Clean Balls

Harry Vardon, who was the best player of his day, often offered sage advice.  He once said, "Always use a clean ball."  

It may sound like nothing, but it is actually helpful.  You would never see a pro play a ball with dirt on it. I am often too lazy to worry about cleaning my ball before my tee shot if there isn't any obvious mud on it.  But I think I'm going to start following that advice.  There's nothing like looking down at a perfectly clean golf ball.  

There's a story about Harvey Penick having a guy come to him for a lesson just before he was to play in a big match.  The guy's swing was awful.  There were lots of things Harvey might suggest to help him; such as changing his grip and aligning himself better.  But Harvey couldn't think of anything that would improve his swing in time for his big match.  Instead he told him to make certain he always uses a clean ball.  He knew that advice wouldn't hurt him and it was something positive to think about.

If you are going to offer advice to anyone, using a clean ball is one that definitely won't hurt.  It's amazing how often I've seen people putt with a ball that had sand or mud on it.  The second it takes to clean that ball could save a stroke.  It beats plumb-bobbing, or taking three practice strokes.