ANSWER GUY: WHY IS SPIN CALLED "ENGLISH?"

Pulling the thread of supposition to unravel the sweater of deception.

Brett Quigley, golfer, PGA Tour: There are all kinds of words for spin in golf, but English is not one of them. What do you say then? Lately, we've been calling it snot. Lovely. Jon Levey, associate editor, Tennis magazine: English isn't used for spin in tennis. Well, what is? Spin. Zut! Jim Baltz, collections manager, International Bowling Hall of Fame: English isn't typically associated with bowling, but I know that it refers to irregular or side spin. Any idea why? Perhaps it's based on the less-than-straightforward nature of certain English behavior as perceived by some Americans. No taxation without representation! Spin is also a term in its own right, for deceptive PR activities, like when somebody's not shooting straight, which is exactly what you're doing when you put spin on the ball. Wag the dog? That, too. John Thorn, co-editor, Total Baseball: English is a disparaging term for when something is screwy or off-center. As you may know, the application of nationalities to describe odd behaviors is fairly common. Don't get me Irish up! Exactly. We call spin English for the same reason that syphilis is sometimes called the French disease. That really stings. Tom Pitoniak, associate editor, Merriam-Webster, Inc.: The oldest example I can find is from 1869, in Mark Twain's Innocence Abroad: You would infallibly put English on the wrong side of the ball. What ball? A billiard ball. There's a break! Alan Scorer, vice chairman, English Pool Association: English refers to side spin, but we don't call it English over here. What do you call it? Side spin. Rye toe. Amy Long, director of marketing, Billiard Congress of America: English is used only in the U.S. Any idea why? Not really. But I can tell you why billiards is called pool. Hit me. Billiards was often played by horse bettors, who would pool their money to increase their winnings. Over time, their gathering places became known as pool rooms, and the game they played became known as pool. Mission accomplished!

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