Ricci G. (goldie61) reviewed on 6/5/2009 + 39 more book reviews

I follow golf but not with the same passion as others I know. Still, I found this book, "The Match" to be an absolute classic in writing. The author, Mark Frost, has done a tremendous job in creating an outstanding read for historical and golf fans alike.

In the book, two highly regarded amateurs are pitted against two legends of the professional golf world. The author takes us back to the contest, sets the scene and describes the action as it unfolded.

The two amateurs are no slouches. Ken Venturi and Harvie Ward are probably in the top 1% of all amateurs back in 1956. Together, they dominated their side of the sport in the 1940's and 1950's. Their competition in the match was pretty stellar. Bryon Nelson left the sport at the top only ten years earlier at the ripe age of 34. Nelson's professional achievements are legendary, including a record 11 in a row in 1945. The void left by Nelson's early retirement in 1946 was filled quickly by Ben Hogan, his partner for the match replayed in the book. Hogan, along with Nelson and Sam Snead, were easily the top three golfers from 1939 to 1952. Both Hogan and Nelson are on the short lists of every golf expert's ranking of the top US golfers of all time.

The book weaves in excellent background on all the four men, intermixing the 18 hole drama with dedicated chapters on their personal and professional lives. The reader develops a real sense of each and a strong appreciation for each of them.

The book was written after the passing of Hogan and Ward, so their perspectives are pieced together from the stories of others. The author obviously went to great lengths to research this book and his exhaustive interviews from the participants to the side players yielded a great final product.

While reading the book, my only quarrel with the author was the verbal exchanges that the author has recreated for the book that took place at the match. Written 50 years later, you have to be able to grant Mark Frost some leeway in reconstructing how the events unfolded. The laughter, the side bets, the running commentary are all somewhat fictionalized as there was no formal record of this event ever recorded for TV, radio, or print of any kind. If you can get past this minor detail, you will be engrossed from start to finish.

The key word for me in summarizing this book is great. A great book, about great golfers in a great time in our history.

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