Excerpt of Alex Morrisons - A new way to better golf....

[Mathew]

Originally written by Alex Morrison

Just stand erect and perfectly natural; grasp the cane, or whatever you use, firmly in the palm of your left hand. With this hand turned over so that only the back can be seen, draw your weapon well over to the right and then slash back again toward the left. You will note that an exceedingly powerful blow can be struck in this way. It is obvious, too, that extending your left arm to its full reach, and adding to the distance you draw the arm over to the right increases the radius or leverage and the power of your stroke.

Now shift your weight so that it is supported almost entirely on your right leg. Let your body turn around as far as it will go while you are drawing your left arm and the cane to the right. Slash out again toward the left. You will find a surprising amount of force added to the stroke by the turning of your body.

After you have gone through this motion a few times you will become aware that the main force propelling the cane comes, not from the arm itself, but from the twisting of your body; that this force seems to “flow” from your lower back as you unwind, being transmitted through the muscles around your left shoulder, through your arm and hand to the weapon.

You can see that this is remarkably free movement; that your body performs it almost automatically, without strain, stress, or effort.

I shall let you in on a little secret. The motion just tested is, in many essential particulars, the identical motion by which power—maximum force and maximum leverage—is obtained in the correct swing. In no other way can it be obtained—so long as the requirements of a golf stroke remain what they are. Only by winding up the body to its fullest, then releasing the accumulated force in an expanding motion like the uncoiling of a spring can a golf club be swing easily, naturally, accurately, and with maximum power.

I found this on a website and thought it would make a good discussion

[EdZ]

Morrison was well ahead of his time. There is a lot of merit to his perspectives. An excellent way to learn clubHEAD control and a true swingers PP#4. Not the best for clubFACE control longer term though.

[lagster]

Wasn't Mr. Nicklaus' teacher, Jack Grout, an Alex Morrison man?

[Yoda]

Wasn't Mr. Nicklaus' teacher, Jack Grout, an Alex Morrison man?

Actually, Jack Grout was a student of Henry Picard. Who, in turn, was a student of Alex Morrison. Which makes Jack Nicklaus a Morrison student 'twice removed.'

Alex Morrison was a revolutionary in his day. So much so that his concepts survive to our own:

-- The Stationary Head as taught to Jack N. by Jack G. holding a handful of ten-year-old hair.

-- Balance as taught through the Rolling of the Ankles back and through.

-- The Pivot and Arm Swing combining as the Rotational Power of Centrifugal Force.

The genealogy extends to those influenced by the first Authorized Instructor of The Golfing Machine, Ben Doyle:

-- 'Ben behind his student' on video was motivated by 'Alex behind (then Tour-Star) Henry' for the cameras of a Morrison book.

-- Ben's Right Foot pidgeon-toed Address Routine is another page right out of the same book.

Be grateful for those who have gone before:

We stand on the shoulders of giants.

[Mathew]

Morrison was well ahead of his time. There is a lot of merit to his perspectives. An excellent way to learn clubHEAD control and a true swingers PP#4. Not the best for clubFACE control longer term though.

Yup totally agree.

I like this bit here

After you have gone through this motion a few times you will become aware that the main force propelling the cane comes, not from the arm itself, but from the twisting of your body; that this force seems to “flow” from your lower back as you unwind, being transmitted through the muscles around your left shoulder, through your arm and hand to the weapon.

I just love this statement - Its the pivot (zone 1) and its pressure against the left arm (pp4) that throws the lagging left arm into impact and is not left arm power....

I think these guys from days of old actually knew the stuff better than some of todays teachers....

[drewitgolf]

The book that Yoda refers to is "Better Golf Without Practice" (1940). It is a book strictly for Swingers and is to be read in your favorite armchair as you contemplate Mr. Morrison's well written, illustrated and photographed pages, a must read, rich with TGM info .

BTW, Morrison advocates having the left thumb on the club similar to holding a baseball bat...

[Yoda]

The book that Yoda refers to is "Better Golf Without Practice" (1940).

Thanks, Drew. I knew it wasn't the book that started this thread -- A New Way to Better Golf -- but I didn't have time to research the actual title.

[golfbulldog]

drag out of archives for fresh air - great thread!

[DOCW3]

The book that Yoda refers to is "Better Golf Without Practice" (1940). It is a book strictly for Swingers and is to be read in your favorite armchair as you contemplate Mr. Morrison's well written, illustrated and photographed pages, a must read, rich with TGM info .

BTW, Morrison advocates having the left thumb on the club similar to holding a baseball bat...

Morrison didn't want any pressure exerted against the shaft by either thumb. He and Gene Sarazen interlocked like Jack Nicklaus and Tiger. Sarazen in describing the "interlocking grip" in Thirty Years of Championship Golf, said the left thumb wraps around "the inside" of the shaft although some have said that his hung off the shaft.

[DOCW3]

Johnny Revolta who beat Tommy Armour in the 1935 PGA, describes two versions of the interlocking grip in Short Cuts to Better Golf: left thumb inside the right hand and left thumb outside the right or like Sarazen and Morrison. He claims Claude Harmon used the thumb outside in his 1948 Masters win.