5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Generational magic, October 16, 2003
This review is from: Final Rounds: A Father, A Son, The Golf Journey Of A Lifetime (Paperback)
As a son of depression/WWII era parents, I often consider how the times affected my parents attitudes in life, compared to my own (born in the 60s) times. Now as a parent of two young teens, I also ponder how they will see those comparisons with my times. More importantly, I look for ways to take the eternal "life lessons" that I learned from depression era parents, and communicate those lessons to my Nintendo & Harry Potter generation kids. This book gives the answer -- it's in time and activities shared together.
My own father, a WWII B-17 navigator and POW, like Brax Dodson, had experiences that I simply can't fathom, that shaped his attitude and outlook on life. I could FEEL this book -- I grew up with my own "Opti". We golfed together, and he taught me about life. Unfortunately, like James Dodson, I was often too stubborn, too headstrong, or just too stupid to listen. Sometimes the wisdom of the prior generation is not so timeless. Sometimes the ways of our elders just don't fit the newer times. And sometimes they do, and us younger folks aren't smart enough to see it.
Dodson does a solid job of recognizing all of that, in a style that is self-effacing and self-deprecating enough to show that he honestly appreciates the wisdom of the ages. As I read, I kept yelling at the book "you ass, shut up and listen to the old man!" And then I would recall one of the many times when *I* should have shut up and listened to the wise words of my father, in a similar situation.
I *SO* wanted my dad to love this book, but he didn't particularly care one way or another. I still want my kids to read and love this book, though I've yet to inspire them to set Harry Potter down long enough to pick this up. I suspect that while Final Rounds tells me a great parallel story for my life, that it won't necessarily do so for my kids. But I will continue with finding some one place, maybe not a golf course, where we can always have a heart-to-heart.
For Lance Armstrong, "It's Not About The Bike"; for James Dodson, it's not really about the golf.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Golfing Journey, November 10, 2000
This review is from: Final Rounds: A Father, A Son, The Golf Journey Of A Lifetime (Paperback)
A wonderful account of a father and son coming to grips with the father's impending death. The father and son achieve a relationship not often sought by a parent and child. Without over-romanticizing the point, the book also nicely describes the unique and intimate experience that comes with spending time with someone on a golf course. Unfortunately, because "golf" is included in the subtitle, this book will be read almost exclusively by golfers. What a pity, because the real story is so much more. A touchy-feely book for sure, but one of the best "autobiographical" stories I have read in a long time. Makes me wish my father played golf.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fantastic and Moving, March 1, 2005
This review is from: Final Rounds: A Father, A Son, The Golf Journey Of A Lifetime (Paperback)
I am scottish and learnt the game of golf from my father when I was 8. My father and I played courses all over scotland as well as in the united states. The game taught me much about myself, but also much about my father. Though nothing like "Opti", my father had his own valauble pieces of advice that he passed to me. I moved to Japan at 22 and two years later found out my father had a year to live. I was stunned and returned immediately to be with him. In fact he only lived 2 months, but in that time he and I played two more games of golf, only a stones throw from the course mentioned in this book, Gullane.
Now only 4 years on I found this book and on every page it strikes a chord with me. I remember my father and thank him for teaching me this wonderful game. As a scot, I of course have an unrelenting love for the game and reading this book and seeing courses in there that we played together is truly moving.
Not often does a book compell me to write a review, this book however makes me feel like a simple review will never do justice to how much I enjoyed this book.
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