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Start giftingThe First Major
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Learn moreFrom the #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Good Walk Spoiled, a dramatic chronicle of the bitterly-fought 2016 Ryder Cup pitting a U.S. team out for revenge against the Europeans determined to keep the Cup out of American hands.
Coming into 2016, the Americans had lost an astounding six out of the last seven Ryder Cup matches, and tensions were running high for the showdown that took place in October, 2016 in Hazeltine, Minnesota, just days after American legend Arnold Palmer had died. What resulted was one of the most raucous and heated three days in the Cup's long history. Award-winning author John Feinstein takes readers behind the scenes, providing an inside view of the dramatic stories as they unfolded: veteran Phil Mickelson's two-year roller-coaster as he upended the American preparation process and helped assemble a superb team; superstar Rory McIlroy becoming the clear-cut emotional leader of the European team, and his reasons for wanting to beat the US team so badly this time around; the raucous matches between McIlroy and American Patrick Reed - resulting in both incredible golf, and several moments that threatened to come to blows; the return of Tiger Woods not as a player but an assistant captain, and his obsession with helping the US win - which was never the case when he was playing. John Feinstein's classic bestseller, A Good Walk Spoiled, set the bar for golf books. Now Feinstein provides his unique take on the Ryder Cup, which has clearly become golf's most intense and emotional event...it's 'first Major.'
John Feinstein is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the classic sports books A Season on the Brink and A Good Walk Spoiled, along with many other bestsellers including The Legends Club and Where Nobody Knows Your Name. He currently writes for The Washington Post and Golf Digest and is a regular contributor to the Golf Channel, Comcast Sports Regional Networks, and he hosts a college basketball show and a golf show on SiriusXM Radio.
John Feinstein is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the classic sports books A Season on the Brink and A Good Walk Spoiled, along with many other bestsellers including The Legends Club and Where Nobody Knows Your Name. He currently writes for The Washington Post and Golf Digest and is a regular contributor to the Golf Channel, Comcast Sports Regional Networks, and he hosts a college basketball show and a golf show on SiriusXM Radio.
Reviews
"Feinstein compellingly re-creates the excitement, sometimes shot by shot,especially in the classic McIlroy-Reed singles match, which has come to be a symbol of golf at its best, both for shotmaking and sportsmanship. A great moment in golf history, vividly captured."
--Booklist (starred review)
"Golf fans love Feinstein's books because he's trusted by the pros and thus can give inside information no other journalist can capture, plus he has a flair for telling a great story.... His journalistic style of short, pithy paragraphs drives the narrative along at breakneck speed. Recommended for any sports enthusiast and a must for golfers of all handicaps."
--Kirkus Reviews
"Feinstein’s talent always has been the depth of his relationships, which enables him to get important figures to divulge intimate details of what transpired. . . The book features one interesting anecdote after another, including inside reaction to controversial statements by Phil Mickelson; how an injured Tiger Woods swallowed his ego to play a supporting role as an assistant captain; and more. In the hands of a lesser writer, a book about a lopsided match would have been hard to pull off. Feinstein, though, knows how to tell a good story, regardless of the outcome."
--Chicago Tribune
"Feinstein spends nearly three quarters of the book setting us up for the 28-point war at Hazeltine, deep-diving into Ryder Cup backstory and behind-the scenes conversations, power plays and personality studies to ratchet up the tension and reveal this as truly the biggest event in golf . . . He keeps up the quick pace even while fleshing out the stories of individual players, and offers insights on just what motivates and challenges the world’s best to find another level on a stage unlike any other . . . By the time Feinstein gets to the blow-by-blow of the matches, we’re feeling that fire, too. And loving it."
--Golf Tips Magazine Expand reviews