Life, 1923-07-12 · page 24 of 40
Life — July 12, 1923 — page 24: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains humorous golf advice and a historical sidebar. The main content is a satirical instructional article by "Sandy McDuff McDuffer," a fictional incompetent golfer who deliberately gives terrible advice—standing too far from the ball, hitting oneself in the neck, never looking at the ball, never practicing. The joke is that following these instructions would add 20-65 strokes to one's score. The cartoons show a hapless motorist repeatedly hitting a pedestrian, illustrating the absurdist consequences of bad technique. The accompanying sidebar, "The Rise and Fall of Cosmetics," humorously traces women's beauty practices from cave times to the present day, ending with "Mud"—suggesting 1920s flappers (the "Milady of To-day") used minimal or no makeup compared to previous eras, a cultural shift reflecting changing beauty standards of that era. The humor relies on the reader understanding how dramatically cosmetic practices had shifted in recent decades.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
LIFE How to Build Up Your Golf Score By Sandy McDudd McDuffer These are choice extracts from the code notes of that distinguished golf expert, Sandy McDuffer, who has been playing golf all his life and has never in any tournament qualified higher than the fourth sixteen, His instructions faithfully followed will add from 20 to 65 strokes to your score without the slightest deten- tion from business. Witt particufar reference to the drive, tee up your ball as high as it will stand without rolling off. This will help you to hit under it. Stand as far away from the ball as you can get, thus insuring a fine slice. Let the back swing be made very rapidly, starting with the wrists, lf you can manage to hit the back of your neck with the club, so much the better. Don’t look at the ball, see At the moment of impact, if there is one, duck your knees. This improves your chance of missing the ball cleanly. Keep both feet on the ground all the time. Some authorities are against this, but I have known only three players who have dislocated their hips by so doing. If you find the back swing wearies you, rest the club on your shoulder a moment before starting the downswing. Yuh Big Bum! Come back an’ run over me again! wh dontcha?. We hear a lot about the necessity of the “follow through.” In my opinion, the thing has become a fetish.* The follow through makes little difference one way or another. eR Off the tee, always paste the ball as hard as you can. Make up your mind to bust the darn thing. This kind of swing will throw you entirely off your balance, a topped ball invariably resulting. When addressing the ball, (1) stiffen every muscle in your body, especially those of the abdomen; (2) inhale deeply and hold your breath until your eyes nearly burst from their sockets; (3) swing; (4) exhale. eee Once again, don’t look at the ball. This sounds cle- mentary but the number of excellent golfers who are continually forgetting this essential, is really surprising. xe * Above all things, NEVER PRACTICE, Nothing spoils a perfectly natural free-and-easy style like practice. After all, the charm of golf is that one never knows what is going to happen next. But if one practices diligently, presently one does know and the result is a deadly math- ematical monotony. Now yuh A, E. Thomas. satisfied 2 ¥ Or “effetish"—Ep. The Rise and Fall of Cosmetics THE PEEVED PEDESTRIAN AND THE OBLIGING MOTORIST HE Cave Woman: The Biblical Lady: The Medieval Damsel : The Colonial Dame: The /Antebellum Queen: The Flapper: Milady of To-day: Sun and wind. See any Palmolive ad. Rain-water. Blushes. Home-made preparations. Valspar and Sherwin- Williams. Mud. comicbooks.com