Golf Book Recomendations? - Not How to

[AbsoluteZero]

Anyone have any recommendations for really good golf books? I'm not looking for anything that will tell me how to play better golf or improve my swing, mind, putting, driving, etc.

I want something that tells a story. Something historical or fictional, so long as it's a story. I read a book about Tiger a while back and enjoyed it.

So what have you read that you would recommend?

[rckwd]

I would have to pick "The Caddie". Its a great book about the ups and down in life of a man, his friend, his caddy and his demons. Great fiction that can be applied to everyone.

http://www.amazon.com/Caddie-Michael.../dp/0312325622

[BOOMSHANKA]

I would have to say, "Ben Hogan-An American Life", by James Dodson...really good book about one of the greatest golf legends...you would enjoy it.

[wannabe]

I'm reading "The Greatest Game Ever Played" right now. It's a dramatic retelling of the Harry Vardon/Francis Ouimet 1913 US Open, along with tons of history & interesting context. It's the book upon which the movie of the same name was based. Awesome. 5 of 5 stars.

I just finished "Cinderella Story" by Bill Murray. Be prepared to get inside Murray's head & personality experientially & stylistically. If you like beat poetry and stream of consciousness eccentric ADD conversationalism, this is for you. Organized, well-constructed writing this is not. I liked it. 4 of 5 stars.

Before that I read "Q-school, Golf's 5th Major" by John Feinstein. A bit tedious, a little too full of stats & numbers that kept it from flowing well, but the true stories and knowledge John relates about the rigors and highs & lows of this mostly unknown but very critical component of making the PGA Tour is fascinating. I recommend. 4 of 5 stars.

[PiKapp23]

Depending on how serious you want your books, here are a few golf related books I have enjoyed:

Golf in the Kingdom - Michael Murphy (and the followup The Kingdom of Shivas Irons) - Not sure if this is 'zen golf', philosophy, mysticism, fiction or what. It's very entertaining and at times confusing (especially the followup book).

Caddy for Life, Open, A Good Walk Spoiled, Tales From Q School and The Majors - John Feinstein - the best non-fiction golf books available in my opinion. Feinstein does such a great job relating the stories.

Dead Solid Perfect - Dan Jenkins - very funny fictional story of a journeyman pro and his life on tour. Dan also has some other funny fictional golf stories that are funny.

The Greatest Game Ever Played - name forgotten - based on the true story of Francis Quimet who won the US Open a long time ago. Made into a Disney movie. Very good book.

Cinderella Story - Bill Murray - part biography and part funny stories.

Any of David Feherty's books if you like his brand of irreverant humor.

[Shindig]

I want something that tells a story. Something historical or fictional, so long as it's a story. I read a book about Tiger a while back and enjoyed it.

Paper Tiger was an interesting read. Author decides to devote a year of his life to getting good enough to go through Q-School. Tom Kite's Fairway to Heaven is largely about him, Ben Crenshaw, and Harvey Penick. I remember really enjoying that read. John Feinstein is a common suggestion. I have A Good Walk Ruined on my shelf, and I keep saying I should get more.

[joshiemac25]

Paper Tiger was a great read. Also, Tales from Q School, golf's fifth major was a good read also...

[lumpuckeroo]

Okay, if you haven't read Golf in the Kingdom by Michael Murphy you can't call yourself a golfer

Other than that these are all quick reads and I though very intertaining:

Shanks for Nothing and Who's Your Caddy? by Rick Reilly

Buried Lies: True Tales and Tall Stories from the Pga Tour and Embedded Balls: Adventures on and Off the Tour With Golf's Premier Storyteller by Peter Jacobson

Somewhere in Ireland, a Village Is Missing an Idiot and An Idiot for All Seasons by David Feherty

And Then Seve Told Freddie: A Collection of the Greatest True Golf Stories Ever Told by Don Wade

The Golf Gods: Who They Are, What They Want, and How to Appease Them: Golf Book by Robert Brown

How to Line Up Your Fourth Putt by Bobby Rusher

The next golf books on my list is The Caddie Who Knew Ben Hogan by John Coyne and Match, The: The Day the Game of Golf Changed Forever

[MKPKR]

I have only read two, John Daly's "Everything You Thought You Knew About Me" and "TALES FROM Q SCHOOL". The Daly one was ok and so was Q school but, in my opinion if you are looking for a fun easy non fiction story to read when the wifey won't let you play, Q school isn't it.

-Mike.

[mirv]

I would have to say, "Ben Hogan-An American Life", by James Dodson...really good book about one of the greatest golf legends...you would enjoy it.

this would be my recommendation as well. i just finished reading it maybe a month ago. it was really enjoyable.

"Sam: The one and only Sam Snead" was okay, too. nothing great, but not terrible.

[MarkM]

I just read "A Downhill Lie" by Carl Hiaasen and really enjoyed it.

Mark

[msd3075]

The absolutle best non-how-to golf book out there is "It's Only a Game" by Jackie Burke.

To me, he's the one true golfing legend that tells it like it is and doesn't put up with any crap from anyone. I grew up playing golf around him and know him fairly well (he was really good friends with my grandfather and knows my dad very well), and reading this book is exactly like talking to him in person (minus all the cussing). To him, the same challanges that exist in golf exist in everyday life and all these life lessons can be applies to every aspect of your game. He doesn't teach by telling you to move your right arm here or bend your left knee there; he teaches through parable and makes you think all of it on your own.

[Ben]

I would have to say, "Ben Hogan-An American Life", by James Dodson...really good book about one of the greatest golf legends...you would enjoy it.

Yeah, this is a good biography. I read it a few years back. I learned a lot I didn't know about Hogan from it.

[Shindig]

I'm about to read a history book, "Uneven Lies" (or "Uneven Fairways" - one was the book, one was the TV special). It takes me a while to get around to reading, but I should throw that out there as another to read.

I have only read two, John Daly's "Everything You Thought You Knew About Me" and "TALES FROM Q SCHOOL". The Daly one was ok and so was Q school but, in my opinion if you are looking for a fun easy non fiction story to read when the wifey won't let you play, Q school isn't it.

Daly's was

My Life, in and out of the rough.

[Guest]

I enjoyed "

Final Rounds " by James Dodson. This is about the connection between father and son and they travel around to play golf, before the father passes on...

James Dodson always felt closest to his father while they were on the links. So it seemed only appropriate when his father learned he had two months to live that they would set off on the golf journey of their dreams to play the most famous courses in the world.

Dodson also wrote:

Dewsweepers :

In The Dewsweepers, New York Times bestselling author James Dodson tells the story of an eclectic, eccentric group of men: the "Dewsweepers." The first players off the tee every weekend morning, they literally sweep the dew from the course. Adopted by the Dewsweepers, Dodson joins them in their early morning games. In poignant and sometimes hilarious tales Dodson chronicles one all-too-brief golf year among friends while examining his life and his own golf roots. As the friendships deepen and each man's tale unfolds, Dodson's own life is tested, examined, and changed for the better. Through laughter and tears, he reveals intimate details, and finds that each Dewsweeper needs golf and friendship at the core of his life.

If you want some classic English Commentary on golf - you can't go wrong with

Bernard Darwin on Golf And of course many others - Herbert Warren Wind comes to mind...even John Updike (was a golfer and wrote some golf short stories)... Well those come to mind... allen