30 books like Harvey Penick's Little Red Book

The Winning Touch in Golf was the first sport psychology book that addressed golf. It was certainly the first such book that I read and it influenced the rest of my life. Indeed, I became a golf psychologist.

The book was written by a psychologist whom I found credible, not only because he had his Ph.D., but because he was also a member of Augusta National, the home of the fabled Masters Tournament. To me, that meant that he was not only a psychologist, but also a serious golfer.

I found the 53 brief “secrets” about the mental game, each “secret” consisting of only 3 or so pages with some graphics, were indeed brief and very easy to read. I was happy to find no psychological mumbo-jumbo, just interesting topics, astute observations, and practical suggestions for many common psychological situations in golf. Indeed, I modeled my own book on these… show more.

There is an old adage in sports writing: the smaller the ball the better the writing. 

According to that adage, golf, with its small ball, should inspire the very best writing. I am a golfer and I have read a lot of golf books. The adage is certainly true for The Match.

The setup is that a wealthy auto dealer attending the Bing Crosby Pro-Am golf tournament in 1956 declares he has two amateur golfers working for him – Ken Venturi and Harvie Ward - who can beat any other two golfers in a match.

Another well-heeled golf fan takes the bet and shows up the next day with a team of two professionals: Ben Hogan and Byron Nelson.

Pretty good setup. The 18-hole match played on the legendary Cypress Point golf course on the Monterey Peninsula is even better.

This book is an absolute classic and should be in the library of every golfer who has ever touched those extraordinary moments we call the zone or flow. Murphy’s encounter with the enigmatic teacher Shivas Irons, has him questioning reality as he understands it with his logical mind. As their encounter unfolds, Murphy begins experiencing an opening of his perception to a deeper and more profound awareness of the forces and energies that can align to help create the perfect shot. This book shows how important it is to ‘get out of your own way’ and find your inner swing. 

When it comes to simplicity, I like that old pro Ernest Jones exemplifies one of the simplest and hard-to-argue-with swing keys you can employ: Simply feel and swing the clubhead! Now, of course, that is simple to say, and if it is enough for you, forget the book and just go out and do it. But, if you find it needs a little more explanation, read Jones’ book and see how he explains it.

What I found most intriguing about the book is Jones himself. As I remember it, he was a successful pro, went off to war, lost a leg, and came back and learned to swing the only way he could — on one leg. By balancing on one foot, he learned the importance of “swinging the clubhead,” as opposed to “hitting at the ball.” That is, the only way he could maintain his balance was to “swing… show more.

Bamberger is a terrific golf writer and what made me love this book is the fact that it’s a 30th-anniversary edition! Michael wrote this book in the early 1990s when golf—and the golf world—was in a far different place. Think about it: this was before Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson.

It is Michael’s own story and is one I found myself living through his words: giving up his job and his apartment, going on a European sojourn with his new wife to experience caddying, and meeting some of the world’s best players.

I had read this book before, and it enthralled me reading it once again.

I have a recurring dream about living in St. Andrews. Sean Zak did so for a summer, and it was glorious.

To get to spend time at the Home of Golf is special, something I’ve done on several occasions. But always as part of work and never for an extended period of time. Zak lived there for months and brings to life all the things about the ancient town that are special beyond the golf.

I especially enjoyed the backstories, the people of the town, the explanation of links golf, all of it. He shows a nice curiosity, an American seeking answers in a foreign country that I felt particularly enlightening.

No one watches an NFL game and decides to put on a helmet and get knocked down, but once in a rare while, fans are so moved as spectators that they get off the couch and become participants. This increased activity is important to a largely sedentary nation with an obesity epidemic and there are several historical examples of this “participation effect,” when spectators become players, but none bigger than golf. Before this Cinderella story, golf was an elite niche sport and the vast majority of courses private. “Normal” people simply did not play. But when Francis Quimet, a 20-year-old caddie and son of a handyman reached the US Open final (then match play format), it electrified the public. This changed golf forever, sparking millions to take up the game and thousands of courses, overwhelmingly public, to be built. If not for the dramatic 1913 US Open, golf today might… show more.

This was James Ellroy’s debut novel and has been all but forgotten compared to the masterpieces he later produced. But there is so much in this book that reveals why Ellroy was destined for greatness: strong plotting, vivid characters, electrifying prose. The plot involves a car repo man who takes on a private eye case for an oddball golf caddy. The plot owes a lot to Raymond Chandler, but it still feels original in Ellroy’s hands. Allow yourself to be swept away by it.

This book is very close to my heart as it is written by a fellow Tai Chi practitioner who has used his insights gained from personal experience of this ancient art to help golfers develop a natural and flowing swing. The wisdom in this book also draws upon many other so-called alternative practices such as Pilates, the Alexander Technique, the Feldenkrais Method, Eastern philosophy, and Yoga to help demystify and simplify all the technical jargon that hinders a player’s ability to swing the club smoothly. It is the antidote to ‘checklist golf’ which has become the norm for so many players who have seen their game deteriorate as a result. 

This is a breakthrough book that allows golfers the opportunity to step away from all the mental and technical thinking and into something simpler that can help release a golfer’s inner talents and abilities. The now-famous ‘club-throwing exercise’ is Shoemaker’s answer to Tim Gallwey’s ‘bounce-hit’ exercise in tennis which helps take the emphasis off trying to get technique right and instead allows the body to move in a way that is natural and therefore repeatable, even under pressure. So many of my students have benefited from the drills and exercises and the whole mindset of this book which details the possibilities inherent every time you set up to the ball.