Phil's Blue Hat

If you watch the PGA Tour on a regular basis, you may have noticed that Phil Mickelson is occasionally wearing a blue hat with the name of his sponsor, KPMG, across the front. Now you too can wear the same hat as Phil and help a very worthy cause at the same time. The hats are being sold for $29.95, plus shipping and handling, with the proceeds going to benefit KPMG's Family for Literacy. With each hat sold KFFL will donate three books to children in need. I already ordered mine. The hat (pictured above) is tour quality and looks great. So help children with their literacy by buying out of Phil's Blue Hats. You can learn more about Phil's Blue Hat and even order them online here.

Book Review: The Scorecard Always Lies

I recently finished reading The Scorecard Always Lies, A Year Behind the Scenes on the PGA Tour. Written by Chris Lewis, who covers golf for Sports Illustrated, the book follows the players and events that shaped the 2006 PGA Tour season. From Phil Mickelson's triumph at The Masters to his collapse at the U.S. Open, the death of Tiger Wood's father Earl, Tiger's victories at the British Open and PGA Championship, John Daly's ongoing troubles both on and off the course, the emergence of long-hitting J.B. Holmes, and the European's crushing defeat of the U.S. at the Ryder Cup in Ireland, the year is vividly captured the compelling behind-the-scenes access of someone who regularly covers the tournaments and the people who play play them. The book is good read, entertaining read, although you will occasionally notice a few factual errors. Still, I would recommend this book to anyone who is a golf fan.

One Magical Read: Mickelson's First Major

I recently finished One Magical Sunday (But Winning Isn't Everything), Phil Mickelson's account of his first Major Championship, The 2004 Masters. The book was very interesting in that each chapter was a different hole in Sunday's final round. Phil starts each chapter by describing the hole, his strategy and a shot-by-shot recounting of how he actually played it. It then leads into a narrative of Phil's life, from his introduction to golf, his childhood, his focus on becoming a PGA Tour Pro, meeting and marrying Amy, the birth of his children, his philosophies on parenthood, and his life on tour. One unique feature is that as Phil tells his stories, recollections from his family, Amy, her family, his daughters, his caddy Jim "Bones" Mackay, his former college coach and current agent Steve Loy, and his coaches Dave Pelz and Rick Smith, are interspersed. A short read (only 200 pages), it is a unique and fun look at one of the most popular players in golf.

Behind the Scenes at Bethpage Black

I just finished reading Open: Inside the Ropes at Bethpage Black, John Feinstein's chronicling of the 2002 U.S. Open at Bethpage Black in New York. The Open at Bethpage Black marked the first time the U.S. Open was held at a truly public course. If you might not be familiar with Bethpage Black, it is one of five courses that comprise Bethpage State Park on Long Island. The Black Course was designed by the famous golf architect A.W. Tillinghast. The course is so famous and desirable to play, even though it is suggested for only low handicapped golfers, that people literally sleep in their cars overnight for the opportunity to gain one of the coveted daily tee times.

In his book, Feinstein takes us from David Fay first developing the idea in 1995 to play the Open at Bethpage, the logistics and difficulties behind making that idea a reality--including the fallout from 9/11, the actual tournament that was won by Tiger Woods, to the USGA's agreement with the State of New York to have The Black again host the Open in 2009. In this book, Feinstein gives us an in-depth look at people who run the United States Golf Association, as well what it takes to stage one of the largest and most prestigious golf championships in the world. It is both fascinating and entertaining, and I highly recommend it for any true golfer's reading list.

By reading Open, I have now completed the John Feinstein "Grand Slam" of golf books, which also includes A Good Walk Spoiled, The Majors, and Tales from Q School. Tonight at Borders I picked up my next read: One Magical Sunday: (But Winning Isn't Everything). Co-authored by Phil Mickelson, it is his firsthand account of his life leading up to his winning his first major, The Masters, in 2004.