Whether Mark Twain actually did say he thought golf was a ‘good walk spoiled’, is not important for this story. What is important is that he would have echoed the thoughts of many golfers of his time, the beginning of the twentieth century. Learning to play with heavy equipment, poorly suited clothing and a mostly subjective approach in swing advice made the game an even more serious test of nerve than today.
Perhaps if Mark Twain had had access to the quality of coaching available today he may have been less negative and found the game of golf more to his liking. Our knowledge about the swing has come a long way in the last hundred years. Information and ideas have been passed on with each new generation, new ideas have been added, and technological progress has played its part to help make the game easier. Telling the story of how this all started and who and what were the biggest influences makes a fascinating story of lives and characters.
This book focuses on one major aspect of development from the early days, the swing. No single athletic movement has produced more discussion, argument and contrasting opinion than the golf swing. Tens of thousands of books, magazine articles and other media have flooded the world with opinions about an action which takes less than two seconds. Most ideas repeat things that have already been said a thousand times; some theories conflict with common sense. But occasionally a new idea finds its way into the growing consensus about how the golf swing really works – as reflected
in the teaching manuals of the major golf professional bodies. 

To relate each one of these individual opinions and tips is impossible and confusing; far better to focus on the few real contributions that are now accepted as modern swing orthodoxy. The History of the Golf Swing tells the story of how it evolved seen through the eyes, feelings and emotions of an artist, golf professional and sporting history enthusiast - illustrated with his own visual interpretation of swing movements.