Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, October 8, 1995 TAG: 9510100011
SECTION: BOOKS PAGE: F-5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: REVIEWED BY PEGGY DAVIS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
FOR ALL WHO LOVE THE GAME: Lessons and Teachings for Women. By Harvey Pinick with Bud Shrake. Simon & Schuster $20.
USA TODAY 1995 GOLF ALMANAC: Everything the Golf Enthusiast Needs. Hyperion. $12.95 (trade paper).
BEYOND THE FAIRWAY: Zen Lessons, Insights, and Inner Attitudes of Golf. By Jeff Wallach. Bantam Books $11.95 (trade paper).
GOLF IS NOT A GAME OF PERFECT. By Dr. Bob Rotella with Bob Cullen. Simon & Schuster. $20.
As the golf season in the Roanoke Valley moves into the fall/winter season, it's time to catch a pretty day when you can play, and, when you can't, to take opportunities to read and think about the game. There are a number of selections for golfers and those who admire the game from a comfortable armchair.
The varied essays in "Following Through" offer stories of major tournaments from both sides of the big pond over several decades. Here you have 400-plus pages of New Yorker-quality writing about Golf Digest subjects.
Harvey Pinick is the legendary golf teacher who died earlier this year. His books are few, recent and sacred to the serious and nonserious golfer. Reading his words in "For All Who Love the Game" is a comfort. For example: "there are countless ways to swing a golf club, as many ways as there are physiques, talents and ages of pupils." From his student Mary Ann Morrison: "I practiced every day, if nothing else, I putted on the carpet for at least 30 minutes."
And there are his famous suggestions: "Clip the tee," "Listen to the swish," "Take dead aim."
These are simple but direct thoughts for any golfer and pure relief from the standard lists of don'ts that muck up your mind.
If you want to know the stats about pro golfers - Michelle McGann is indeed 5 feet 11 inches tall (no, her weight is not given), the Oak Cliff Country Club in Dallas is 6,579 yards - or if you want to read an essay by Steve Hershey on Nick Price, then the "USA Today 1995 Golf Almanac" is the book for you. Filled with interesting data, the Almanac is sure to settle many an argument, and it's got that famous USA Today format.
Those who understand or practice Zen and have learned about behavior from M. Scott Peck are certain to enjoy "Beyond the Fairway," an unusual book about golf. My favorite section is about the Nome Ice Classic (played in February because by June it's melted into the ocean). "Every winter nature re-created a six-hole, par-three layout by freezing a section of the Bering Sea. Players at Nome tee up on empty shotgun shells (to simulate a shotgun start), and discuss course conditions with deep seriousness - deep snow and glass ice."
Again, this is not the usual book about golf.
Dr. Bob Rotella, author of "Golf Is Not a Game of Perfect," is director of sports psychology at the University of Virginia and lives in Charlottesville. However, he moves in the big circles of professional golf. (Tom Kite wrote the foreword for this book.) Every page or two has a few lines that are in italics. Scan the rest if you want, but read and read and reread these crucial words if you care about golf and having fun on the course. There are several that are worth copying for your make-up mirror (or shaving mirror, as the case may be).
"Golfing potential depends on a player's attitude ... on how well he thinks."
"People by and large become what they think about themselves."
"Look at the target, look at the ball and swing."
"Attitude is what makes a great putter."
"It's more important to be decisive about a read than correct."
"No matter what happens with any shot you hit, accept it. Acceptance is the last step in a sound routine."
This is the ideal book to read a few pages from before a round of golf. After all, golf is not a game of perfect.
Peggy Davis golfs and reviews books regularly for this page.
by CNB