First published 2013
Tom Watson first encounters Jack Nicklaus at an exhibition match in 1967. Watson is seventeen, still in high school. Nicklaus is twenty-seven and already dominates professional golf. Both learned the game at Midwestern country clubs through their fathers, but their styles clash completely. Nicklaus controls every shot with mathematical precision. Watson sprays balls across fairways and rough. Golf fans hate Nicklaus for dethroning beloved Arnold Palmer. Watson counts himself among Palmer's devoted followers. Yet these two competitors find their careers intertwined over the next twenty years. They face off repeatedly in tournaments that define modern golf. Each pushes the other toward greater achievements. Their rivalry reaches its peak during the famous "Duel in the Sun" at Turnberry in 1977. Decades later, Watson nearly captures another victory at the same course as he nears sixty. Through extensive interviews with both golfers, Joe Posnanski reveals how fierce competition gradually transforms into deep friendship.
Genres: biography, 20th-century, sports, american-history
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family
Setting: Midwestern Country Clubs, Turnberry
Period: 1967, 1977
256 pages · Paperback · Simon & Schuster