Previously, I have demonstrated that hitting too hard is the cause of "hitting too soon," and as the length of the club shaft enables the player to swing a cleek faster than a driver it is sure that the fault of "hitting too soon" is emphasized by the average player in consequence.

This fact when properly driven home should convince him that it should "feel" as though he is not making enough effort when he is swinging correctly. There is little chance that the player has not made his maximum effort heretofore, and if he has the proper mental equipment it should be possible for him to go out the next time he tries his cleek and swing freely and easily with his whole mind given to seeing his ball clearly from the start of his swing until he connects with the ball, never shifting his glance for an instant.

One thing I have found to be of assistance to me in getting the power into a cleek shot is to forget that I have hands and attempt to hit with the shoulders. In other words, when you start down toward your ball let the shoulders lean on the ball, so to speak, and have your hands drag along behind. Do not attempt to control the club with the hands so much, but allow the shoulders to get into the stroke. Put your entire attention upon keeping your head still and swing easily, almost lazily.

Very few players really use a sleek at the right time. In the majority of cases they should take their brassey, because the distance they are trying for is beyond their skill with a sleek. To use a cleek well it is essential that the player be sure of his line, and if he is not he had much better play a brassey and take it more easily.

The trouble is that a player who is master of a cleek will reach a green of say one hundred and eighty to two hundred yards with a fine line to the pin ; and then because he has done so, another player standing by who uses a sleek indifferently will attempt the same shot when the distance is beyond him. It is a peculiar fact that players keep trying to force themselves beyond their capacity, and there seems to be a tendency on the part of all players in the early stages of the game to try to make up in brute strength what they lack in skill.

There are varieties of shots which it is possible to bring off with the cleek, such as hooked shots, sliced shots, push shots, etc., but I consider that it would only confuse beginners to mention them at this time. The finest shot of all is the one which goes on a dead straight line for the pin and never wavers in its flight. It is the only one which the beginner should attempt. In learning it he will perform the first two I speak of and will be able to play them when necessary once he has mastered the perfectly straight ball.

The best professional in the field would find it extremely difficult to bring off a shot with the complicated scheme of the average amateur. The average amateur has too many things on his mind. He is fearful he will not hit his ball, and immediately begins a series of maneuvers which usually accomplish the very thing he is most anxious to avoid.