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What are some of your favorite golf books that you have purchased?


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I have been buying golf ' help' books since 1995.

The latest one is Dave Pelz ' Damage Control'.

Some of the stuff is obvious, but I never think about it when faced with a trouble shot.

Sort of a refresher of the basics, and when to gamble.

 Once a read something, then when faced with a situation on the course, the results are better.

What are some of your favorites?

Edited by Jackal

Always chasing different clubs

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One book that I read recently, that really helped me was "Golf is Not a Game of Perfect" by Dr. Bob Rotella. I've recommended it to others, and they said they benefitted from it was well. I'm definitely going to check out Damage Control.

I'm a hockey player playing golf today.
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I was just going through golf books yesterday, getting ready to reread some over the winter--plan out what to concentrate on for 2021.  

 

Topping the list are my favorite golf books of all time:  

 

Percy Boomer, On Learning Golf (1946)

Fred Shoemaker, Extraordinary Golf and Extraordinary Putting

Gary Nicol and Karl Morris, The Lost Art of Playing Golf and The Lost Art of Putting

 

I rounded out my reread list with:

 

Golf Practice, How to Practice Golf and Take Your Range Game to the Course, by Matthew Cooke, Arick Zeigell and Zack Parker with Game Like Training.

And all of the Vision54 books by Pia Nilson and Lynn Marriot (Every Shot Must Have a Purpose, The Game Before the Game, etc.)

Regarding Fitness:

I need to reread Yoga for Golfers, by Katherine Roberts.  Time to review my yoga routine and see about adding in some more advanced poses.    

I'll also review Golf Sense, Practical Tips on How to Play Golf in the Zone, by Roy Palmer.  The title on this is misleading.  The "playing in the zone" stuff is just kind of an add on.  The book spends most of its time discussing the Alexander Technique and showing golfers how to become more aware of their bodies and applying the new knowledge to their golf games.  (I confess, I'd never heard of the Alexander Technique before reading this book.  My daughter, who got her masters in theater production knew all about it.  I wonder if Chisag has ever heard of it or applied it to golf?

 

That should get me through rainy days in January and February.   

 

 

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2 hours ago, gman8966 said:

One book that I read recently, that really helped me was "Golf is Not a Game of Perfect" by Dr. Bob Rotella. I've recommended it to others, and they said they benefitted from it was well. I'm definitely going to check out Damage Control.

I bought Damage Control on Ebay for $6 ??????.

It was brand new, and lists for $40+.

There are some on Amazon, too.👍👍👍

Always chasing different clubs

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Zen Golf was a game changer for me.

"I suppose its better to be a master of 7 than to be vaguely familiar with 14." - Chick Evans

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14 hours ago, BadgerGolfer said:

Zen Golf was a game changer for me.

Read that one as well, really like how he related old proverbs to golf.

I'm a hockey player playing golf today.
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I would tend to categorize golf books as being about golf, or golf help.

If you're looking for golf help:

Zen Golf

Own Your Game - Dave Stockton

Unconscious Putting - Dave Stockton

Unconscious Scoring - Dave Stockton

 

If you're looking for books about golf:

A Good Walk Spoiled - John Feinstein

The First Major - John Feinstein

 

That's the extent of my collection right now.  I'm planning to pick up Golf is not a Game of Perfect for the winter.

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Golf is not a game of perfect

Every shot must have a purpose

Anything by Harvey Penick.

I set my copy of Five Lessons on fire.



Take Dead Aim

Take Dead Aim

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Your Short Game Solution - James Sieckmann

Be a Player - Pia Nilsson Lynn Marriott (I found this better than "Every Shot Must have a Purpose")

Lowest Score Wins

Throwback - Golf My Way - Jack Nicklaus

Better Faster: The Modern Golfer's Blueprint for Getting More from Less

Also agree with the other Bob Rotella and Dave Stockton books listed above. 

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Not a golf book but " The subtle art of not giving a f***k".

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Driver- Cobra Speedzone 9° default_cobra-small.jpg.bf0039c0fa211a003217e70e184035fa.jpg

Woods- Sub70 Pro 5-Wood   08e84065c69a5a06ed8fec52d91a.jpg.08662cdc8041ba1124fe725b926a5e95.jpg  

Utility- Titleist 718 T-MB 4 Utility  default_titelist-small.jpg.d620943db19c6c6f477d78c3e6dcfb1b.jpg

Irons- Sub70 649 MB Tour 5-PW, 699 Pro 2U  08e84065c69a5a06ed8fec52d91a.jpg.08662cdc8041ba1124fe725b926a5e95.jpg

Wedges- Cleveland Zipcore RTX 52°,56°, 60°  default_cleveland-small.jpg.0615c53919b7f92c3524630e353b33bb.jpg

Putter- Scotty Cameron Special Select Newport 2 default_cameron-small.gif.dd99234f0267bb38c40c23053034a445.gif

Ball- Titleist ProV1x default_titelist-small.jpg.d620943db19c6c6f477d78c3e6dcfb1b.jpg  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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As others have mentioned Zen Golf, and anything from Bob Rotella or Harvey Penick are my go to books.

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Your Short Game Solution - James Sieckmann
Be a Player - Pia Nilsson Lynn Marriott (I found this better than "Every Shot Must have a Purpose")
Lowest Score Wins
Throwback - Golf My Way - Jack Nicklaus
Better Faster: The Modern Golfer's Blueprint for Getting More from Less
Also agree with the other Bob Rotella and Dave Stockton books listed above. 
What did you like about Be a Player? I'm really working on the think box - play box approach and a repetitive routine.

Take Dead Aim

Take Dead Aim

Driver: PXG 0211 10.5* 

Fairway: Titleist 917 F3 15*

Hybrid: Adams Idea Pro Boxer Gold 18*

Irons: MacGregor MT-86 Pro

Wedges: Vokey 50/54/58

Putter: SeeMore X2 Costa del Mar

Ball: Srixon Z-Star

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Art of Putting, Art of the Short Game, and Art of the Swing all by Stan Utley.

The Golf Whisperer by Gary Battersby

Golf in the Kingdom by Michael Murphy.

Legend of Bagger Vance by Stephen Pressfield. (So different and better than the movie in my opinion).

Trouble Shooting by Seve Ballesteros. 

 

 

 

 

4-P Hogan Edge (2018 version)

52 degree Hogan Equalier wedge

Arnold Palmer The Original  putter

Founder Club  hybrid 18 degrees

Taylor Made Burner 3 & 5 wood.

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Another one I forgot about was Ben Hogan's Five Lessons. This book is really great when you are first starting or for a refresher on things like grip, posture, stance, etc. Ben Hogan was one smart fellow.

I'm a hockey player playing golf today.
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I like Hogans 5 lessons book and skim / read through it often as it sits on my desk with the rest of the organised mess.  Even if you don't like his 'avoid a hook' swing technique, As mentioned already it's a good reminder of the fundamentals of grip, posture, etc.

I also like Golf My Way by Jack, although I have only watched the video and not read the book.

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20 hours ago, Tsmithjr9 said:

What did you like about Be a Player? I'm really working on the think box - play box approach and a repetitive routine.

Take Dead Aim
 

I found that it had all of the content from "Every Shot Must Have a Purpose" plus more, and there wasn't anything important from the other book that was left out of be a player. I like the practice exercises and "explorations" they structured for 9 hole rounds from Be A Player better than the few practice games in the other book that seemed more driving range specific. 

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I found that it had all of the content from "Every Shot Must Have a Purpose" plus more, and there wasn't anything important from the other book that was left out of be a player. I like the practice exercises and "explorations" they structured for 9 hole rounds from Be A Player better than the few practice games in the other book that seemed more driving range specific. 
Thanks.

Take Dead Aim

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Hybrid: Adams Idea Pro Boxer Gold 18*

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  • 4 months later...

One of my favorite books about golf is My Place at the Table by John Derr.  Mr. Derr covered the second Masters Tournament as a boy reporter for a small newspaper, and covered the next 60+ Masters for print, radio, and television.  The book simply tells stories from his life, including encounters with Mahatma Ghandi, Albert Einstein, Hogan, Palmer, Dwight Eisenhower, lots more.  Sadly, I don't think its in print anymore, but Amazon shows used copies available pretty inexpensively.  This article gives a taste of the kinds of stories he had to tell:

https://www.linksmagazine.com/characters_john_derr/

 

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I'm going to go a different route. Books by Pelz, Stockton, Nicklaus, Hogan etc are are fun. But I don't have their swings, I like the read for the read, but from an instruction standpoint... Hogan's book alone probably made more people worse at golf than if they didn't read it. 

The "Golf" books I love, the stylized books by Mark Frost are way too fun to read. I like reading anything that makes me want to play more and a good golf story does that. 

The other book that is really good, is Dream Golf. It's the story of Bandon Dunes and how it came to be. I think it has been revised with each added course, the revisions are okay, but the main arc and path of Bandon is a great read. 

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This one is pretty old, but I enjoyed it when I read it.  Probably should do so again, as the main message is:  "Take Your Medicine!"

Smart Golf Book.jpg

"Where'd it go?"  "Right in the Lumberyard..."

126422322_PXGLogo_2.png.74a339363ba3931cc4fc226a253621f8.png Gen 2  0811 XF 10.5*  Graphite Design Tour AD DI-6x

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(These two are gonna fight it out in early "24 to see who stays in the bag...)


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...and of course this gem of literature!

Feherty Village Idiot Book.png

"Where'd it go?"  "Right in the Lumberyard..."

126422322_PXGLogo_2.png.74a339363ba3931cc4fc226a253621f8.png Gen 2  0811 XF 10.5*  Graphite Design Tour AD DI-6x

126422322_PXGLogo_2.png.74a339363ba3931cc4fc226a253621f8.png Gen 2 0211 15* 3W Mitsubishi Tensei Raw Blue 65-S
:bridgestone-small:  Tour B JGR 15*   Fairway UST ProForce V2 7F5 76g X-Flex

(These two are gonna fight it out in early "24 to see who stays in the bag...)


:bridgestone-small:  Tour B JGR 19* & 22* Hybrid UST ProForce V2 90g X-Flex
:bridgestone-small:  Tour B JGR HF-2 irons (5i - PW)  KBS Tour 130x

:cleveland-small: CBX Wedges (50, 54, 58)  TT Dynamic Gold 115 Wedge Shaft
MATI  Mamo Putter 33"  Super Stroke Football League 3.0 Slim
MX21TOURYLW_NOCOLOR_FRT.jpg.79e37b9c329b3d3a644cb61d2746a057.jpg

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:918457628_PrecisionPro: Precision Pro Nexus Rangefinder

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  • 2 months later...

The Little Book of Breaking 80 by Shane Jones

It has a lot of really good mental game insight and touches on controlling expectations and focusing practice.

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  • 3 months later...

I personally like "Understanding the Golf Swing" by Manuel de la Torre. It is another book on the swing but it focuses on the club based approach which doesn't seem to be taught much. The club based approach to instruction is essentially focusing on where you want the club to go instead of worrying about the position your body is in or where your hips are. The theory is that if you focus on swinging the club down the target line, your body will do what's necessary to accomplish that. There is a simplicity to this method that no other swing thoughts or methods in the game of golf possess. I've had tremendous success with this method and even if it's not the method or swing thought you like, it offers invaluable insight on the swing and can really help your mental game.

The other books I like are Maltby's and Wishon's club building/fitting books. Golf equipment is the most studied and perfected sports equipment in the world. It can be interesting to learn the specifics of it if you're into that. 

Lot's of other good books out there on golf. I have a stack that I have yet to read including Zen Golf, Golf Flow, and a few others. I don't know how good those are but I will read them eventually. 

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  • 4 weeks later...

Taking a dive into some old school knowledge & philosophy ...

20210927_160440.jpg.c21bc0f4f14215f6e582b7ff8a310426.jpg

Starting with the one on the right. It's got a cool little embedded feature - at the bottom of each right-hand page is a small pic.. each of which is one frame from a video of Sam Snead's swing .. so flipping through the pages of the book shows you a little old fashioned "video"!

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5W...Callaway Great Big Bertha (MCA Kai'Li Red 50/R)
7W...Tour Edge Exotics EXS (Tensei CK Blue 50/R)

4H...Callaway Epic Super Hybrid (Recoil ZT9 F3)
5H...Callaway Big Bertha ('19) (Recoil 460 ESX F3)
6i-GW...Sub 70 699 V2 (Recoil 660 F3) 
54°, 60°...Cleveland CBX2, CBX 60 (Rotex graphite)
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nRoll ER5 or MLA Tour XDream (P2 Reflex grip on both)
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  • 3 weeks later...
On 10/20/2020 at 7:47 PM, verojoe said:

Legend of Bagger Vance by Stephen Pressfield.

 

... I think this should be must reading for any golfer. 

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Today’s golf is not really different from when I learned to play in the early 1950’s.  Today’s power hitters invariably hit a fade. They set up pretty much the way Ben Hogan did. 
 I heartily recommend his 5 lessons as the Bible .

Everything in that book was right. Grip, posture, etc. my second book would be Tom Watsons , getting up and down.

 Sam Snead had a pamphlet about his swing that was enlightening also

everything else is a spin off.

I was a single digit for many years and now time has caught up with me.

 But the point is  those books covered me for my golf career.

 If you get caught up in stuff, Rotellas book would be helpful

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