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Review by Budd Bailey
Sick of the Albert Belles, Michael Irvins and the other brats of the sports world? Jack Nicklaus has come to your rescue.
Nicklaus -- who is generally acknowledged as the greatest golfer of all time -- has written his autobiography, and again shows why he's an excellent role model. He's won 20 major championships during his fabulous career, seven more than anyone else in history. And he's done it with exceptional grace and sportsmanship. His book has the same qualities.
Nicklaus moved into the national spotlight in the late 1950s in his amateur career, and he has stayed there virtually ever since. He had the "misfortune" of knocking Arnold Palmer off his "throne" as the world's top golfer, which didn't make him particularly popular at the time. Palmer is considered the person who brought golf to the masses. However, Nicklaus wore down the opposition with his play, and by the 1970s he was considered one of the all-time greats. Then at the age of 46, he captured the Masters in 1986 -- supplying the sport and his fans with one last hurrah.
Nicklaus piled up victories and honors over that time span, and along the way he reinvented the way we consider greatness in the sport. In the 1950s, most of the golf followers paid attention to such matters as tournaments won and money earned. When Nicklaus turned professional, he targeted golf's four major championships -- the Masters, U.S. Open, British Open and PGA -- as his goals. We've all followed right along.
This book started out as a simple retelling of his successes in that quest. Nicklaus offers an almost shot-by-shot description of his major wins. Reading those sections gives a clue as to why he is so successful. Nicklaus gives tiny details of those weeks, often even mentioning how many hours of sleep he had before a final round. Such a memory demonstrates how hard he was concentrating during those periods.
While the recap of his wins of major championships alone would be a good golf book, in the last few years Nicklaus expanded the scope of the effort to become a full-blown autobiography. He writes about his family life, outside interests, golf mechanics, and the competition.
Throughout the book, Nicklaus's sincerity and class shine through. When he writes that he was happy for another player's victory -- even if it cost him a title -- there's little doubt that he means it.
Nicklaus always has made the game of golf seem easier than it was, even though that quality was hidden behind plenty of hard work. The same can be said for his book. Golf fans will zip through it -- and thoroughly enjoy it -- in no time.
Budd Bailey is a journalist in Buffalo, New York. He often reviews sports books.
©1997, ProMotion, inc.
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