BBailey182's Full Review: Mark Frost - The Greatest Game Ever Played: Harry ...
Here's the short version of a turning point in American golf history: Amateur Francis Ouimet defeated Harry Vardon and Ted Ray in a playoff in the 1913 United States Open, stunning everyone connected with the sport and raising its level of awareness to then-unprecedented heights.
Here's the long version: "The Greatest Game Ever Played," by Mark Frost.
Believe me, you'll want to try the long version. It's a great read.
Mark Frost, who has written some novels in the past, tries his hand at nonfiction here. I can see why he liked the material. Consider the storylines that are floating around, and judge for yourself.
Ouimet grew up across the street from the Country Club in Brookline, Mass., where the tournament was played. He had never won a tournament of note before. In fact, he wasn't even going to enter the Open until a strong showing in the National Amateur convinced his boss to surprise Ouimet by giving him an extra week of vacation time to play in it.
And Ouimet didn't just beat anyone here. The U.S. Golf Association moved the dates of the Open back just so that Vardon and Ray could compete. Vardon might be the game's first legend, having won six British Opens. He overcame tuberculosis in returning to the top of the golf world. If you play golf, chances are that when you pick up a club you use "the Vardon grip." Ray, meanwhile, had some game himself, having won several titles of his own and was the longest hitter of his day.
Ouimet had to beat the best golf had to offer in the pouring rain over the final day's play of 36 holes; it also was miserable weather for the next day's playoff. He did it with a caddy who was playing hookey from the sixth grade, who had to dodge a truant officer on his way to the course. Eddie the caddy, who was barely bigger than the bag, also had to wrap up a bloody foot just to walk.
And Ouiment's father, a gardener, thought golf was a waste of time and barely paid attention to his son's accomplishments until the end. Ouimet's mother, meanwhile, stood on her front porch for much of the tournament, listening to mighty roars that indicated her son was doing well.
You couldn't make this all up. Throw in some other characters such as Walter Hagan (think of Joe Namath in golf spikes) and some nationalism, and you have a great story.
Frost knows what to do with it. He takes his time at first, but arrives at Brookline with a full load of weapons. The drama of the tournament comes through brilliantly, even though we know how it comes out.
There's one complaint here. There is a great deal of dialogue in the text, even though all the principals are long gone. There's no real way of knowing what was actually said. In an afterword, Frost said he took dramatic license as he recreated some dialogue. From an historical perspective, he probably went over the line a bit.
But from a story-telling perspective, Frost does a beautiful job. I raced through the final half of the book, and it's easy to see why the movie rights were sold before publication.
My guess is that if you like golf history, this will be on your bookshelf for years to come.
This thrilling narrative chronicles the birth of the modern game of golf, as told through the stories of once and future champions Harry Vardon and Fr...More at Buy.com
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