User reviews

During the 1940s, Disney Studios did a lot to make their star, Mickey Mouse, a nice guy...which means that these Mickey films of the era were generally a dull lot. In the 1920s and 30s, Mickey could be a bit of a jerk...but no more. At the same time, interestingly, all the aggression and nastiness Mickey used to show was dumped onto Goofy...which explains why I much preferred Goofy cartoons when I was a kid!

Of all the Goofy cartoons, the How-To films were generally the best. With no-stop and frenetic narration and silliness, these films are wonderful. My favorites include the one on playing hockey as well as the football short....but this gold short, "How to Play Golf", is quite enjoyable as well...and for many of the same reasons...violence, silliness and characters misbehaving themselves...and in this one you not only have Goofy but a bull and a stick man...all behaving like jerks! Great fun.

Pretty much some tired old stuff relating to the game of golf. Goofy was Disney's sports expert and did several cartoons with him as the main character. He deals with water hazards, sand traps, uncooperative clubs, and a charging bull. All in all, it is colorful and uses rapid motion. Goofy, of course, is the foil here.

A Walt Disney GOOFY Cartoon.

The Goof demonstrates HOW TO PLAY GOLF very badly.

Here is one of the very earliest of the Goofy Sports Cartoons, and, with its fast action and fine animation, it remains one of the best. Along with other golfing esoterica, the viewer should forever remember the game's Golden Rule: Always play the ball where it lies. The demonstration stick figure makes an interesting & funny character.

Walt Disney (1901-1966) was always intrigued by pictures & drawings. As a lad in Marceline, Missouri, he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper; later, as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War, he drew comic figures on the sides of his vehicle. Back in Kansas City, along with artist Ub Iwerks, Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters. Always the innovator, his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe. Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923, where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor. When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor, the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination, ensuring Disney's immortality. The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut, STEAMBOAT WILLIE (1928), a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music. The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared, and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color, illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development, an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable. Mickey's feisty, naughty behavior had captured millions of fans, but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions: temperamental Donald Duck, intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto. All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films. Against a storm of naysayers, Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White, Pinocchio, Dumbo, Bambi & Peter Pan. Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse, or that childlike simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off.

The Goofy-Disney How To...shorts always bring much enjoyment and How to Play Golf does so too. The part where Goofy loses his temper did seem out of character for me both in the short and with his character in general. That said, the animation is great with lots of vibrant colour and smooth drawing, it is not just pleasing to look at but the style has a real charm to it that still holds up today. The music is every bit as good, it matches with every gesture, facial expression, gag and bit of action perfectly and is definitely the sort of music I'd listen again to with no hesitation. The gags manage to be hilarious throughout, the ending especially so as Goofy, the stick and the bull go clubbing singing and drinking, a sight that has to be seen to be really believed. The story makes great use of the interesting idea for Goofy to ignore the narrator while the demonstration stick comes into the "real" world to assist him, and does it with a real sense of fun and light-heartedly, just the right tone for the How to...series and for Goofy. The narration manages to be witty and informative, that's what I love about the How to...series, how it entertains and teaches and does both so well. Goofy is as appealing as he ever is just doing what he does best(an everyman type of character who can break into multiple personalities), while the demonstration stick is a fun supporting character. Fred Sheilds does a very good job narrating, if just lacking the thoughtfulness of John McLeish. Overall, great, like golf it certainly isn't a waste of time. 9/10 Bethany Cox

'How to Play Golf' is wonderful entry in the series of Goofy Sports shorts. The opening line, "Contrary to popular belief, Golf is not a waste of time," is great! Many sequences involve Goofy being instructed on golf by a stick drawing. The idea is a clever one which pays off with some big laughs. Occasionally, though, the idea is over-used. What works about 'How to Play Golf' is that the humor appeals to those who love golf and those who hate it, count me in the latter category.

Disney's How to Play Golf is unique because it could really only be captured well enough within the boundaries of animation. It concerns Goofy, who has decided he wants to take up golf as a hobby but can't quite seem to get the basic essentials of the game down. Frustrated that his grip on the golf club is flawed and his techniques are flawed, the short's narrator Fred Shields allows Goofy's basic character outline to assist him in the proper way to golf by showing specific ways to position yourself, swing, and learn the fundamental rules of the game. The short is surprisingly hilarious because its humor is derived from the classic Disney silliness many of us grew up with. How to Play Golf works both as a farcical cartoon and an informative instructional video on how to play golf. Throw in terrifically fluent and colorful animation for the time, 1944, and the lead character who never fails to disappoint and you have one of Disney's funniest shorts on record.

Directed by: Jack Kinney.