The Greatest Player Who Never Lived : A Golf Story

Amazon.com
With very few exceptions--think Dan Jenkins's Dead Solid Perfect and Steven Pressfield's The Legend of Bagger Vance--golf's most notable fictions are generally consigned to the imaginative mathematics that weekend duffers jot down on their scorecards. Consider The Greatest Player Who Never Lived a truly rare birdie then. It's a thrilling golf novel that not only captures the game, but transcends it.

J. Michael Veron's engaging fantasy begins when young law student Charley Hunter accepts a summer internship at the Atlanta law firm in which the great Bobby Jones was once a partner. Assigned to catalog Jones's dusty files, Hunter comes upon an intriguing correspondence that hints at an extraordinary story. True to his name, Hunter then sets out to learn the truth behind the unlikely exchange of letters between Jones, golf's erudite and nonpareil pillar, and a semiliterate phenom named Beau Stedman, who, on the verge of golfing greatness in the early '30s, disappeared under the cloud of a murder charge. With Jones's secret help and support, Beau manages to survive. A fugitive determined to honor his golfing destiny, he emerges here and there to play the greatest golfers of the era. Hunter isn't satisfied just with uncovering Beau's past, though; his obsession turns into a search for Beau's present, with unexpected complications.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

He had the one of the best careers the game has ever known - yet you won't find his record in any of golf's history books. He defeated almost every one of golf's legendary players in head-to-head matches - yet you can't read about them in any of the old sports pages. Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, his closest friend was the greatest amateur to ever play the game - yet Bobby Jones never spoke his name in public.

J. Michael Veron's tale about one of golf's most talented and mysterious figures - and the man who solves this mystery - is a rare triumph in golf fiction. Like few others before it, The Greatest Player Who Never Lived is much more than a golf book - it's about perseverance over adversity, and friendship over abandonment. Without a doubt, this beautifully written, heart-warming story is certain to be enjoyed by all lovers of exceptional fiction. The Greatest Player Who Never Lived...is a winner.

SYNOPSIS

A riveting novel—told "as if John Grisham played eighteen holes with Bagger Vance and decided to write about their day together"(San Diego Union-Tribune)—that brings to life a spectacular golfer who was mysteriously erased from history.

FROM THE CRITICS

Mike Snider - USA Today

The Greatest Player Who Never Lived is a fictional tale that mixes crime, mystery and courtroom drama against a background of golf history.

Miami Herald

If you have ever played just one round of golf, and appreciate clear, spare writing with a touch of To Kill a Mockingbird, you will love this book.

Los Angeles Times

Skillfully written, Beau Stedman leaps off the pages and becomes one of the game's greatest players.

Seattle Post

It is dual parts John Grisham and John Feinstein, a legal mystery with golf backbone. I kept checking the front disclaimer to make sure the book was a fictional account. This book is a keeper.

Los Angeles Times