Watching Bobby Jones make golf look way too easy

Look, if you’re looking for a gripping plot with high stakes or some grand cinematic reveal, keep moving. This isn’t that. But if you’ve ever stood in a patch of tall grass with a golf club and just felt completely hopeless, then How I Play Golf: Trouble Shots is exactly what you need to see.

It’s a short, simple lesson from Bobby Jones, and frankly, the man makes it look like he’s just taking a Sunday stroll through the park. He’s got Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Edward G. Robinson, and Joe E. Brown hanging around, and they’re basically just the audience proxies. It’s funny seeing these big-time actors acting like complete amateurs on the green, though I suppose we’ve all been there.

The whole premise is silly, but it works. Joe E. Brown thinks he’s clever by betting that Jones won’t know how to handle bad shots because he’s never in trouble. It’s a classic setup that allows Jones to just casually fix every disaster he’s put into.

The good stuff

There’s a specific bit where he’s stuck right against a tree trunk. Most of us would just pick up the ball and walk home, but he barely even blinks. He just sets his feet, does that effortless swing of his, and pop—it’s out. It’s honestly kind of annoying how calm he is about it.

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of How I Play Golf, by Bobby Jones No. 10: 'Trouble Shots' (1931) through its definitive frames.

It’s not as chaotic or, uh, spirited as something like Leathernecking, but it has this nice, dry rhythm to it. You aren’t watching for the drama. You’re watching to see how he solves a problem. It’s like watching someone fix a leaky pipe, except the pipe is a bunker and the guy is a legend.

The vibe

The pacing is snappy. It doesn't drag on, and it doesn't try to be more than a lesson. Sometimes, that’s all you really want. It feels a lot more grounded than the stuff they put out in The Bat Whispers, which is a totally different beast, obviously. This is just a guy showing you how to hit a ball. ⛳

Is it a movie? I mean, sure. It’s got a beginning, a middle, and an end. But mostly, it’s just a time capsule of guys in nice clothes playing golf while someone who actually knows what they’re doing saves the day. If you don't care about golf, you might find it pretty dry. If you’ve ever shanked a ball into a gully, it’s basically required viewing.

I kept waiting for someone to trip or for the whole thing to fall apart into a comedy skit, but it never really does. It stays focused. It’s a bit of a nice change of pace from the usual noise.