Jeesus, how distressing--a lot of flaws in that swing sequence but the ball too far forward isn't one of them. Playing it too far back is a problem sometimes, though. That's only the angle of the photos, I'm sure. That's why I never did like to look at a video or swing sequence photos--all it shows is how little talent I have.
Anyway, I did read that quote a long time ago about Gulph Mills and the calamine lotion thing. I forgot it was Charles Price who wrote that but he was just being satirical, I'm sure. GMGC always did have the reputation of being some super blue blood Philadelpia club and I guess that's so but they sure have never been restrictive about guests that I know of.
It's just the way the members are. Most of them used to wear like thread bare shirts and khaki trousers that looked ready for a flood and drive around in old grey cars and such while still owning things like half the Main line for the last 200 years.
But I can't help that and since my grandfather, the aforementioned A. J. Drexel Paul, was one of them and one of the ten members who started GMGC back in 1916 it was sort of the obvious place to join when I came here from D.C. about 25 years ago. I don't even come from here--I'm from LI N.Y.
But A.J. Drexel Paul and a few of his friends started GMGC in 1916 because they were upset with all the play at Merion. One of the themes of GMGC (from the Merion overplay experience) that's still true today is the very light play and that was probably what Charles Price was thinking about. If the club ever does over 14,000-15,000 rounds per year the Board will hear about it. So it really isn't a guest restriction thing it's just a sort of light play mentality.
How did they let me into GMGC somebody wanted to know? That's a good story. I really don't know why they let me in but I can tell you how they did.
When I came to Philly about 25 years ago I'd never really played golf much. I was about 34 and started to get interested in golf. Since my Dad (who was a real good player) who hated Philly and basically refused to return here was a life member and his Dad started the club I used to just go over there and practice and play. And I had no handicap. But one time I was playing with my Dad in Florida against this big time muck-a-muck and Dad and I beat him and he got pissed and questioned my handicap and Dad said he just sort of gave him a handicap number because it seemed about right.
So this guy really got pissed and said I should never do that and I should belong to a club. Of course he was right so Dad said I'd better join a club. So I asked my uncle, A.J. Drexel Paul Jr if he'd help me get into GMGC. He said he would and that's all he said. I asked him if I should call him and he said no. This was in March so I wait month after month, through the summer and he never called me and I didn't dare call him.
And then around September I got a call from the office asking me why I hadn't payed my bill in about six months. Honest to God true story. I hadn't met anyone, hadn't gotten a single call from anyone, nothing, but I'd been a member for about six months without even knowing it.
Charles Price would've been right to write things are a bit different at GMGC but a shut-door guest policy has never been one of them that I know of.