Golf Book Review: “The Match” is Unmatched, Important & Required Reading

I just finished Mark Frost’s new book, The Match: The Day the Game of Golf Changed Forever, and while I was excited to read the latest from the author of the amazing and invaluable true golf tale, The Greatest Game Ever Played, this new book exceeded my expectations. I was moved to tears several times and another, perhaps even more important, slice of golf history was illuminated.

I also looked forward to this read because I had heard that “The Match” takes place at Cypress Point and I’ve always dreamed of playing that course, so it was a treat to walk and play it with some of the greatest golfers of all time. In case you haven’t heard, the center piece of this story is a casual best ball match play round between Ben Hogan and Bryron Nelson (representing the pros) and Ken Venturi and Harvie Ward (representing the amateurs). The time is 1956 and Venturi and Ward are the last of the gentleman amateurs playing at the highest levels of the game. The event is precipitated by a bet instigated by none other than Eddie Lowery, the pint-sized ten-year old caddie from “Greatest Game” who has (believe it or not) become a millionaire California car dealer. This connection to the earlier book is more than a coincidence and Lowery becomes more important to the story than one might expect.

I’m going to go so far as to say that this book is required reading for any serious golfer. On one level learning more about the life story and personality of these great players as well as that of Cypress Point and the Crosby Clambake are quintessential elements of the glory of golf in America. As before, Mark Frost does an amazing job illuminating this background (including the best recounting of the famous Hogan comeback after his accident that I’ve ever read.) But there’s much more beyond all this.

I can’t summarize that essence better than the last paragraph of the book:

“No four men will ever play such a match again. No four men like like these. The genuine way they lived their lives makes most of today’s fast and frenzied sports and entertainment culture seem like so much packaged goods, a self-conscious, inauthentic hustle. In their best and worst hours alike each of these four stood his ground, put all he had on the line, and for better or worse lived with the consequences of his actions and moved on. Some green, untested souls might be tempted to wonder why one should still care, but none of us are here forever, we’re not even here for long; and if it’s true that our collective past exists inside all of us, unless we take time to bear witness to the best of those who strived before us, our chance to learn from their lives will be lost forever, and we will be the poorer for it.”

That’s why I call it “required reading”… not to mention that it’s totally fun and a complete delight! Thanks so much, Mr. Frost.

Click here to check out “The Match: The Day the Game of Golf Changed Forever” >>

A Beautiful Day for Golf (and for more progress)

Boy am I glad that I decided to go out and get some golf in today. First of all, it turned out to be an absolutely perfect day (low 60’s and crystal clear). Secondly, I went over to Stonetree (since I got shut out of trying to expand a twosome at an over-booked course) and Stonetree booked me as a single. I also enjoyed the pace of play. We played in 4 hours despite a slow twosome…

But even more fun was the fact that with the exception of a few unfortunate holes, I really played pretty solid, consistent golf. I shot an 88. The first time I’ve broken 90 on this challenging, quality track in about two years. I had two birdies (on #2 and #13) and… drumroll… miracle of miracles… no three putts! I’ve been using Dr. Joe Parent’s “longer, not harder” approach to putting in order to control my speed on the greens, and it’s been working.

For the full shots, I’ve been using slow, conscious practice swings to feel my tempo (as discussed in earlier posts on this golf blog, “thai chi” practice swings). These help me remember to swing easy and to stay conscious of my full swing. For the first time in a really long time, I feel like I’m really feelin’ it… most of the time. In fact, I’m feeling my “swing of ease” which gives me more consistent contact and thus more solid shots.

And I’m getting better at taking a little bit more club in order to swing easier. I’m getting good results this way and they are turning out to be some of my best shots. I remember in particular the two approach shots that led to the two birdies. They were both easy “3/4″ swings with plenty of club for the distance, and the results were two birdie putts that were only about four feet each.

Whew. It’s a relief to play better after a somewhat dry period. I don’t want to jinx myself, but I think I can keep this up, one swing at a time. I’m going to just keep breathing and doing my best to stay conscious and centered. And, I am grateful that this is real progress. I think an 88 at Stonetree is about 6 under my personal par, or a net 66. Not bad.

This weekend I’ll be experiencing some courses down near San Luis Obispo (a couple of hours North of Santa Barbara) that I’ve never played before. I’m looking forward to that and will, of course, report on them here.

Meanwhile, Have a Happy Thanksgiving! Birdies and pars to ya.

Classic Ram Dass DVD Makes Solid Contact with the Spirit of Golf

Another benefit of spending time with the Shivas Irons Society (SIS) last week was being reminded that I had bought but (true confession) not watched a DVD that The Society sells of a Ram Dass talk on “Golf and the Spirit.” Other SIS members raved about the DVD so I screened it last night and was delighted. This is true classic stuff from an SIS event in 1995 when Ram Dass was quite obviously deep into the process of expanding his already expanded consciousness through our beloved game of golf.

If you like Ram Dass and you like golf, then this is a “must see.” He’s speaking to a sophisticated audience that includes Michael Murphy and Fred Shoemaker, and in true Ram Dass style telling it like it is. Worthy of repeat viewing. Among many other things, Ram Dass talks about how golf let’s us “delight in our foibles rather than being trapped by them.” Here’s my favorite quote:

“The game of golf is an exquisite practice for cultivating the qualities of mind that, in the long run, relieve suffering for you and other people… You have an attraction to and the skills in, and the involvement with something that is basically a vehicle for Libertation.”

And you thought that we were just playing a game!

Click here to order from the SIS website >>

I think you’ll be glad you did.

Positively Poppy

I had a great time on Saturday playing the beautiful Poppy Hills Golf Course in the exquisite Pebble Beach area of the Monterey Peninsula. My host was none other than Steve Cohen, the president of the Shivas Irons Society. Thanks, Steve!

I was also pleased to shoot a 90, 3-under my “personal par” (as an 18.2 index I had a 21 handicap on that course.) I’m continuing to work successfully with the short game tips that I learned from Dr. Joe Parent (including “longer not harder” on putting and holding my finish both putting and chipping) and the slow-mo, “tai chi” practice swing also mentioned below.

One fun dimension that extended these new kinds of confidence was finding myself saying to myself, seemingly spontaneously, “trust it” while standing over putts. I didn’t count 3 putts, but there weren’t that many. One “big number” but otherwise pretty consistent golf.

My swing of ease is becoming less of a concept, finally, and I think largely due to more conscious breathing and centering on the course, and to the increased awareness of my full swing that’s coming from the much more conscious slow-mo practice swings. (Yes, I know that I used the word “conscious” twice in that last sentence. I think I just may be slowly becoming more awake on the golf course.) The result is that I’m actually “slowing it down” enough not to get too quick (most of the time… fewer hooks) while not giving up much power because I’m making solid contact more often. Progress is good.

I’m so grateful to be playing this fascinating game, having lots of fun, enjoying awesome company and appreciating such natural beauty on the course, while being able to continue to learn and grow.

Thanks for reading!

Trusting the Process

I wrote to a friend who is playing golf while recovering from a serious illness, “The golfsmarterpodcast.com interview with Lynn Marriott talks about a ‘tai chi practice swing’ where you do a practice swing as slowly as you can. I think this fits with what you are saying (about success from swinging with more ease and a slower pace), and I’ve found it useful as a way to be more aware of the whole swing. She says that it originated with Fred Shoemaker, but they’ve taken it further.”

This friend wrote back to me today, “I am feeling very fortunate to be able to play golf… I have to take it slow no matter what… My mantra is: grip firmly, swing slowly.”

I responded, “Enjoy! One swing at a time. It’s interesting learning to trust the process, eh? I feel myself getting more deeply into that. Even keeping my head down while putting is becoming more fun as I focus on the process of the swing rather than the results. I like Joe Parent’s thing of “making putts” even if you don’t hole them. Yet, I still have a bit of that feeling you once described (even though I don’t really believe it) that it’s unfair when a well-struck putt on the line I intended isn’t holed. In other words, I still have the reaction of disappointment, but it is lessening. The more I just enjoy the ride (including as you say the feeling of being very fortunate to be able to play golf) the better. Blessings on ya.”