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A biography of the humble Texas golfer who taught greats of the game and whose little instructional guide became the best-selling golf book of all time. When Harvey Penick (1904-1995) died at age 90 ... Read full review
About the author (2016)
KEVIN ROBBINS is a senior lecturer at the University of Texas at Austin School of Journalism. He spent 22 years as a writer for daily newspapers, including the Austin American-Statesman, (Memphis) Commercial Appeal and St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Who wrote the book on golf?
Penick fans will no doubt delight in the publication of Kevin Robbins' Harvey Penick: The Life and Wisdom of the Man Who Wrote the Book on Golf. Robbins' extremely well-researched book is divided roughly into two parts. The first deals with Penick's life from his birth through his retirement from the Austin Country Club and stepping down as UT coach. The second concerns his work with his two most successful students, Ben Crenshaw and Tom Kite, and the fame that followed the publication of Harvey Penick' s Little Red Book.
What language did Penick speak?
Penick spoke to them in the simple language of koans. The pilgrims departed enlightened and, more often than not, healed of their yips — or whatever golf malady afflicted them. Born in 1904, Penick began caddying in his hometown of Austin when he was still struggling to learn cursive handwriting.
Was Harvey Penick a hermit?
Harvey Penick was a kind of holy hermit in the golf world.
Does Harvey Penick pick up in the second half?
Harvey Penick picks up considerably in the second half, but even here there are problems. For example, rather than work background material about Shrake into the narrative, Robbins takes us on a long aside concerning the writer's biography, interrupting the story's flow.