My Greatest Day in Golf: The Legends of Golf Recount Their Greatest Moments - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 031228909X ISBN 13: 9780312289096

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin, 2002

Synopsis

My Greatest Day in Golf is an oral history where 25 of the top golfers from the last half-century talk about their most rewarding moments in golf. Chronologically, the book starts off with Tommy Bolt, who out-dueled Gary Player to win the 1958 US Open, and ends with a stirring account of the last year's historic Ryder Cup from Hal Sutton. The highlights include the greatest days of Nicklaus, Palmer, Player, and in addition to the Big Three, the book also includes first-person accounts from great golfers such as Ray Floyd, Hal Irwin, Nick Price, and Tom Lehman, as well as groundbreaking moments from pioneers like Lee Elder and Calvin Peete. Elder recounts first victory as it allowed him to be the first person of color to play in the Masters. Virtually every player in the collection has won at least one major, and most either were or are stars on the PGA tour. To round out the collection, the greatest days of colorful characters like Chi Chi Rodriguez and Jerry Pate add humor and warmth to this memorable book.

My Greatest Day in Golfends up being not only a fantastic collection of stories but also a history of golf. With its insider's look into the world of golf, this book is a must-have for all golf fans.

About this title

About the Author:

Bob McCullough is the author of six books: My Greatest Day in Football, My Greatest Day in Golf, My Greatest Day in NASCAR, My Greatest Day in Baseball, 1946-1997, New York Running Guide (with Miles Jaffe), and Washington, D.C. Running Guide (with Don Carter.) His writing has also appeared in the Boston Globe, SPORT magazine, the Boston Phoenix, the Los Angeles Times, and a wide variety of other publications. He is the primary jazz record reviewer for the Globe and has written about sports, arts and entertainment, architecture, and real estate. He also reviews books for Publishers Weekly, the Globe, the Phoenix, and SPORT. His two newest ventures are Inside NASCAR and writing for MSNBC's website.

From Publishers Weekly:

Nothing bores a golfer more than listening to another golfer relate his greatest round, shot by shot. Sports journalist and author McCullough (My Greatest Day in Baseball, 1946-1997; My Greatest Day in NASCAR) has recorded the recollections of 25 of the best from the last half-century of the game, including Tommy Bolt, Lee Elder, Ray Floyd, Steve Melnyk, Arnold Palmer and Calvin Peete but even the greatest golfers do not make the best raconteurs. Often, the golfers fail to remember all the details (and as editor, McCullough disappointingly fails to fill in the gaps). A lot of the drama is lost, and the stories fall flat. A stellar exception is Jack Nicklaus's vivid retelling of his win at the 1986 Masters (excerpted from his autobiography). Avid golfers who are also careful readers may pick up tips to improve their game strategy, but much depends on their familiarity with a particular course, as Nick Price demonstrates with his recollection of playing the 16th at Ternberry, the hole that won him the 1982 British Open: "I hit a good driver down the middle of the fairway, and I had about eighty-eight yards, and the pin was in a very, very, very precarious placement. It was just over on the left-hand side, and it was just over a berm. I don't know how familiar you are with the hole, but there's a berm, and anything that is short would just roll back into the berm, and that was a five, maybe even a six." The most satisfying parts of the book are the champions' thoughts on the state of the game. Lee Elder comments on blacks in golf then and now, Hale Irwin talks about golfers' changing attitudes, Steve Melnyk considers the hacker versus the pro and all of them reflect on being treated differently after winning a big tournament. (Apr. 23)
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 031228909X
• ISBN 13: 9780312289096
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 288