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Review by Peter Ward
Over 25 years ago, Michael Murphy recounted a mystical two-day journey he took in 1956 along a golf course in Scotland with Shivas Irons, an enigmatic Scotsman, in his best-selling book "Golf in the Kingdom." On the fairways and putting greens of Burningbush, Irons introduced Murphy to transcendental beliefs that not only dramatically improved the author's golf game but also changed his ideas about life and the afterworld.
Here, over 30 years after that encounter, Murphy returns to Scotland to find Irons after hearing of some incorporeal visitations by his former guru. He learns that others have also been trying to find Irons. Among those is Buck Harrigan, a physicist researching hyperspace who, although skeptical, is fascinated by Irons and his connection to supernatural events. Harrigan is a character with whom the author argues metaphysics and discusses ideas.
Along the way Harrigan and Murphy discover a mysterious golf course built by Seamus McDuff, the long-dead teacher of Shivas Irons. On the course Murphy is able to hit remarkable shots, the kind of golf shots he hadn't been able to make since his rounds with Irons at Burningbush.
Students of the inner game of golf will find much of interest here, and Murphy's ability to move readers to transform their lives is as strong as it is in "Golf in the Kingdom." In spots, "The Kingdom of Shivas Irons" may seem like a cross between "Brigadoon" and "Caddyshack," but Murphy clearly expresses the book's basic theme -- that a spiritual era is dawning.
Peter Ward is a reviewer in West Islip, New York.
©1997, ProMotion, inc.