Peter Thomson from Australia, now 85, and a five times British Open Champion among scores of other victories around the world, and Gary Player from South Africa, now 80, and a winner of nine Majors among countless victories around the world and one of only five golfers to win a career professional Grand Slam (the others being Ben Hogan, Gene Sarazen, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods) interacted with the writer.
Both are prolific golf course designers and, having played competitively in every golfing country in the world, translate their golfing philosophies into outstanding golf courses which challenge professionals and average amateurs alike. Both faced many challenges in their pilgrim like progress towards legendary status and both are outspoken in their views on life, on the game of golf, on other golfers and, of course, how the game was played then and now.
And then, there is Bagger Vance!
The game was much different in the 1950’s and ’60’s than it is now. The nature of the game has changed. With today’s technology applied to golf clubs and balls, Thomson could have hit the ball a hundred yards further than heretofore. Courses are longer, greens are softer and clubs are more forgiving as virtually the whole club face is a sweet spot; even a poor shot goes far. Drivers have adjustable lugs at the bottom that can instantly cure one’s slice or hook; for professionals with a greater swing speed, different weighted golf balls can be created for greater distance, greater control, softer landing, greater spin, or for all of these, whereas in earlier days all basically played with the same kind of ball. Putters come in many shapes and sizes.
The importance given to wedges (48°, 52°, 56°) or lobs at 60° or more in the target golf of today, where players carry three or even four wedges of differing angles to hit precise distances, was not so then. Then, one basically bounced the ball many yards before the green and hoped that it would roll up close enough for not more than two putts. Peter Thomson even threw away his wedges as he was an expert with his seven and eight irons even over short distances. Augusta National was just a track and one could never have visualised that it would be transformed into the emerald green gem that it is.
The media then used to be print and radio just moving to TV; players reacted naturally and normally and could even relieve the pressure on themselves by using whatever ‘words’ that naturally arose when they hit a bad shot. Today, with TV and its tools to pick up all sounds, body language and club abuses and relay them instantly to a billion viewers worldwide, the pros are somewhat robot like in their responses. Social media (internet, Twitter, etc) records everything that a player says, does or even thinks and launches it for worldwide comment. Thus, players have ceased to be “characters” as in the past.
Now, Bagger Vance, the eternal all knowing caddy, has uncompromisingly said that every person is born with their own swing and that is what they will only always have.
No amount of doctoring by charlatan coaches can take away that basic swing. Jim Furyk’s swing is uniquely unclassical (no coach can help him on this) but that is all he has and he does pretty well with it. Tiger Wood’s snatch take away works well while he is strong but what happens when one is past one’s physical prime? Paralysis by too much analysis ruins the swing. Tiger at two had ‘his’ perfect swing and he built on it and became the World No. 1. Then he decided to change it, and change it yet again, attempting to become a perfect golfer (impossible because too many unfathomable variables come into play on every shot) with advice from people who have neither played at the top level nor felt the intense pressure that comes at the close. If he reverts to his original basic swing, he may still achieve the goal of overtaking Nicklaus’s 18 Majors because he has time on his side. This game, unlike any other, can be played at the highest levels right up to age 50 or, if you are also skilled at the old “bounce and run game”, even at 60 as Tom Watson, who lost in a play off in the 2009 British Open, proved.
Excessive fitness through heavy gym work and weight training may get one the extra distance modern pros crave on over lengthened courses (despite the percentage of fairways hit dropping below 50 per cent), but in many cases, such as with Maruyama, excessive muscle undesirably restricts the swing. Better to go for being shorter off the tee but on the fairway rely on the fairway play a la Ben Hogan.
Excessive swing coaching, especially to materially change one’s swing, and advice from the unlearned and relatively inexperienced can cause injury and reduce one’s playing potential and longevity. Pros know what and how to correct themselves and a simple tip from a fellow pro may be worth a lot more than weeks of coaching from any of the growing plethora of coaches. One’s natural swing is the most efficient, artistic and rhythmic for each individual player. A rhythmic player will win more often than a jerky or showy player. Tiger Woods should go to these living legends, separately and humbly, to seek the ‘knowledge’, or ‘gyaan’, from these great maestros.