18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The best book anyone who is serious about golf can read., February 16, 1999
By A Customer
I am an avid golfer and have read many books and magazines on the game of golf. None of the others compare to Butch Harmon's Playing Lessons. This book makes you excited about playing golf. Butch Harmon divides it into three levels of advice. One for the A player, one for the B player, and one for the C player. His drills and explanations make this book easy to relate to your game. The pictures in the book to complement his explanations are easy to recognize and utilize. Anyone serious about the game of golf should read this book.
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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The best course management book out there, January 8, 2001
This review is from: Butch Harmon's Playing Lessons (Paperback)
When I first started golfing I didn't realize how important course management was. I was really just interested in hitting the ball far and straight. And to be honest, that is what a beginner should concentrate on. But after hitting that first plateau, this book was really a breakthrough. Not only does it teach you how to manage a course to lower your score, it adds a very intriguing dynamic to the game itself. It is much like watching a football game without knowing the rules and strategies - laborious and dull. But once you know the rules and the intricate strategies developed to acheive your best score, you are infinitely more pleased with what you see.
Though I love that we get a guided tour of America's most storied golf holes, the fact that Harmon read my mind half of the time is what impressed me most. He lays out three separate strategies for three different levels of players. It is astonishing how he contrasts the different thought patterns of the lower v. higher handicappers. There are times where he makes high handicappers feel like idiots, but if you want to get better, hearing the truth about your game is the best way. I recommend this book very highly for all those tired of "reading" golf books with nothing but pictures and tips in them. While Butch does give a few tips, it is his golf mentality that is so fresh. And while the book is graphically impeccable, it isn't overcrowded with a bunch of confusing graphics and diagrams. Not your run-of-the-mill golf instruction book.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good Book, Just Don't Call Yourself a C Player, November 4, 2010
This review is from: Butch Harmon's Playing Lessons (Paperback)
There's no denying that the book is put together well. Butch Harmon takes us on a journey through 18 of golf's greatest holes: Pebble Beach, Shinnecock, and the Olympic Club are three of the club's featured in the book. Butch analyzes how an A, B, and C player should go about playing the hole. If you're a serious golfer, I think you'll have no trouble figuring out which category you belong in.
Anyway, the book is about playing all 18 holes to the best of your current ability, which I think is a great message. For the A Player, he might have the chance to go for the green in 2 on a big par 5. The C player may have to play the hole in three shots, analyzing where each shot should be placed. There are tips, drills, and great thoughts every step of the way to help you find your way, and despite what many think about him, he knows the game very well, and I trust what he has to say.
The only caveat to this book that I can think of is in the mental arena. I don't think there's anything wrong with playing a hole a certain way if you can only drive the ball 220. Quite frankly, you have to. But at what point does labeling yourself a C golfer become detrimental to your game? If you're a C golfer, you should be practicing your short game. Course management can only save you so many shots at the end of the day.
A lot of getting better at scoring is believing that you are:
A.a good player
B.Good enough to shoot lower than you ever have before
In other words, if you get into the habit of calling yourself a C player, or even a B player for that matter, and you always play with B players, and you look forward to playing in the B flight at your club because the competition is easier, you may not improve as quickly.
I can tell you from first-hand experience that although "A players" tend to have bigger personalities than other players, playing with people better than you is the quickest way to improve.
So to relay this all back to the book, I would recommend it if that sort of book sounds interesting, but as soon as you can, start calling yourself an A player and don't look back.
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