Customer Reviews

Harvey Penick's Little Red Book: Lessons and Teachings from a Lifetime in Golf

5 star:		(68)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Ben Crenshaw doubled over and openly wept after holing out to win the 1995 Masters tournament. His golf teacher, friend, and father figure Harvey Penick had passed away shortly before the tourney. Ben felt that Harvey was `guiding' him in the final rounds, and the emotions finally overtook him. The impact of the moment was very touching, but it wasn't until I finished Harvey's Little Red book that I began to understand the poignancy of the connection. The 90-year-old Penick had taught Ben since Ben was 7. The little red book of the title is the notebook, journal, and freeform diary of Mr. Penick. Compiled from golf observations throughout his life, it was only in his waning years that he agreed to allow anyone to see it. What a treat and a privilege it was to read. This is a wonderful piece of literature. Having recently completed Hogan and Armour's instructional guides, this was an excellent follow up. Not nearly as meticulously mechanical and cold as Hogan, nor as blandly wandering as Armour, Penick's actual instruction is extremely straightforward in its scope. I also think that the longer one has played golf the greater one appreciates this work. Not written strictly for the beginner, as the other two books are, Harvey comments not only on instruction and mechanics, but also course design, tournaments, hustlers, metaphorical imagery, and caddying in the early part of the century. Throughout the book, his love of teaching and his immense pride in his pupils continues to carry the theme, allowing one to understand the connection he had with his students. Having become extremely weary of the cloying media and corporate anointment of T. Woods, reading about golf as seen through Harvey Penick's eyes was a much-needed tonic. Highly recommended.

Boy Howdy! I've been playing golf for two years now, and like other golfers who've started playing the game, I too watch The Golf Channel religiously looking for every possible tip to help with my swing. Reading golf magazines, and the like. Well,this past spring I purchased The Little Red Book, and it along with two other books written by Mr. Penick, are the only books on golf I have, and I don't need no more. I'm telling you,as you read this book, it's like Mr. Penick is right there with you, helping you to "Be At Ease" and to "Take Dead Aim". I love the Slow Motion Drill, and it's my goal to purchase a weighted club and use the drill extensively during the off season. Most of all, I plan to devote as much time as possible to my short game, because Mr. Penick is right when he says a twenty foot putt is more psychologically damaging to an opponent than a 270 yard drive off the tee. I carry "The Little Red Book" with me every day along with my Bible in my book bag. Sound crazy, but that's how I feel about Harvey Penick. In fact when people ask me if I have an instructor, I tell them it's Harvey Penick..

I first read this book two years ago. I saw it on the shelf of my local book store and thought I would see if he could help where all others had failed. Two years and twelve strokes off my handicap later, I can honestly say his methods and teachings work. But this book is about more than fixing the problems of you golf game. This book is about life. If I had never improved my golf game one iota, I can say that I still got more from this book to help me with my personal life than I ever could from another self-help book. His teaching and his lifestyle were simple. His outlook on life had one important credo, "Take Dead Aim!" With his teachings and those words as my mantra, I have not only improved the quality of my golf game but I have improved the quality of my life. This book is a testament to the fact that not all things in life can be had by making more money than the other guy, but rather by finding what you like to do (play golf), work at being the best you can be (practice), and then treating others as you would be treated were you in their shoes. A must have for not only any golfer interested in improving their game, but for anyone. He says himself that these words are nothing more that the thoughts and teachings of an over-grown caddy, but beleive me this is one caddy with the wisdom that can only come from years being true to himself and the game he loved.

Maybe it's a coincidence, but I lost 10 strokes off my game during the week I read this book and put it into my practice routine. If you will actually practice the drills in this book your game will improve. If nothing else, it's entertaining reading!

I had been playing what I thought was golf for more than 25 years before reading this book. Some of the most basic methods to play shots well are described in this book. The methods are written in a style clear as fresh water. A quick, easy read that will open your eyes, help your game, and make you understand what so many others have said about this great teacher.

I've owned this book for a few years now, and like my caption says, it never gets old.

In this golfer's book you will find instruction, philosophy, and history - all woven masterfully together in the form of stories. Whether it's the lengthly section where Harvey gives his thoughts in the grip, or the extremely terse paragraph explaining why he never joined the tour, Penick uses the right words at the right times.

I've read it several times and often take it with me on long trips. It's broken into several very short segments, sometimes two or three on a page, sometimes two or three pages. This means you can always pick it up, read a quick snipit, and walk away from it.

Lastly, I've found that whenever my golf game is struggling, I read this book and it always somehow gets back on track. I don't know if it's from the lucid instruction or the comforting philosophy, but either way this book has become an integral part of my golf regimen.

I started playing golf in summer '96, at age 62, soon after retirement, and immediately became addicted to THE GAME. I began reading all the how-to books I could find, and I even taped TV shots of pros to study their swings in slo-mo. But none of these helped me so much as Mr. Penick's Little Red Book, in which he discloses THE MAGIC MOVE, and the SLOW-MOTION DRILL. Those two pages are a must-read for every hacker. They are truly magic. Duffers of the world, unite and take dead aim: read Mr. Penick's folksy masterpiece.

I stopped playing golf for about 10 years because I had a vicious slice. I mean vicious. I went to several PGA teachers, who were no help. One day, I picked up this book, and his "Magic Move" showed me why I slice. I fixed my swing based upon this book and the video, and am now back to playing again. Bye, bye slice. Absolutely amazing book.

The day I received The Little Red Book the magic began. I never thought that I could still improve my game at the age of 53. But from a weekly average score of 92 for a long time and suddenly drops to a 76 (3 rounds already)then it must be magic. The book is so easy to read and the "tips" are so easy to understand and follow. Anybody who has the time to practice the "tips" of Mr. Penick will surely improve his game tremendously.Now I understand why Mr. Penick is considered one of the greatest (if not the greatest) golf teachers who ever lived. To me the "Little Red Book" is magic.

If I could compare this book to a golf swing, I would say the set-up and approach looked good, but the writing fell apart through the impact zone and follow through.

There is a lot of praise out there for Harvey Penick, and based upon the numerous comments in the book's forward by the well-known golfers he mentored, I have no doubts that the praise is well warranted. Unfortunately, while Penick himself in the book's introduction sets up his "Little Red Book" as a lifetime's masterful compilation of golf wisdom and best kept secrets finally made public, the book fails to live up to the author's own advertising and is a bit disappointing.

A fair amount of down-to-earth tips, techniques, and golfing philosophy that Harvey had applied to his students are shared in the book. And if just one of those tips can improve one's golf game, then I would say the book is worth the price. But too often, the "Little Red Book" comes off as an exercise in name-dropping and rambling golf anecdotes, many of which are not all that interesting nor amusing. It pains me to say that, knowing what a revered figure Harvey Penick has been to some in the golfing community, but that is just my honest assessment.

What also disappointed me about this book was that although Harvey Penick gives a couple of concessions to the virtue of humility, there appears to be a somewhat bragadocious quality to the narrative. That would be more excusable if the "Little Red Book" was in fact packed from cover to cover with the invaluable tips Penick promises in this introductory chapter, but that is not the case. Here is a short example of what I am talking about:

In the chapter titled "First Things First," Harvey writes about a man who came to his country club seeking out "this famous teacher, this Penick fellow." The man says if Harvey is "such a great teacher" perhaps he can give some advice on how to get out of sand traps. Harvey 's response - which abruptly ends the brief chapter - is something to the effect that it is better not to get into sand traps to begin with...a response that is not only rather obvious but neither practically helpful nor particularly clever.

That exemplifies too much of the tone of this book, which is unfortunate, because there are some good down-to-earth visualization techniques and other bits of instruction, which, if solely focused upon, would have made this a far better and more useful read.