Spirit of the links

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THE SPIRIT OF THE LINKS
one of the most wonderful drivers ever seen, with
such a long shaft that it needs a giant to wield it, but
its owner is something of a giant too. When I hear
him ask for Ephraim I know that mighty schemes
are afoot, and, straining my eyes to the far distant
green, I wonder that even old Ephraim should ever
be called upon to make such efforts. But Ephraim
has a way with him that makes for success. He is
not to be used often, and then when he is he does
his job well. That is Ephraim. And do not many
of us know the famous golfer who has a dear wooden
putter who goes by the name of Fanny? Fanny has
done fine duty in championships ere this, and her
master knows her every whim and mood. She is a
delicate creature is Fanny, and she is not so young
as she used to be, and Mr. John, her master, never
takes her out in these days when it is wet.
III
Many golfers carry in their minds a fairly clear
picture of a club that they regard as their ideal.
They have some notion as to its looks, the shape of
the head, and the length and the thickness of the
shaft. Particularly do they know what that club feels
like in their hands as they grip it to make the shot
for which it, and it alone, is perfectly adapted. They
have never seen such a club, and they fear sometimes
that they never will. Some old favourite of theirs has
some of the points that are possessed by this ideal, but
it has not got them in the same ripe perfection, and
it has obvious faults which at times have cost their
master dearly. There is no reproachful word to say