The immortal Bobby : Bobby Jones and the golden age of golf / Ron Rapoport.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Rapoport, Ron.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Jones, Bobby, 1902-1971.

Jones, Bobby.

Golfers--United States--Biography.

Golfers.

United States.

Genre:

Biographies.

Physical Description:

vi, 345 pages : illustrations ; 25 cm

Place of Publication:

Hoboken, N.J. : J. Wiley & Sons, [2005]

Summary:

Of all the giants of golf's Golden Age, Bobby Jones was the most revered. His intelligence, modesty, eloquence, and charm-and the fact he remained an amateur throughout his career-so completely captivated the public that at times it seemed almost beside the point that he was also the best golfer in the world. Jones's fame reached its peak in 1930 when he became the only golfer ever to win the Grand Slam and the only person in history to receive a second ticker-tape parade on Broadway. Two months later, he shocked the sports world by announcing his retirement.

Yet beneath the easy grace he exhibited on and off the golf course, there was another Bobby Jones-one who through the years battled his volatile temper; the pressure of competition that grew so unbearable he was often left near tears and unable to take any pleasure in winning; and, in the final decades of his life, an agonizing physical decline that robbed him of everything but his dignity.

Now, drawing upon scores of interviews, a careful reconstruction of contemporary accounts, and Jones's voluminous correspondence, award-winning sportswriter Ron Rapoport reveals the man behind the legend. The Immortal Bobby shows that on the golf course, Jones was capable of some of the most brilliant shots ever struck-and of sensational blunders and unthinking lapses that were never more evident than during his quest for the Grand Slam. It shows the gracious champion who set the standard for sportsmanship and fair play-and the bearer of an implacable grudge against another great golfer who had wronged him.

Rapoport also re-creates an era when golf rose from an unfamiliar game born in Scotland to one of America's most popular pastimes. He depicts Jones's colorful and so-often frustrated opponents, visits each of the Grand Slam courses-they are all still in play today-and shows that while Jones was admired in his own country, he was adored in Great Britain. But for all his international fame, Jones remained a true son of Atlanta, and The Immortal Bobby demonstrates how that fact affected his views on politics and race. The book also offers compelling new evidence that much of what has been widely believed about the spinal condition that made Jones's final years so tragic is incomplete and incorrect.

Capturing the story of this towering figure with a depth and richness never before achieved, The Immortal Bobby is a both a penetrating profile and a moving depiction of a long-gone sporting age.

Contents:

Part I Little Bob and Mr. Jones 9

1 East Lake Days 11

2 The Jewel of the South 17

3 The Keeper of the Flame 24

4 "Emotions Which Could Not Be Endured" 30

5 "By No Means Fit for the Honourable Company" 44

6 The Long Lane Turns 60

7 "My Lords, Ladies and Gentlemen, Are We Downhearted?" 73

8 "It Was Perfect and That Is All There Is to Say about It" 89

9 "Like a Hero Back from the War" 98

10 "He Belongs to Us All" 109

11 "You Can Never Know How I Envied You" 118

12 "Don't Kill the Star in the Prologue" 133

Part II The Grand Slam 153

13 Impregnable Quadrilaterals, Then and Now 155

14 "Your Boy Is Just Too Good" 158

15 The British Amateur: "They Ought to Burn Him at the Stake" 162

16 The British Open: Great Men of Hoylake 192

17 The U.S. Open: "The Lord Must Have Had His Arms Around Me" 211

18 Homecoming 235

19 The U.S. Amateur: "Into the Land of My Dreams" 238

20 Quitting the Memorable Scene 260

Part III The Best That Life Can Offer ... and the Worst 263

21 Hollywood, Augusta, and Beyond 265

22 "White as the Ku Klux Klan" 277

23 "I've Been Having Some Numbness in My Limbs" 297

24 "Will Ye No' Come Back Again?" 307.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 331-334) and index.

ISBN:

0471473723

OCLC:

56567873