Customer Reviews

A Good Walk Spoiled: Days and Nights on the PGA Tour

5 star:		(26)
4 star:		(21)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

I bought this book for a friend of mine. And in a weak moment (no books to read in the house) I picked A Good Walk Spoiled up. I had anticipated being bored to death... as I am not a golfer and pretty much golf illiterate. What I found was a whole new world I had been missing... and honestly confused by. I have many golfing friends and I never understood what the fascination was all about. From the time Feinstein described Davis Love's urge to throw up in the first few pages... I was hooked and not due to my attraction to regurgitation. The actual angst these guys put themselves through was amazing to read about. Their home lives and what inspired them to live on the road 40 some weeks out of the year in search of that elusive hole in one made me appreciate the sport in a new way. 500 pages later I was surprised not only that I had hung in there but also that I throughly enjoyed the experience. I contribute my positive trip into golf land to Mr. Feinsteins clever turn o'phrase.

I have trouble sympathizing with the reader who complained of this book's length. Though it is true that you can't judge a book by its cover, you certainly can tell how thick it is! In my opinion, 500 pages was too few. I could have handled that many more, Fienstien comes close to capturing the essence of the mystery of golf ... and why so many of us are captivated by this frustrating little sport.

Yet another offering from the uber-prolific John Feinstein. He works a continuous three-sport cycle of topics amongst his growing body of work: golf, tennis, and basketball. In my mind, nothing will ever top "Season on the Brink," his seminal work on the mad genius of Bob Knight. But, his golf work is great, too.

I had read Feistein's 'The Majors' before this...and while I do think it is the better read, 'Good Walk' is definitely worth your time. Its publishers obviously think so as well. Almost 10 years after its original publication, you can still find it prominently placed in most airports across the country. If you like golf, its the perfect read for the plane.

The only reason I rank 'the Majors' higher is not due to the quality of the effort, but rather due to its relevancy. Tiger Woods is still two years away from the PGA Tour as the events of 'Good Walk' unfold. As a result, it feels like a quaint period piece. Tom Kite battling Tom Watson, things like that. Interesting, but nothing like what the tour is like these days. In 'The Majors,' although Woods goes 0-for-4 in the 1998 events covered by Feinstein, his presence hangs over every page in the book (indeed, as 'The Majors' was being published in hardback, Woods begins his 'Tiger Slam').

Feinstein's writing style is so fluid. It's enviable. I love his little five-minute chats with Bob Edwards on NPR each Monday morning. He writes just like he talks. No small achievement. We should all be so talented. It's just the right mixture of inside info and folksiness.

Here's a good idea: Interweave some of Feinstein's books with the sports efforts from David Halberstam. It's a great combination. Each of them really knows how to profile sports stars. I still marvel at Halberstam's 20+ page look at Bob Gibson in 'October 1964'. That's the same type of care and diligence you get with Feinstein. Great profiles in 'Good Walk' of a dozen or so golfers, most notably Greg Norman, Fred Couples and Davis Love.

The big surprise was Nick Faldo. He's always been a favorite of mine, but famously close-lipped with the press. Not here. I learned a lot about him that I didn't know. Great job by Feinstein. Definitely my favorite part of the book.

I'll begin by saying that I don't find Feinstein a particularly elegant writer. Like so many of the golfers he admires, Fienstein is a bit of a grinder. I prefer the golf essays of Herbert Warren Wind and John Updike. That said, I immensely enjoyed this book for its detailed and often inspiring look at the golfing and private lives of several players on the Tour. If the book had a central point, I thought it was that playing professional golf is just about as difficult a way to make a living as there is. The physical, mental, and emotional strain is almost unbearable and the lonelieness and self-reliance very fatiguing. Like another reviewer, I did not find the book too long, but too short: I wanted to read about more players and about more seasons.

I am a very poor golfer, if I break 100 I am a happy man. however I do enjoy the game (I am still trying to figure out why). This book takes you trough about a year and a half of life in the professional golf world. Through all levels of the game, the PGA Tour, the Senior Tour, The Nike Tour and Q-School. Through reading this book you learn what a world class golfer must go through to be that good. Realize that in golf, there are no home games so that means enormous amounts of time away from family. Also, golfers have to work everyday to maintain that edge. This is such a tight knit group that competitors will actually give pointers to each other during practice. It was a well written piece that shed a lot of light on a world most of us will never see. However the only reason this book does not receive a 5 is that by page 400 I found myself thinking "If I have to read about one more chip shot, I'm gonna scream." Anyway if you have any interest in the PGA tour, or golf in general, this book is well worth your time.
Thanx T

As I read this very enjoyable book, I felt more like I was listening to a conversation than reading a book. It almost feels like "Did I ever tell you about the time I was playing with Greg Norman, and he..." Feinstein has access to places and people that most golf fans never will, and as such, he has boatloads of great stories about the events and players of the PGA Tour (and the PGA wannabes). Feinstein is great at collecting and telling the stories, particularly the character-revealing ones. For that, the book is wonderful. Specifically, I felt I was in Davis Love's quaking shoes while he was "throwing up on himself" at the Ryder Cup. Feinstein tells the story so well, the reader feels part of the action.

At the same time, I couldn't help but think that the book was poorly organized. Feinstein makes some effort to put the contents into a unified semi-chronological tale, but he fails in that. Most of the events or people that he writes about require going back to cover background info on what set up that situation, or how that player got where he is now. The backgrounding leads to a lot of de-synchronization (? -- throwing off the timeline?) in the book. Many of the background information is also great and enjoyable storytelling, but given the chronological organization of the book, it was hard for me to keep the events straight -- which came first, which story had later impact on what, which ones overlap (two stories about two players at the same event, for example).

There's also a lot of jumping from discussions of one player to another. This works fine for the well known players, but not so well when the reader is trying to remember which of the Q-school players is which. Still, in thinking about it, I couldn't think of a better way to organize it.

Having felt self-imposed "pressure" on the golf course -- if I make par here, this will be my best round ever! -- reading anecdotes about the *real* pressure of Q-school was fascinating. Feinstein gives the reader the feel of needing to make a shot to be able to eke out a living by playing golf, and made me appreciate the difference between that than the pressure of making a shot to take pocket change from my foursome.

Overall, I really enjoyed the book. What's not to enjoy, really -- it's good stories about an interesting (to any golfer or golf fan) subject. I give only four stars because I just can't help feeling that the book could be much better organized for a more consistent read.

This is one of the most insightful books I have ever read. It tells the personal stories of many of today's top golfers. If you are a golfer, you can relate to every chapter. John takes you to the Ryder cup, The Masters, and into the minds of those struggling to get through Q-school. Every high, low, and snide remark is dramatically expressed. My personal favorite chapter describes the hate between the American and European Ryder Cup Teams. I purchased the book used, but I am happy enough to have paid double retail price.

This engaging book covers life on the PGA tour from the perspective of several tour players, not necessarily the top names on the tour. At the time this book was written, Bruce Fleisher was an aging journeyman on the tour, having won only once in his career. Feinstein chose to make Fleisher one of the golfers he covered. I was engaged in following the day to day life of this son of holocaust survivors and was therefore delighted when several years later, Fleisher became the top money winner on the PGA senior tour. He is currently a superstar on that tour. This book is golf writing at it's best. I recommend it

John Feinstein has written a wonderful book about the players on the PGA tour. It makes you feel like you are right there with the players. I especially enjoyed the parts about the players who are fighting just to stay on the tour. It really is a must read for any golfer who has ever dreamed of playing on the tour.

This is a must read for any serious fan of golf, but the casual fan will enjoy it too. Feinstein takes the reader into the minds and emotions of professional golfers of all levels during a season on the PGA Tour. Particularly compelling is his description of the struggling pros trying to make it through Q School. Any person who's ever worked hard for a goal or a dream only to come up short will identify with these players. Feinstein weaves those narratives brilliantly with the players on the top of the golf world and shows how they too struggle with the game despite being the best in the world.