The USA Today Golfers Encyclopedia

Used to be, not too long ago, somewhere in time between Babe Ruth and Tiger Woods, baseball was the only sport obsessed with statistics. You know wins, losses, RBI’s, home runs, batting average and a few other miscellaneous, insignificant numerical musings. These were the numbers we all dabbled in as boys with a sports fetish. Then came the computer age and every sport has hitched on to the arithmetical bandwagon.

Golf is no exception. Before the golden age of computers golf was relegated to a few “golf-style box scores” basically listings of who shot what and how much they won. Now the statistical world of golf is a virtual smörgåsbord of numbers squeezed into formulas which analyze every player in every tournament for every shot.

Please permit a couple of examples.

In the “Shot Link” section of the most recent Golf World we read the following about HP Byron Nelson Championship winner Rory Sabbatini’s road to victory: Sabbatini hit 49 greens in regulation and converted 25 birdie chances for a conversion rate of 51.02 percent while the field averaged a mere 30.32 percent. And add to that this statistical information about runner-up Brian Davis: his 21 birdie putts made was a mere seven feet, five inches, the result of hitting 19 approach shots during the week inside 10 feet - tops in the field. And this is just a microscopic sampling of what you can glean from the PGA Tour’s Stats. Or, if you want live, up to the minute coverage of how your favorite player is doing shot-by-shot, hole-by-hole, you can go to Shottracker. Indulge yourself.

Not to be outdone is the ultimate statistic book The USA Golfers Encyclopedia: The Ultimate Guide to Modern Professional Golfers and Tournaments compiled by Sal Johnson, purveyor of the everything-about-golf website golfobserver.com, and Dave Seanor, currently writing for examiner.com and golfobserver.com. The Encyclopedia is a statistical rendering of all golf tournaments and players over the past 50 years. It's a big book to say the least measuring in at 8.5x11 (just in case you want to punch holes and fit it in a notebook) and 1.75 inches thick extending out to 959 pages. Johnson and Seanor put one essential requirement for entry into this statical hall of fame: a minimum of 25 career starts. The remainder of their thinking is explained in Seanor's introduction. Be sure to read it.

Structurally, the volume has two sections: Part One: Player Statistics, A-Z (FYI Aaron to Zokol) and Part Two: Tournament Results, 1958-2008. It's a double dose of statistical heaven. But how interesting is it? How fascinating can nearly 1,000 pages of numbers be? In a word -FUN. For example, I was able to look up the PGA Tour record from the 1980's of my most recent boss. Want to have a little fun with names? How many players named Adams have played on the PGA Tour? It's easy to find in the Encyclopedia!

For the everyday golf fan this volume is fun, fact-filled and fascinating. For the golf writer it is worth its weight in gold.

Just one final request for Johnson and Seanor: this needs to be on disk and searchable.

Golf from the Ground Up

From July 2009

As a teacher of the game I read every book on instruction that comes to my desk or that magically pops off the bookshelf in a used book store. Yes, sometimes the good old stuff is the best stuff. And, if you are even the mildest aficionado of the game, you surely know that there are countless numbers of golf instruction books and articles on the market. The monthly golf tabloids bombard our minds, senses and sensibilities with changing technique and theory. As a teacher and as a player, you have to be able to dissect the good from the bad and the practical from the insane.

The latest addition to my library is Golf from the Ground Up by Bob Mullen published by Burford Books. Mullen is certified as a Master Teaching Professional with the United States Golf Teachers Federation and certainly has a sound grasp of the fundamentals and the basics of the golf swing. And, since this is A New Focus on Fundamentals from a Master Teaching Pro, Mullen has structured his volume in logical and typical fashion. He begins with a discussion of the fundamentals and then progresses to the swing. At the end of the volume in his final two chapters Mullen deals with The Number One Fault in Golf, the over-the-top, loopy swinging move – and then in a chapter entitled Author's Notes Mullen lets us in on the long sought after “secret” of Ben Hogan. He takes six pages in this chapter detailing the mystery.

Mullen's term for the fundamentals, the absolute necessities of the game if you want to develop a repeatable swing, is the “platform.” And, whereas most instructors give four five as the number of fundamentals, Mullen includes a sixth, footwork. His discussion on the importance of footwork is excellent worth the purchase of the book.

Golf from the Ground Up is Mullen's version of Hogan's The Modern Fundamentals of Golf even to the point of illustrations by Tom Weyl. In fact we can detect a bit of Hogan in the title itself - Golf from the Ground Up – for it was Hogan who believed that the golfer needed to dig his game out of the dirt.

His explanation of the fundamentals is excellent and down to earth, however, at times his discussion on the swing becomes too technical and involved if the reader is not well versed in the mechanics of the golf swing. Mullen does provide a multitude of excellent drills for the teacher to implement and the student to try.

Golf from the Ground Up is definitely a worthwhile read for all golfers highly recommended for teachers and definitely beneficial for students.

The Golf Bag Book

Editor's Note: As Golf Book Reviews continues to grow, we will add to the compilation of book reviews from our collection of previous reviews written over the past few years and published at Eye On Golf. They will be reprinted in reverse chronological order.

From October 2009

Beginning life in the world of golf is often a daunting task. Not only must the aspiring golfer learn how to hit the ball (and all beginners should learn from a qualified professional, not two buddies), he or she must also ingest a myriad of information concerning the game itself. The game is just not that simple. But what if there was a book that could assist beginners with the basics of the game?

Such is Scott Martin's latest volume The Golf Bag Book published by Burford Books, Inc. The volume is quite appropriately named. It contains a condensation of useful information for the beginner in a size that fits perfectly into a golf bag (unless, of course, you have a small Sunday carry bag). The volume measures out a 5x8 inches, just the size of a large index card. And that is just what it is, 140 pages of heavy duty, yet light-in-weight, basic information for the beginning golfer. It's a ready reference guide to the game of game – short and sweet, down and dirty.
Hardcore golf fans may be familiar with a previous Martin golf writing exploit The Book of Caddyshack. And naturally The Golf Bag Book contains a couple of short chapters on that iconic movie which helps to serve as part of the beginners golf education.

Martin begins the book with instructional information on the actual playing of the game giving short, precise tips that you would (and should) get from a specific lesson. For example, under the chapter on “Practicing.” he emphasizes that attention should be placed on the short game (warming the heart of every instructor who tries to lower the scores of his students). In Part II he focuses on playing with other golfers covering such topics as etiquette, dealing with unsolicited advice, and fun games to play. He wraps up the volume in Part III with notes on famous architects, notable golf writers and well-known courses, basic knowledge that serves to round out the golfer's development.

We highly recommend the The Golf Bag Book to all beginners as part of their initial education to the game and every experienced golfer who wants a little fun and light reading.

SI The GOLF BOOK

It's big and it's beautiful. Weighing in at nearly five pounds and possessing an eye-catching cover, Sports Illustrated's latest addition to its sports pictorial series has entered the world of golf. And it has taken it on in spectacular fashion. SI's THE GOLF BOOK is a heavyweight in the world of golf books – literally and figuratively. As it sits in our library it is second in dimension just lagging behind Jack Nicklaus Simply the Best, but first in quality. As it rest in our mind it's on the top rung of our fun ladder.

THE GOLF BOOK is the ultimate coollection (no misspelling here) of golf photographs. It is pure fascination to leaf through the pages and encounter photographic bliss with every turn of the page. There are photographs from virtually every era of golf. It is certain that on numerous occasions you will find yourself asking the question, “Where did they get that?”

A certain amount of text and facts are involved but that is at a minimum. But don't skip the text. The articles, all by SI staff and contributors, are timely to the period and absorbing today. There is a enchanting essay by Bernard Darwin on Francis Ouimet's victory in the 1913 U.S. Open that is highlighted by a photograph of Ouimet's scorecard which was kept by Darwin. Lots of history on that page. And don't forget to read the forward by Roy Blount, Jr. It's cleverly done and a fun read and gets you into the spirit of the book.

However, in the end this volume is a photographic essay of the history of golf. The publication is separated into seven chronological sections categorized generally by historical significance. The pictures and text included in each division are pertinent to the era.

Our favorite was the Centerfold - yes, a centerfold. In a poll with a panel of fifteen judges, each was asked to name his or her favorite golfers of all time. The final list and a masterful pictorial montage make up the centerfold. Once you get passed the centerfold, don't hastily pass by the pictures of equipment, clubs and balls in particular. You'll get an appreciation as to how the game has changed.

If there is a golfer in your life who has the the slightest interest in the history of the game, this is the perfect book to place in his or her library. While the game of golf can always be a great topic of conversation, this volume itself will generate great quantities of verbal communication. It is a must have for every golfer.

We could go on and on and on and … extolling the virtues of this book. Just get it!

Welcome to Golf Book Review

Golf Book Review has been established to provide a vehicle for golf writers and golf enthusiasts to evaluate the myriad of golf books that have been published over the past 400+ years.
Golf and the written word just seem to go together. It is certain that no one has a precise figure concerning the quantity of golf books that have been written through the years. And we certainly don not want to contemplate any mathematical computation as to the quantity of periodicals and the like. Any guess at such numbers would be strictly in keeping with the most rigorous sense of the word – total speculation.

The game of golf lends itself to a wide variety of subject matter: History, Biography, Reference, Instruction, Fiction, Architecture, Inspiration, Humor, Travel, and Anthology. (There are perhaps more.) Within this wide array of subject matter, golf scribes fervently produce an astonishing volume of golf literature each year.

One of the most endearing aspects of golf books is that they do not have to be freshly published in hardcover volumes with the dust-jackets perfectly in tact. In fact the most beloved volumes are those that are dogeared with soft bindings and thumbed though hundreds of times. It's the constant wear and tear that makes each and every volume so special. Let's fact it, there is nothing quite so exhilarating as finding a hidden gem in a used bookstore and then claiming it for your own. (Well, except maybe draining a twenty-footer to win the weekend nassau.)

Golf books take us on a journey traveling the complicated network of literary highways through time and space. We cannot get lost but it is sometimes difficult to stay on the right thoroughfare. There are an infinite number of highways in the world of golf journalism all intersecting at some point. The world of golf literature is like a wagon wheel with the game itself as the hub.

It is with this appreciation of golf literature that we have conceived Golf Book Review.
Anyone wishing to contribute to this site may do so by providing a review to golfbookreviews@yahoo.com. Please include text and a photo of the front of the book if possible. Also helpful would be the reviewers name and a one-two sentence bio. Unfortunately, there is no compensation for anyone contributing to this effort.

Join us on this literary journey.