Arnie, Seve, and a Fleck of Golf History: Heroes, Underdogs, Courses, and Championships

by Bill Fields, Ben Crenshaw (Foreword by)

Overview

In a long, award-winning career writing about golf, Bill Fields has sought out the most interesting stories—not just those featuring big winners and losers, but the ones that get at the very character of the game. Collected here, his pieces offer an intriguing portrait of golf over the past century. The legends are here in vivid profiles of such familiar figures as Sam Snead, Arnold Palmer, Mickey Wright, and Tiger Woods. But so are lesser-known golfers like John Schlee, Billy Joe Patton, and Bert Yancey, whose tales are no less compelling.

The book is filled with colorful moments and perceptive observations about golf greats ranging from the first American-born U.S. Open champion, Johnny McDermott, to Seve Ballesteros, the Spaniard who led Europe’s resurgence in the game in the late twentieth century. Fields gives us golf writing at its finest, capturing the game’s larger dramas and finer details, its personalities and its enduring appeal.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780803255272
Publisher:	Nebraska Paperback
Publication date:	06/01/2014
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	320
File size:	470 KB

About the Author

Veteran sports journalist Bill Fields is a four-time winner of the Golf Writers Association of America’s annual writing contest. A former senior editor at Golf World, his work has also appeared in Golf Digest, the New York Times, and The Best American Sports Writing.

Table of Contents

Foreword Ben Crenshaw ix

Introduction xi

Part 1 Tall Shadows: The Greats

1 Golf's Gray Ghost 3

2 He Came, He Won, He Died 13

3 The Trials of a Trailblazer 22

4 Man of the Century 33

5 A Place in Time 44

6 King of the Hill 54

7 A Golfer and a Gentleman 66

8 Simply the Best 74

9 Arnie, Now and Then 84

10 Seve: Portrait of an Artist 100

Part 2 Inside the Ropes: Courses and Competitions

11 Changing the Course of History 111

12 The Streak 119

13 He Went Down Swinging 131

14 Homero Blancas's 55 143

15 Lost and Found 151

16 A Champion's Last Hurrah 164

17 Surround Sound 174

18 Devil's Island 184

19 Fortunate Son 191

20 Thoughts from Augusta 198

Part 3 More than a Score: The Characters

21 Shades of Greatness 213

22 A Fleck of History 223

23 The Gospel according to Joe Dey 239

24 The Mouth That Roared 250

25 The High Life and Hard Times of John Schlee 256

26 Taking a Stand 267

27 The Detour of a Phenom 275

28 The Journey of Jim Simons 285

29 Still Driven after All These Years 294

30 The Man Who Loved Golf to Death 304

Epilogue: The Tiger Era 315

Acknowledgments 325

Editorial Reviews

"Arnie, Seve, and a Fleck of Golf History is a must-read for anyone with an interest in the history of the people and events of the game of golf.."—Gary McCormick, examiner.com

examiner.com - Gary McCormick

“Nobody knows the game of golf and many of the quaint people who have inhabited it better than Bill Fields, and I’ve never read anyone who gets them down on paper better than he does. You’ll enjoy this book more than a string of birdies if you care anything at all about the sport.”—Dan Jenkins, author of Dead Solid Perfect and Jenkins at the Majors

 

Dan Jenkins

"An entertaining and informative read."—Lisa Timpf, AETHLON

AETHLON - Lisa Timpf

"Engaging and fun to read."—George B. Kirsch, Journal of Sport History

Journal of Sport History - George B. Kirsch

"Anyone who considers himself a true golf fan must add this excellent work of golf history to their literary collection."—Fred Altvater, Bleacher Report

Bleacher Report - Fred Altvater

“Bill Fields’s field isn’t golf; it’s people. With a reporter’s instinct and a writer’s empathy, he specializes in stories only he can see. Don’t read him unless you’re ready to laugh and cry. Both.”—Tom Callahan, author of Johnny U

 

Tom Callahan

Bill Fields is simply one of our finest living golf writers.”—Roland Merullo, author of Golfing with God and Passion for Golf

 

Roland Merullo

Bill Fields is the modern poet laureate of golf. . . . This is a book to dwell over and savor.”—James Dodson, author of American Triumvirate: Sam Snead, Byron Nelson, Ben Hogan and the Modern Age of Golf

James Dodson

“If Bill Fields is writing it, I want to read it. The clarity and quality of his golf prose is exceptional. It’s solid reporting—with flair.”—Curt Sampson, author of Hogan and The Lost Masters

Curt Sampson

Bill Fields’s writing on golf has always been firmly rooted in a deep understanding and appreciation of the game’s history. It’s what makes his work not only memorable but valuable.”—Al Barkow, author of Gettin’ to the Dance Floor: An Oral History of American Golf

Al Barkow