The Big Miss is Hank Haney’s candid and surprisingly insightful account of his tumultuous six-year journey with Tiger Woods, during which the supremely gifted golfer collected six major championships and rewrote golf history. Hank was one of the very few people allowed behind the curtain. He was with Tiger 110 days a year, spoke to him over 200 days a year, and stayed at his home up to 30 days a year, observing him in nearly every circumstance: at tournaments, on the practice range, over meals, with his wife, Elin, and relaxing with friends.
The relationship between the two men began in March 2004 when Hank received a call from Tiger in which the golf champion asked him to be his coach. It was a call that would change both men’s lives.
Tiger—only 28 at the time—was by then already an icon, judged by the sporting press as not only one of the best golfers ever, but possibly the best athlete ever. Already he was among the world’s highest paid celebrities. There was an air of mystery surrounding him, an aura of invincibility. Unique among athletes, Tiger seemed to be able to shrug off any level of pressure and find a way to win.
But Tiger was always looking to improve, and he wanted Hank’s help.
What Hank soon came to appreciate was that Tiger was one of the most complicated individuals he’d ever met, let alone coached. Although Hank had worked with hundreds of elite golfers and was not easily impressed, there were days watching Tiger on the range when Hank couldn’t believe what he was witnessing. On those days, it was impossible to imagine another human playing golf so perfectly.
And yet Tiger is human—and Hank’s expert eye was adept at spotting where Tiger’s perfection ended and an opportunity for improvement existed. Always haunting Tiger was his fear of “the big miss”—the wildly inaccurate golf shot that can ruin an otherwise solid round—and it was because that type of blunder was sometimes part of Tiger’s game that Hank carefully redesigned his swing mechanics.
Hank’s most formidable coaching challenge, though, would be solving the riddle of Tiger’s personality. Wary of the emotional distractions that might diminish his game and put him further from his goals, Tiger had developed a variety of tactics to keep people from getting too close, and not even Hank—or Tiger’s family and friends, for that matter—was spared “the treatment.”
Toward the end of Tiger and Hank’s time together, the champion’s laser-like focus began to blur and he became less willing to put in punishing hours practicing—a disappointment to Hank, who saw in Tiger’s behavior signs that his pupil had developed a conflicted relationship with the game. Hints that Tiger hungered to reinvent himself were present in his bizarre infatuation with elite military training, and—in a development Hank didn’t see coming—in the scandal that would make headlines in late 2009. It all added up to a big miss that Hank, try as he might, couldn’t save Tiger from.
There’s never been a book about Tiger Woods that is as intimate and revealing—or one so wise about what it takes to coach a superstar athlete.
The Big Miss: My Years Coaching Tiger Woods
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Book Description
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Editorial Reviews
Review
“Insightful...Advance coverage of The Big Miss focused on the sensational...but those revelations misrepresent the primary focus of the book, which is to convey the experience of working with Woods as an instructor and to dissect what makes Tiger Tiger...Golf fans will put the book down feeling as if they were an eyewitness to history, and glad for the experience.”
--Wall Street Journal
“An alarming look at an athlete whose public glories masked a day-to-day existence of profound superficiality…Even more revealing than the swing material is evidence of Woods’ emotional blank wall: his indifference to people around him, his inability to empathize, and an obsession with military training and the Navy SEALs that, according to Haney, probably led to the leg injuries which have hampered Woods’ golf career.”
--Golfweek
“I learned more about Tiger in The Big Miss than I have in eleven years of covering him on the PGA Tour…I actually thought the book was very fair, it was honest.”
--Damon Hack, Senior Writer, Sports Illustrated
“While The Big Miss is many things -- a coach’s story; an account of a collapse; a deep dive into the swing mechanics and the art of golf – it also offers a welcome and unvarnished look inside. Books about major athletes are often authorized pabulum or arm’s-length agglomerations. Haney’s recollections are his own, and subject to dispute, but this is a rich and compelling rendering of a complicated athlete undone less by embarrassing details than by a self-inflicted, unsustainable myth.”
--Jason Gay, The Wall Street Journal
“Offers fascinating insights…The biggest strength of The Big Miss is the breadth of its insider view of the Tiger Woods phenomenon, a scrutiny previously unavailable to the public.”
--Kansas City Star
“Incredibly interesting—especially if you play golf...Haney does a great job of simply telling it like it is...The "why" behind the mystery of Tiger's perplexing personality weaves its way through the entire book.”
-David G. Kindervater, Featured Columnist, Bleacher Report
“After flying through this 247-page, mostly breezy and fascinating look into the life of a champion, I suspect most readers will ultimately have a newfound respect for Woods. I know I do....For the first time in the history of golf literature, we get a behind-the-scenes look at how an all-time great works. Many times the details are not pretty, but most of the journey Haney takes us on reveals a relentless passion to thrive in an era when so many professionals appear content to occasionally contend and collect healthy checks. If I were asked to recommend a book for an aspiring young golfer, The Big Miss would be the first title I’d select if for no other reason than most of today’s Tiger-wannabes will be motivated to work much harder than they currently do.”
--GeoffShackelford.com
“Thoughtful…Haney makes his case fairly and honestly, emerging not as a self-serving, tell-all author but as a man who has devoted his working life to the intricacies of the golf swing and who, finally, remains thankful to have spent six years with the best golfer on the planet.”
--Booklist
"The Big Miss is the most extensive and interesting portrait of Woods you're ever likely to read...[it] shines a light on the most opaque celebrity in sports. For that reason alone, it's a can't-miss."
--Orange County Register
--Wall Street Journal
“An alarming look at an athlete whose public glories masked a day-to-day existence of profound superficiality…Even more revealing than the swing material is evidence of Woods’ emotional blank wall: his indifference to people around him, his inability to empathize, and an obsession with military training and the Navy SEALs that, according to Haney, probably led to the leg injuries which have hampered Woods’ golf career.”
--Golfweek
“I learned more about Tiger in The Big Miss than I have in eleven years of covering him on the PGA Tour…I actually thought the book was very fair, it was honest.”
--Damon Hack, Senior Writer, Sports Illustrated
“While The Big Miss is many things -- a coach’s story; an account of a collapse; a deep dive into the swing mechanics and the art of golf – it also offers a welcome and unvarnished look inside. Books about major athletes are often authorized pabulum or arm’s-length agglomerations. Haney’s recollections are his own, and subject to dispute, but this is a rich and compelling rendering of a complicated athlete undone less by embarrassing details than by a self-inflicted, unsustainable myth.”
--Jason Gay, The Wall Street Journal
“Offers fascinating insights…The biggest strength of The Big Miss is the breadth of its insider view of the Tiger Woods phenomenon, a scrutiny previously unavailable to the public.”
--Kansas City Star
“Incredibly interesting—especially if you play golf...Haney does a great job of simply telling it like it is...The "why" behind the mystery of Tiger's perplexing personality weaves its way through the entire book.”
-David G. Kindervater, Featured Columnist, Bleacher Report
“After flying through this 247-page, mostly breezy and fascinating look into the life of a champion, I suspect most readers will ultimately have a newfound respect for Woods. I know I do....For the first time in the history of golf literature, we get a behind-the-scenes look at how an all-time great works. Many times the details are not pretty, but most of the journey Haney takes us on reveals a relentless passion to thrive in an era when so many professionals appear content to occasionally contend and collect healthy checks. If I were asked to recommend a book for an aspiring young golfer, The Big Miss would be the first title I’d select if for no other reason than most of today’s Tiger-wannabes will be motivated to work much harder than they currently do.”
--GeoffShackelford.com
“Thoughtful…Haney makes his case fairly and honestly, emerging not as a self-serving, tell-all author but as a man who has devoted his working life to the intricacies of the golf swing and who, finally, remains thankful to have spent six years with the best golfer on the planet.”
--Booklist
"The Big Miss is the most extensive and interesting portrait of Woods you're ever likely to read...[it] shines a light on the most opaque celebrity in sports. For that reason alone, it's a can't-miss."
--Orange County Register
About the Author
HANK HANEY coached Tiger Woods from early 2004 to the spring of 2010 and is considered by many to be the world’s number one golf instructor. He has tutored more than 200 touring professionals and runs several teaching facilities around the world. In addition to hosting the top-rated Golf Channel show The Haney Project, Hank also contributes to numerous publications and has appeared on the cover of Golf Digest seven times.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
47 of 50 people found the following review helpful
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
This is a difficult book to describe. It is very well written, and it provides what would appear to be a pretty good picture of the real Tiger Woods...both the golf prodigy and the totally self absorbed person.
If you have read reviews or watched interviews with Hank Haney, you already know most of the "juicy" parts (and they really aren't that juicy). If you are not into golf, you will probably find the book excruciatingly dull as Haney goes on at length about the mechanics of Tiger's golf swing and the details of his practice routine and of various tournaments.
If, however, you enjoy the details of golf and/or enjoy reading about the personalities of superachievers, you will probably enjoy the book a lot. I did.
In fact, on the personality side, you get a twofer. You get one man's analysis of superstar/super narcissist Tiger Woods. And you also get to observe what happens when that ego collides with the big but fragile ego of super coach Hank Haney. Very interesting dynamics!!! In the end, Haney hails Tiger as the greatest golfer of all time. But that accolade is tempered by Haney's assessment of Tiger's underdeveloped personal skills. You also get Haney's defense of his own record as Tiger's coach.
Haney does not do this, but I noted parallels between Tiger and what I have read about superstars in other fields--particularly Steve Jobs and the early Bill Gates. It is apparent that super talent and warm, fuzzy personalities are not often combined in one package (although Gates seems to have mellowed).
Haney should have probably not written this book. While he apparently violated no contracts with Tiger, I agree that he violated the implied trust between a teacher and a student. Nonetheless, we readers are better off because he did.... Read more ›
If you have read reviews or watched interviews with Hank Haney, you already know most of the "juicy" parts (and they really aren't that juicy). If you are not into golf, you will probably find the book excruciatingly dull as Haney goes on at length about the mechanics of Tiger's golf swing and the details of his practice routine and of various tournaments.
If, however, you enjoy the details of golf and/or enjoy reading about the personalities of superachievers, you will probably enjoy the book a lot. I did.
In fact, on the personality side, you get a twofer. You get one man's analysis of superstar/super narcissist Tiger Woods. And you also get to observe what happens when that ego collides with the big but fragile ego of super coach Hank Haney. Very interesting dynamics!!! In the end, Haney hails Tiger as the greatest golfer of all time. But that accolade is tempered by Haney's assessment of Tiger's underdeveloped personal skills. You also get Haney's defense of his own record as Tiger's coach.
Haney does not do this, but I noted parallels between Tiger and what I have read about superstars in other fields--particularly Steve Jobs and the early Bill Gates. It is apparent that super talent and warm, fuzzy personalities are not often combined in one package (although Gates seems to have mellowed).
Haney should have probably not written this book. While he apparently violated no contracts with Tiger, I agree that he violated the implied trust between a teacher and a student. Nonetheless, we readers are better off because he did.... Read more ›
66 of 80 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
Hank Haney is a golf instructor and not a writer, but this book is well written. The focus is on Tiger Woods as a golfer, and to a lesser extent as a person, but Haney is mainly interested in the golf. We learn a lot about golf instruction and the fine line that some of these golfers have to maintain in order to compete. I wondered, before reading the book, why a guy like Tiger even needs a coach, but if his swing gets just a little off, he doesn't have the ability to correct it.
There is a fair amount of information provided about Tiger's life, his family, his personal conduct, but Haney does not dwell on the scandalous behavior that ruined Tiger's reputation; he says he didn't know about any of it. Some of the revelations about how Tiger feels about other players and other athletes border on creepy.
The most surprising information is about how Tiger basically seemed bored with golf and wanted to become a Navy Seal. His body is overbuilt for his frame, which may be causing some of his physical problems. The book concludes with a lengthy and somewhat unpleasant self-justification of how Haney did a good job as Tiger's coach. I think he would have been better off letting the record speak for itself.
There is a fair amount of information provided about Tiger's life, his family, his personal conduct, but Haney does not dwell on the scandalous behavior that ruined Tiger's reputation; he says he didn't know about any of it. Some of the revelations about how Tiger feels about other players and other athletes border on creepy.
The most surprising information is about how Tiger basically seemed bored with golf and wanted to become a Navy Seal. His body is overbuilt for his frame, which may be causing some of his physical problems. The book concludes with a lengthy and somewhat unpleasant self-justification of how Haney did a good job as Tiger's coach. I think he would have been better off letting the record speak for itself.
37 of 48 people found the following review helpful
By TDwoods
Format:Hardcover
The media tour couldn't have gone any worse for Hank Haney as a bunch of media members who don't play golf and didnt read the book peppered him with questions about breaking a code. Read the book and understand the context of what Haney is trying to say. The relationship was very complicated and if Hank wanted to he could have blasted Tiger but stuck to golf 95% of the time and the other five was off the course stuff that affected his golf. Well worth the read.
16 of 21 people found the following review helpful
By J.A.G.
Format:Hardcover
The pre-release publicity for this book has been fairly misleading, so people looking for a tell-all book about Tiger's personal life should reset their expectations. This is not a tell-all; this is a book about golf.
And it's a fantastic golf book. It often goes into details of swing mechanics that non-golfers won't relate to. For people interested in the differences (and similarities) between Tiger's "Butch" swing vs. Tiger's "Haney" swing, this book is a must read.
But there's also plenty of other content (albeit in a golfing context) for non-golfers and/or those who are simply interested in what Tiger is like. The book deals with the dynamics of the teacher-student relationship, and most interesting of all, the ingredients that make for genuine greatness and the price that comes with it.
Overall, I thought the book was very fair and that Haney was also refreshingly honest about his own insecurities as Tiger's coach. This book is not a hit job. Haney repeatedly communicates his genuine admiration for Tiger's greatness, and defends him on a number of fronts. When the current media controversy over whether or not Haney should have written this subsides, people will be glad this book was written. In doing so, Haney has provided the world with an unrivaled account of one of the most interesting athletes in history. If you love golf and/or are interested about what makes Tiger great, I highly recommend that you read The Big Miss.
And it's a fantastic golf book. It often goes into details of swing mechanics that non-golfers won't relate to. For people interested in the differences (and similarities) between Tiger's "Butch" swing vs. Tiger's "Haney" swing, this book is a must read.
But there's also plenty of other content (albeit in a golfing context) for non-golfers and/or those who are simply interested in what Tiger is like. The book deals with the dynamics of the teacher-student relationship, and most interesting of all, the ingredients that make for genuine greatness and the price that comes with it.
Overall, I thought the book was very fair and that Haney was also refreshingly honest about his own insecurities as Tiger's coach. This book is not a hit job. Haney repeatedly communicates his genuine admiration for Tiger's greatness, and defends him on a number of fronts. When the current media controversy over whether or not Haney should have written this subsides, people will be glad this book was written. In doing so, Haney has provided the world with an unrivaled account of one of the most interesting athletes in history. If you love golf and/or are interested about what makes Tiger great, I highly recommend that you read The Big Miss.
11 of 14 people found the following review helpful
By nic92
Format:Hardcover
This book gives insight into what it took to teach Tiger Woods. Hank Haney had to walk on eggshells to be tiger's teacher and it is his right as a person to report on what he saw and heard. In ten years this book will be revered for it's content. To be number one at anything takes a certain mindset and in Haney's book, you see the little things that you have to do to be number one. All in all the golf world is better off because of this book. This book will be good for tiger because it shows that he is only human, and as a tiger fan i can much better relate to him.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
great insight
If you like golf, thought of tiger as a great golfer, or want to know more about tiger as a person, including what goes into changing a golf swing, read this. Well written.
Published 10 hours ago by Matt
2.0 out of 5 stars
Please Buy my Book. Tiger only paid me $50k per year.
As a golfer, I found the parts of the book that detail Tiger's swing, and Haney's approach to "fixing it", fascinating. Read more
Published 5 days ago by Thewlips
4.0 out of 5 stars
Not a tell all of scandalous details but if you didn't like Tiger...
The book is essentially Hank's memoir during his tenure as Tiger's swing coach. There are tons of golf related terms and descriptions so if you are a golfer you will understand,... Read more
Published 8 days ago by detonator
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent
For any body, who loves the game of golf, this is a great book. Hank Haney does an excellent job describing the enigmatic Tiger Woods as a golf player - what makes him great, his... Read more
Published 9 days ago by Jeannette Garcia
4.0 out of 5 stars
A little bit awkward
This book was fascinating in that it gave us an inside into who Tiger Woods really is, or was: an individual so consumed with winning golf tournaments and being the greatest, that... Read more
Published 9 days ago by Robert T. Bentley
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great Insights into the actions of Tiger; behind the scenes
I chose this rating because it was a great book. I have read in previous posts that it was a little hard to understand the technical swing analytic's but I thought Hank did a good... Read more
Published 14 days ago by Derek Mills
2.0 out of 5 stars
No surprises
A somewhat boring account of things we already knew. No revelations or major insights beyond what anyone even remotely following the game already knew.
Published 17 days ago by M. Boyer
3.0 out of 5 stars
A bit Self-serving of Hank Haney
I live in Augusta Ga, where the Master's tournament is held every spring. I enjoy watching golf on the golf channel as well as on network TV. Tiger is very popular there. Read more
Published 19 days ago by Huff'npuff
3.0 out of 5 stars
Par for the course...
There were some birdies, an eagle here and there, but a lot of pars and bogeys. More insight into Tiger the man and Tiger the athlete would have made this a much better book. Read more
Published 20 days ago by DenverSky5280
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great Book on a Great Golfer
Great book that highlights the work ethic of Tiger Woods, his relationships with those close to him, as well as some of his greatest achievements and shortfalls.
Published 26 days ago by Morgan Herring
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