Customer Rating: 
Summary: Essential Golf Book for any Serious Golfer
Comment: A must have. Great tips on how to improve your golf game. Unlike the ad naseum wave of golf instruction that one can get bogged down in in Golf Magazines and instructional videos, this is simple straight forward approaches to improve your game.
Customer Rating: 
Summary: Somewhat disappointing read
Comment: If I could compare this book to a golf swing, I would say the set-up and approach looked good, but the writing fell apart through the impact zone and follow through.
There is a lot of praise out there for Harvey Penick, and based upon the numerous comments in the book's forward by the well-known golfers he mentored, I have no doubts that the praise is well warranted. Unfortunately, while Penick himself in the book's introduction sets up his "Little Red Book" as a lifetime's masterful compilation of golf wisdom and best kept secrets finally made public, the book fails to live up to the author's own advertising and is a bit disappointing.
A fair amount of down-to-earth tips, techniques, and golfing philosophy that Harvey had applied to his students are shared in the book. And if just one of those tips can improve one's golf game, then I would say the book is worth the price. But too often, the "Little Red Book" comes off as an exercise in name-dropping and rambling golf anecdotes, many of which are not all that interesting nor amusing. It pains me to say that, knowing what a revered figure Harvey Penick has been to some in the golfing community, but that is just my honest assessment.
What also disappointed me about this book was that although Harvey Penick gives a couple of concessions to the virtue of humility, there appears to be a somewhat bragadocious quality to the narrative. That would be more excusable if the "Little Red Book" was in fact packed from cover to cover with the invaluable tips Penick promises in this introductory chapter, but that is not the case. Here is a short example of what I am talking about:
In the chapter titled "First Things First," Harvey writes about a man who came to his country club seeking out "this famous teacher, this Penick fellow." The man says if Harvey is "such a great teacher" perhaps he can give some advice on how to get out of sand traps. Harvey 's response - which abruptly ends the brief chapter - is something to the effect that it is better not to get into sand traps to begin with...a response that is not only rather obvious but neither practically helpful nor particularly clever.
That exemplifies too much of the tone of this book, which is unfortunate, because there are some good down-to-earth visualization techniques and other bits of instruction, which, if solely focused upon, would have made this a far better and more useful read.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Not a "Must Read" but a Very Good Read
Comment: An interesting mix of story, sayings, memoir and instruction..only the most ardent golfer or golf instructor could get much out of the instruction, but the story, sayings and memoirs are good, many outstandng.
The concept of the Little Red Boook is interesing and alluring to the reader. An interesting mix of information. Well worth the read, but it leaves the reader--at least this reader--wishing it was two books, one of instruction, one on the other interesting and insightful informaton in the book.
Customer Rating:
Summary: A Good Walk Spoiled (Golf Defined)
Comment: This book contains many entertaining anecdotes gathered over the course of may decades. Harvey Penick chose to become a teaching golf professional rather than barnstorm the country during those early years of golf tournaments when many professionals were simply glorified hustlers. Eventually Penick became widely respected and many notable players and duffers stopped over to visit him at the practice tee. Over time, the wooden shafted golf clubs gave way to titanium steel.
I certainly enjoyed the historical perspective that the book provided. Although some golf instruction is included in the book, it is more of a nostalgic look backwards to days spent in the Texas sun mowing the lawns and watering the greens. Reading a book like this is not a bad way to spend an afternoon. Harvey Penick had a good life.
If you are searching for a serious golf instruction manual, however, you may want to choose another book.
Customer Rating:
Summary: The People He Knew
Comment: I am the author of Striking It Rich: Golf in the Kingdom with Generals, Patients and Pros
This book has been reviewed a lot and the golf advice is worthy of mention but the best parts of this book were the stories about the people he met along the way:
1. The story or Morris williams, Jr. dieing in a plane crash before going out on tour. "I had to relate the tragic news to his mother and father. His daddy fainted in my arms."
2. The day they played a money game with Titanic Thompson and the mystery player (Herman Kaiser) whom they recocnized only months later when his picture was in the paper (because he won the Masters).
And best of all...
3. The story of John Bredemus.
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