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| Greatest Game Ever Played: Harry Vardon, Francis Ouimet, and the Birth of Modern Golf | 
 enlarge | Manufacturer: Hyperion
Category: EBooks
List Price: $11.95
Buy New: $4.53
You Save: $7.42 (62%)
Avg. Customer Rating:  74 reviews
Sales Rank: 6200
Format: Kindle Book
Media: Kindle Edition
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 496
Dewey Decimal Number: 796
ASIN: B000FC2LXW
Publication Date: November 3, 2004
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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Product Description
Greatest Game Ever Played is the story of Francis Ouimet and Harry Vardon, who, in pursuit of their passion for a game that captivated them as children, broke down rigid social barriers that made their sport accessible to everyone on both sides of the Atlantic and beyond, positioning golf as one of the most widely played games in the world. Ouimet and Vardon were two men from different generations and vastly different corners of the world whose lives, unbeknownst to them at the time, bore remarkable similarities, setting them on parallel paths that led with a kind of fated inevitability to their epic battle at Brookline years in the future. This collision resulted in the 'big bang' that gave rise to the sport of golf as we know it today. For Mark Frost, Francis Ouimet and Harry Vardon represent everything that's right about sports in general and sportsmen in particular; gentlemen, champions, teachers, leaders, and each in their own quiet way, heroes. In The Greatest Game Ever Played, Frost attempts to create penetrating studies of both of these men, along with over dozens of the game's seminal figures, within the dramatic framework offered by the tournament when they finally met, one of the most thrilling sports events in history, the 1913 U.S. Open.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 69 more reviews...
People You Really Care About November 26, 2008
Right now, I'd rank this third among the best sports books I've ever read, and I've enjoyed quite a few of them over the years. I loved this book because it got me so involved with the main characters. Author Mark Frost really makes you care about Francis Ouimet, his 10-year-old caddy Eddie Lowery and chief golf opponent Harry Vardon. All of them are fantastically interesting people and Frost is like a great artist painting their portraits.
The story is written so well that even though I knew what happened in the climactic 1913 U.S. Open tournament, I will still a nervous wreck reading about it. That's the mark of good writer, to still make it fascinating and tense even when the reader knows the final result!
Years after reading this, the exploits of three people mentioned above, and a few others, are still vividly in my mind. The human interest angles are what make this a great, great sports book. It's the same winning formula that me love Laura Hillenbrand's "Seabiscuit" and Jack Cavanaugh's "Tunney."
Like those above, this is a book I would glady read a second time. It's filled with unforgettable moments and truly good people who transcend their sports accomplishments. Meanwhile, Frost has gone to write several other best-selling golf books but this first effort will tough to top.
Amazing November 25, 2008
Short review. This is one of the best books I've ever had the pleasure to read. A complete masterpiece.
The Greatest Game Ever Played: A True Story November 24, 2008
Documents the real birth of the game in the USA, and much more. A 'must read' for every passionate golf fan.
 Good 1st Effort -- Style Later Perfected in "The Match" July 25, 2008
This I believe was Frost's 1st golf history book and previously all his other work had been fiction. Which explains the fictional feel of this book. Frost cites conversation and internal thoughts from the characters to an exent that he can't possibly know if that's what happened. In addition to compromising accuracy, it also makes for a book that's about 2x as long as it needs to be. I found myself often scanning large sections rather than reading every word.
Even with that flaw he still produced a must-read golf history book, that many non-golfers will also enjoy. He excels at putting things in historical and social context, and building fiction-like edge of your seat tension. He's also a master at researching the lives of the main characters, from their beginnings to their endings in the must-read "Afterward" section.
In this case the main characters are British legendary professional golfers Harry Vardon and Ted Ray, US amateur golfer Francis Quimet and his young caddie Eddie Lowery. Although Mr. Quimet's story is reasonably well known in golf circles, Eddie's isn't. And in some ways Eddie is actually the most interesting character, if not the most important. The story goes that young Eddie escaped the grade school truant officer every day so he could caddie for Quimet. And it was Eddie's inspiration, tenacity and timely advice that pushed the young unaccomplished amateur Quimet to an historic conquest over then golfing titans Vardon and Ray.
In Frost's 3rd golf book "The Match" released last year, Eddie would again enter the picture. Now a middle aged successful businessman, he sets up a historic match between the 2 best amateurs of the day (Ken Venturi and Harvey Ward) and the 2 best Pros (Ben Hogan and Byron Nelson). At stake is a presumed $10,000 personal bet (if not more) but even more importantly a seminal event in the future direction of American golf: would the essence of the game remain in the hands of high-minded amateurs who played for pride and honor, or pros who at the time carried the stigma that playing for money compromised their golfing integrity?
In this 2nd effort, Frost clearly refines his style by eliminating much of the characters' internal and external "filler" dialogue, and the result is a book with better momentum and few if any question marks on accuracy. Not coincidentally, "The Match" is about 1/2 the page count of "Greastest Game."
In any case, both of these books are clearly "can't miss" and go together like Godfather's I & II.
If you liked this book, you MUST read this interview July 24, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
I found this incredible interview regarding how the game of Golf has changed over the years. You wouldn't believe the evolution! If you have any interest in the history of Golf, this is a must read. If you want to become even more knowledgeable on the subject, scroll to the bottom of the interview and get in touch with the author. After reading, I guarantee you will be able to lead the most interesting discussions and impress your friends!
http://www.golfclubatlas.com/interviewroden.html
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