giving himself a gigantic cushion heading into championship Sunday. Things got tight for a while, but in the end, the Oklahoma State product was able to hold off The Crushers’ Anirban Lahiri for a three-shot victory.

The Four Aces won the team competition with the Range Goats finishing second.

*All Images Courtesy of LIV Golf*

Past Winners at LIV Adelaide

2023: Talor Gooch (-19)

Stat Leaders Through LIV Miami

Green in Regulation

Richard Bland
Jon Rahm
Paul Casey

Fairways Hit

Abraham Ancer
Graeme McDowell
Henrik Stenson

Driving Distance

Bryson DeChambeau
Joaquin Niemann
Dean Burmester

Putting

Cameron Smith
Louis Oosthuizen
Matt Jones

2024 LIV Adelaide Picks

Cameron Smith +1400 (DraftKings)

When I pulled up the odds for LIV Adelaide, I was more than a little surprised to see multiple golfers listed ahead of Cameron Smith on the betting board. A few starts ago, Cam finished runner-up at LIV Hong Kong, which is a golf course that absolutely suits his eye. Augusta National in another course that Smith could roll out of bed and finish in the top-ten at, and he did so two weeks ago at The Masters, finishing T6.

At Augusta, he gained strokes on the field on approach, off the tee (slightly), and of course, around the green and putting. Smith able to get in the mix at a major championship despite coming into the week feeling under the weather tells me that his game is once again rounding into form.

The Grange Golf Club is another course that undoubtedly suits the Australian. Smith is obviously incredibly comfortable playing in front of the Aussie faithful and has won three Australian PGA Championship’s. The course is very short and will allow Smith to play conservative off the tee, mitigating his most glaring weakness. With birdies available all over the golf course, there’s a chance the event turns into a putting contest, and there’s no one on the planet I’d rather have in one of those than Cam Smith.

Louis Oosthuizen +2200 (DraftKings)

Louis Oosthuizen has simply been one of the best players on LIV in the 2024 seas0n. The South African has finished in the top-10 on the LIV leaderboard in three of his five starts, with his best coming in Jeddah, where he finished T2. Perhaps more impressively, Oosthuizen finished T7 at LIV Miami, which took place at Doral’s “Blue Monster”, an absolutely massive golf course. Given that Louis is on the shorter side in terms of distance off the tee, his ability to play well in Miami shows how dialed he is with the irons this season.

In addition to the LIV finishes, Oosthuizen won back-to-back starts on the DP World Tour in December at the Alfred Dunhill Championship and the Mauritus Open. He also finished runner-up at the end of February in the International Series Oman. The 41-year-old has been one of the most consistent performers of 2024, regardless of tour.

For the season, Louis ranks 4th on LIV in birdies made, T9 in fairways hit and first in putting. He ranks 32nd in driving distance, but that won’t be an issue at this short course. Last season, he finished T11 at the event, but was in decent position going into the final round but fell back after shooting 70 while the rest of the field went low. This season, Oosthuizen comes into the event in peak form, and the course should be a perfect fit for his smooth swing and hot putter this week.

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Opinion & Analysis

The Wedge Guy: What really makes a wedge work? Part 1

Published

6 days ago

Apr 18, 2024

Terry Koehler

Of all the clubs in our bags, wedges are almost always the simplest in construction and, therefore, the easiest to analyze what might make one work differently from another if you know what to look for.

Wedges are a lot less mysterious than drivers, of course, as the major brands are working with a lot of “pixie dust” inside these modern marvels. That’s carrying over more to irons now, with so many new models featuring internal multi-material technologies, and almost all of them having a “badge” or insert in the back to allow more complex graphics while hiding the actual distribution of mass.

But when it comes to wedges, most on the market today are still single pieces of molded steel, either cast or forged into that shape. So, if you look closely at where the mass is distributed, it’s pretty clear how that wedge is going to perform.

To start, because of their wider soles, the majority of the mass of almost any wedge is along the bottom third of the clubhead. So, the best wedge shots are always those hit between the 2nd and 5th grooves so that more mass is directly behind that impact. Elite tour professionals practice incessantly to learn to do that consistently, wearing out a spot about the size of a penny right there. If impact moves higher than that, the face is dramatically thinner, so smash factor is compromised significantly, which reduces the overall distance the ball will fly.

Every one of us, tour players included, knows that maddening shot that we feel a bit high on the face and it doesn’t go anywhere, it’s not your fault.

If your wedges show a wear pattern the size of a silver dollar, and centered above the 3rd or 4th groove, you are not getting anywhere near the same performance from shot to shot. Robot testing proves impact even two to three grooves higher in the face can cause distance loss of up to 35 to 55 feet with modern ‘tour design’ wedges.

In addition, as impact moves above the center of mass, the golf club principle of gear effect causes the ball to fly higher with less spin. Think of modern drivers for a minute. The “holy grail” of driving is high launch and low spin, and the driver engineers are pulling out all stops to get the mass as low in the clubhead as possible to optimize this combination.

Where is all the mass in your wedges? Low. So, disregarding the higher lofts, wedges “want” to launch the ball high with low spin – exactly the opposite of what good wedge play requires penetrating ball flight with high spin.

While almost all major brand wedges have begun putting a tiny bit more thickness in the top portion of the clubhead, conventional and modern ‘tour design’ wedges perform pretty much like they always have. Elite players learn to hit those crisp, spinny penetrating wedge shots by spending lots of practice time learning to consistently make contact low in the face.

So, what about grooves and face texture?

Grooves on any club can only do so much, and no one has any material advantage here. The USGA tightly defines what we manufacturers can do with grooves and face texture, and modern manufacturing techniques allow all of us to push those limits ever closer. And we all do. End of story.

Then there’s the topic of bounce and grinds, the most complex and confusing part of the wedge formula. Many top brands offer a complex array of sole configurations, all of them admittedly specialized to a particular kind of lie or turf conditions, and/or a particular divot pattern.

But if you don’t play the same turf all the time, and make the same size divot on every swing, how would you ever figure this out?

The only way is to take any wedge you are considering and play it a few rounds, hitting all the shots you face and observing the results. There’s simply no other way.

So, hopefully this will inspire a lively conversation in our comments section, and I’ll chime in to answer any questions you might have.

And next week, I’ll dive into the rest of the wedge formula. Yes, shafts, grips and specifications are essential, too.

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