"In 1887 a linen salesman from New York City visited the Old Course at St. Andrews, Scotland, considered to be the oldest golf course in the world. While there, he visited the shop of golf legend Old Tom Morris. Soon after his return home, this purchase triggered a golf explosion that would soon see America not only take up the game but also take it over. America Tees Off tracks golf's impact on the country and the game since this historic purchase, with dozens of wide-ranging stories from when the game first took hold in the United States to the present day.
These stories cover both the great amateur and professional players, as well as the golf adventures of average players and the not-so-average, like U.S. presidents, athletes in other sports, Hollywood stars, and the mega-wealthy. You'll hear about what was thought to be a highly questionable land purchase in the Sandhills of North Carolina in 1895 that led to the golf mecca of Pinehurst, how Babe Didrikson Zaharias’s husband used his cigar to give her assistance during tournament play, and how the scientist who worked on the atomic bomb at Los Alamos helped President Eisenhower improve his game.
These lesser-known, behind-the-scenes true stories will entertain and inform the most serious golf enthusiasts as well as those just getting into the sport's colorful history."
"Revered as the most prestigious tournament in golf, the Masters commands international attention, even among nongolfers. The first and second editions of The Masters: A Hole-by-Hole History of America's Golf Classic took the unique approach of tackling Augusta National hole by hole. Each hole had its own chapter, with colorful stories on the greatest shots, biggest disasters, and most amazing events that took place on each.
David Sowell returns to Augusta now with the third edition of The Masters, adding more history and updating each hole with additional stories of greatness and tales of woe for a new generation of golfers led by Jordan Spieth, Rory McIlroy, and Patrick Reed, as well as from an older guard represented by Bubba Watson, Adam Scott, and Sergio García.
The legends of the Masters are in full force in this lively look at America's golf classic. From Bobby Jones and Gene Sarazen to Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus to Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson to Bubba Watson and Jordan Spieth, all the greatest Masters moments of the greatest—and not so great—golfers are here in one book. This third edition provides a rich historical view of the course where success breeds legends and where failure can haunt even the most brilliant golfer's career."
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