Every golfer knows that golf, just like life can be difficult. As we make our way around the course we have as many ups as we do downs. Part and parcel of the game is facing difficult challenges and overcoming those bad breaks and poor bounces we encounter.
In a new and enthralling book by Lyle Slovick we get to see that many champions of the game had to overcome major obstacles in their lives and live with difficult challenges while at the same time crafting memorable legacies.
In Trials and Triumphs of Golf’s Greatest Champions, Slovick profiles seven different people who had amazing and historic 
careers in golf. And while many of us recognize the names and may think we know the story behind these varied personalities Slovick digs deep into each character to shine a light on many of the difficulties and challenges these popular figures faced.
The British Champion Harry Vardon, Grand Slam winner Bobby Jones, legendary champion Ben Hogan, LPGA legend and Olympic Champion Babe Didrikson Zaharias, barrier breaking Charlie Sifford, major champion Ken Venturi and bag toting hero Bruce Edwards are the subjects of Slovick’s easily readable book.
Now, I am no golf scholar but I have more than my share of books on golf and have read books on Vardon, Jones, Hogan, Venturi and Edwards and certainly know (or thought I knew) the story on Zaharias and Sifford. But Slovick’s detail and depth into each character was impressive and offered something new on each and every golfer.
The level of detail was stunning. That may have to do with Slovick’s background in research as he worked for George Washington University in the library and research department.
Slovick certainly did his research here and it shows, not only in the forty plus pages of reference notes and bibliographies but in the depth of the stories he tells about his subjects.
The legend of Bobby Jones is well documented. We all know he was the greatest golfer of his time and rarely does a story on Jones not include his educational prowess. Yes, he graduated from Georgia Tech and earned a degree in literature from Harvard and finally a law degree from Emory University. I was always under the impression that Jones had to be a genius to accomplish that but Slovick offers another story.
Jones was referred to as a “hard working man on campus” but he had other interests.“While in school, however, classwork was not his highest priority. At Georgia Tech, he enjoyed his friends and socializing and was a member of several societies, including the ANAK Society, which honors upper classmen who demonstrate both exemplary leadership and a true love for the school. Gentleman C’s were prevalent on Jones’s transcript at Georgia Tech. Except for college algebra (95) and plane analytic geometry (96) in four years Jones didn’t excel in any subject, with his average for all courses being 74.5.”
And he wasn’t so different during his years at Harvard. “Jones was a ‘pass man’ at Harvard, the term for a C student, and did enough to get by, just as he did at Georgia Tech.”
He was a genius on the course but maybe due to his focus on golf he failed to show it in the classroom.
Slovick delves deep into the life of Zahaias who may have been the best all around athlete in the history of the United States. She was an Olympic champion, a professional and amateur golf champion and could do just about anything she wanted…athletically. She excelled at all sports from a young age but made her name winning gold medals in the Olympics and then headlining a fledgling LPGA Tour that saw her (among others) bring women’s golf into the mainstream.
Slovick shows that while her athletic achievements were unequaled her personal life was troublesome. She wasn’t well liked by her fellow athletes, “she was out for Babe honey, just Babe.” While on the LPGA there were many golfers who thought Babe wasn’t the easiest to get along with.
She was the butt of many jokes for her “manliness” and according to her fellow pros concerned with making money, and plenty of it. Slovick shows us a side of Zaharias’s story rarely heard in a well documented profile of a talented but troubled legend.
Other inspiring stories on Charlie Sifford’s breaking the color barrier in pro golf and Bruce Edwards relationship with Tom Watson along with pieces on Vardon, Hogan and Venturi make Slovick’s book a pleasure to read.
“Trials and Triumphs of Golf’s Greatest Champions” is a delightful read and there is so much information and research packed into it Slovick could have easily written a separate volume on each of his seven subjects.
As I read it I was once again reminded of why we love this game. It’s not just the game itself, but the characters in it.
Click here for a look at Trials and Triumphs of Golf’s Greatest Legends.
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Thank you for such a wonderful review of my book! I certainly appreciate it. Lyle Slovick
It was my pleasure Lyle…best of luck!