golf

My husband and I took up golf a couple of years ago for fun, and to introduce our eight year old son to a sport we could all play together. My son is now plays in tournaments each week. The problem is he never listens to any advice I give him! Obviously I am no Earl Woods but now I have Tiger by my side! My son can read the book, look at the photos and see exactly what he should be doing. The book is easy to read and contains precise instructions. The photos are superb and guide the reader through every step of the swing. Tiger's thoughts about the game are inspiring and insightful. I also recommend you read 'Open Your Mind, Open Your Life: A Book of Eastern Wisdom' by Taro Gold, which contains many great quotations and inspiring messages based on the Buddhist teachings that Tiger practices.

This book has a lot of redeeming qualities. First off, the way it is organized is quite good. In Tiger's method, you work from the green out (e.g. backwards) to improve your game. Since a majority of the strokes burned by you average golfer are on or near the green, that's a good way to work it.
Second, there are a lot of nice sidebars where he talks about using this particular shot in a tournament, why he chose a three wood instead of a two iron, suffering through swing meltdowns etc. These flesh out the game a little and help you relate to someone who shoots lights out golf. If Tiger has swing meltdowns during the Masters, then maybe I shouldn't feel so bad about snap hooking my drive into the woods!
Third, the pictures are nice. There is no better way to see pure clubhead speed in action than to watch Tiger's swing in slo-mo.

There is one major negative point, however. I think that this may not be the best book for beginners. The swing tips given seem to assume that the reader already knows the main points of the swing and are just looking for a tune-up. I think that learning from scratch using this book would be quite hard. If you are a complete beginner, I would suggest the Keep it Simple Series golf book. After making it through a book like that, Tiger's book would be a very good addition to your library. In addition, for a better, more detailed breakdown of the full swing, try Ben Hogan's Five Fundamentals book. It's a bit of a tougher read, but if you put the time in to learn the Hogan swing, your score will improve. Then, you can use Tiger's book to provide tips on swinging for power, etc.

In sum, I like the book, but the fact that it is a little more advanced than it purports to be keeps me from giving it 5 stars. If you know a bit about golf, definitely pick it up. You will learn something. If you are a beginner, try something else before picking this one up.

In How I Play Golf, Tiger Woods covers the basics as well as more advanced technique. The illustrations in his book are outstanding. I recommend this book to those who want to improve their golf game or to those who simply want learn how Tiger plays.