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Discussion Groups / English Usage / November 2006cut across tee shots
In a Peanuts cartoon, Charlie Brown says, "My dad still cuts across his tee shots..." (when he plays golf) What does he mean by "cutting across tee shots"? Would you paraphrase it for me? > In a Peanuts cartoon, Charlie Brown says, "My dad still cuts across his > tee shots..." (when he plays golf) > What does he mean by "cutting across tee shots"? > Would you paraphrase it for me? "Cuts across" refers to the manner in which the club face strikes the ball. It means that rather than hitting the ball straight and true you ... erm ... cut across it. I gather this is a bad idea because the ball tends to fly off in some unintended direction. No doubt a golf player could give you a better explanation... (Oh, and a "tee shot" is the first shot that you play on a hole, when you hit the ball off a tee rather than from where it came to rest - but I'm sure you knew that already.) Thank you for your help. Actually I had found a Japanese translation for the sentence saying, "My father still (swings but) misses his tee shots", and I wondered if it was a correct translation. So I wanted to make sure what it really means. Now I know that "to cut across tee shots" is not the same as "to miss hitting tee shots". His dad does hit tee shots, but in some wrong way, and the ball goes in some unintended direction. Am I right? > "Cuts across" refers to the manner in which the club face strikes the > ball. It means that rather than hitting the ball straight and true you > ... erm ... cut across it. I gather this is a bad idea because the ball > tends to fly off in some unintended direction. No doubt a golf player > could give you a better explanation... > Thank you for your help. > Actually I had found a Japanese translation for the sentence saying, [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > some unintended direction. > Am I right? Yes, that's my understanding. I don't think that "cuts across" means "misses" in the sense of failing to make any contact with the ball. (However, regarding the translation of the translation, "misses his tee shots" doesn't necessarily have to mean that. It could mean that the player made contact with the ball but mishit it very badly - for example, missed the fairway by a big margin.) If you Google around for "cut across" in combination with other various golfing terms you'll find a number of usage examples, which may shed more light on the exact nature of the stroke. These are just the first couple I came across: http://www.usatoday.com/sports/golf/lesson/2001-08-09-qanda.htm - "Also, early symptom signs that the golfer will cut across the ball can be found in the golfer's aim, where they are aligned to the right of the target and need to swing across their aim line to get the ball to fly in line with the intended target." http://www.golfdigest.com/instruction/index.ssf?/instruction/gd200610slicefix4.html - "An open shoulder position only makes a slice worse, as it causes the slicer to swing along the body line and cut across the ball, imparting slice spin." http://www.golfholiday.com/schools.cfm - "A large percentage of golfers cut across the ball with an out to in swing path which can produce about a dozen different results!" matt271829-n...@yahoo.co.uk wrote: > > Thank you for your help. > > Actually I had found a Japanese translation for the sentence saying, [quoted text clipped - 14 lines] > player made contact with the ball but mishit it very badly - for > example, missed the fairway by a big margin.) ... and of course there's another totally different meaning of "misses his tee shots". It could theoretically mean that he once used to hit tee shots, but no longer does, and "misses" the experience - in other words he feels sorry that he doesn't do it any more. I've just realised that you may have been referring to this sense, since this is the only way that your phrase "to miss hitting tee shots" could be correct English. I can say with some certainty that "cuts across" does not mean "misses" in this sense. >In a Peanuts cartoon, Charlie Brown says, "My dad still cuts across his >tee shots..." (when he plays golf) >What does he mean by "cutting across tee shots"? >Would you paraphrase it for me? I am a golfer (of long experience and no great talent), and I've never heard the phrase. I can guess, though, that Charlie's father swings more horizontally than vertically. That's going to result in a bad slice or fade since the club will strike the ball with a too-open face. I dunno about paraphrasing, but the club is supposed to go down and through the shot, and not across like a baseball swing.  SignatureTony Cooper Orlando, FL The whole dialogue between Lucy and Charlie Brown goes as follows: L: My dad has more credit cards than your dad! C: You're probably right.. L: My dad can hit a golf ball farther than your dad.. C: I know..My dad still cuts across his tee shots.. L: My dad can bowl better than your dad.. C: I know..My dad still hasn't learned to give that ball any real lift.. L: My dad can.. C: Wait a minute..Don't say any more..Just come with me..I want to show you something. See this? This is my dad's barber shop..He works in there all day long.. He has to deal with all sorts of people..Some of them get kind of crabby.. But you know what? I can go in there anytime, and no matter how busy he is, he'll always stop and give me a big smile...And you know why? Because he likes me. That's why! L: Happy Father's Day, Charlie Brown.. C: Thank you.. Please greet your dad for me.. Does Charlie's father swing more horizontally than vertically, like a baseball swing, which is presented here as an example of a bad swing? > I am a golfer (of long experience and no great talent), and I've never > heard the phrase. I can guess, though, that Charlie's father swings [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > I dunno about paraphrasing, but the club is supposed to go down and > through the shot, and not across like a baseball swing. >The whole dialogue between Lucy and Charlie Brown goes as follows: > [quoted text clipped - 22 lines] >Does Charlie's father swing more horizontally than vertically, like a >baseball swing, which is presented here as an example of a bad swing? Still sounds like it to me. Lucy is bragging about her father. Charlie is saying that his father is nothing special...except when it comes to being a father. "Cuts across his tee shots" is not a phrase normally used by golfers. I've been playing golf for over 40 years. People turn their back when I get on the tee for fear of picking up my swing. On any given tee shot, I might slice, hook, fade, skull or whiff. The safest place to stand when I'm on the tee is in the middle of the fairway a few yards past the tee. I've been told I'm hitting off the wrong foot, that I have a hitch in my backswing, that I don't follow-through, that I stand too close to the ball or too far from the ball, and that I look up. But no one's ever told me that I cut across my tee shots. If they did, I would think that I'm swinging too horizontally...like a baseball swing. You have to remember that Charlie Brown is just a small boy (although he'd actually be at least 57 years old this year) and he's not likely to know and use real golf terms. That could just be a kid's version of whatever swing malady his father has. >> I am a golfer (of long experience and no great talent), and I've never >> heard the phrase. I can guess, though, that Charlie's father swings [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] >> I dunno about paraphrasing, but the club is supposed to go down and >> through the shot, and not across like a baseball swing. SignatureTony Cooper Orlando, FL |
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