The Eternal Summer: Palmer, Nicklaus, and Hogan in 1960, Golf's Golden Year

by Curt Sampson, Dan Jenkins (Foreword)

Was there ever a year in golf like 1960?

It was the year that the sport and its vivid personalities exploded on the consciousness of the nation, when the past, present, and future of the sport collided. Here was Arnold Palmer, the workingman’s hero, “sweating, chain-smoking, shirt-tail flying”; Ben Hogan, the greatest player of the fifties, a perfectionist battling twin demons of age and nerves; and, making his big-time debut, a crew-cut college kid who seemed to have the makings of a twenty-year-old Jack Nicklaus.

And of course, the Ken Venturi, Chi Chi Rodriguez, Doug Sanders, Gary Player, and the many other colorful characters who chased around a little white ball—and a dream.

Would Palmer win the mythical Grand Slam of golf? Could Hogan win one more major tournament? Was Nicklaus the real thing? Even more than an intimate portrait of these men and their exciting times, The Eternal Summer is also an entertaining, perceptive, and hypnotically readable exploration of professional golf in America.

Genres: Sports, Nonfiction, History

233 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1992

About the author

Curt Sampson, golf professional turned golf writer, came to golf the old-fashioned way—as a caddie. He looped for his father for a few years on summer Saturday’s, then turned pro, in a manner of speaking, at age 12, as one of the scores of disheveled boys and men in the caddie pen at Lake Forest Country Club in Hudson, Ohio. His golf game developed from sneaking on LFCC at twilight, an occasionally nerve-wracking exercise because the greens keeper intimated a readiness to call the cops on trespassers. Sampson—never caught—progressed as a player and as an employee, scoring a job as starter/cart maintenance boy at age 16 at Boston Hills CC, a public course, also in Hudson. His high water mark as a young golfer was a win in the Mid- American Junior in 1970. Sampson attended Kent State University on a golf scholarship and managed a municipal course for two years following graduation, worked a couple more as an assistant pro at clubs in South Carolina and Tennessee, then bummed around as a touring pro in Canada, New Zealand, and Florida.

In November 1988, Sampson began to write full-time, mostly about the game of his father, golf. Texas Golf Legends, his first book, was collaboration with Santa Fe-based artist Paul Milosevich. Researching TGL gained Sampson introductions with people he has written about many times since: Hogan, Nelson, Crenshaw, Trevino, and a few dozen others. His next book–The Eternal Summer, a recreation of golf’s summer of 1960, when Hogan, Palmer, and Nicklaus battled–is still selling 15 years after its debut, a rarity in the publishing world. Sampson’s biography of the enigmatic William Ben Hogan struck a chord. Both Hogan and his next book, The Masters, appeared on the New York Times bestseller lists. Subsequent books and scores of magazine articles cemented Sampson’s reputation as readable and sometimes controversial writer with an eye for humor and the telling detail.

Reviews

[Randy Corn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got this book from the library of Garnett Reid, who was the best golfer that I ever played a round with. He also had an encyclopedic knowledge of golf. It chronicles 1960 which the author calls "golf's golden year." That was the year that Arnold Palmer seemed to be the best player in the world, Ben Hogan was fading from view, and Jack Nicklaus was just beginning his career. It is a wonderfully written book and quite a thrill for a duffer like myself. Even if you don't play golf or follow the pro tour, this is a very entertaining book.

[John Yingling · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

A very entertaining look back at a great year for golf and an intimate discussion of some truly unforgettable players and tournaments. These men are my favorite golfers ever. No offense to the current group of professional and amateur players, but they pale in comparison to the lives and exploits of this memorable class of men who, for the most part, didn't make much money on the pro tour, and played more for the sheer love of the game. I thoroughly enjoyed this engaging book.

[Alex German · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this. Although at times I wish Sampson would fill in some more details, still found it a fun read. I’m a golf sicko so I recognize most of the names, but these events pre-date me by almost 40 years, so I certainly learned a lot of new information. Would’ve read 200 more pages of this.

[Matthew Stetz · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a good book.

[Deb · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a golfer, know nothing about golf. Didn’t understand the golf terms but learning about the lives of the players was interesting.

[Johnnyc]

Not much of a golfer but I love to read about it and this was a good one. Very enjoyable especially the various bios of the main characters.

[Al · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent history of the emergence of golf which focuses on the year of 1960 and three of golf's greatest players....Ben Hogan, Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus.

[Gerald Matzke]

This book was written in 1992 so it was not written as a post-mortem tribute to Arnold Palmer. That being said it was a summary of 1960 when Palmer was reaching the height of his career as a champion golfer and Jack Nicklaus was emerging from the amateur ranks to eventually become the greatest golfer of his era. It was truly a pivotal time for professional golf and many other sports as television brought sporting events into our homes. Sports figures became well-known personalities and the wise ones made the most of their new found fame. Sampson does a good job of bringing out the many aspects of the business of sports as he chronicles the events of 1960.

[Randy · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good, quick read, but after reading so many books about golf, I found this one a little disappointing; I guess because it's too short. The tournaments go by so quickly that there isn't the amount of golfing drama I've become used to. Also, Nicklaus and Hogan never really come alive in this book. Part of the reason for that, I'm suppose, is because both men are enigmas.

Palmer, however, comes off the page. He's certainly the kind of lovable, somewhat neurotic, guy we can all root for. He is one of us.

Finally, from an historical perspective, the book is a good capsule of the summer when, because of TV and Palmer's charisma, professional golf changed forever.

[Evan Kirby · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantastic read threading the careers and upbringings of possibly/probably the three greatest to ever play the game. Fun to read about the differences in the players, while they all achieved similar levels of success.

[Gary · Rating 4 out of 5]

This recaps the 1960 season on the PGA tour, plus the beginnings golf on TV, with Ben Hogan in the twilight of his career, Arnold Palmer in his prime, and young Jack Nicklaus as an amateur. All 3 could have won the US Open, representing a changing of the guard. Lots of golf history too.

[Drew Widney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good not great. A bit disappointing. Reads like a sophomore journalism major going into nit picking detail on things useless to the main story. Unless you are a true golf history buff, I recommend "the secret of golf" instead.

[Terry · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short overview of the 1960 professional golf season with background information on many of the "name players". Pretty sketchy but it did get me interested in reading a Palmer biography.

[Dale · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was about: Hogan declining, Palmer at his peak, and Nicklaus rising. Absolutely fascinating.

[Adam Schupak · Rating 5 out of 5]

Some wonderful anecdotes that show Sampson's reporting zeal and attention to detail. It left me wanting to know more about one of the great years in professional golf.

[Benny]

loved it

[Richard Pearson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quick read. Read this a year or two ago. I enjoy golf history and this was a good one linking three of the greats.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hogan, Palmer and Nicklaus at various stages of their Hall of Fame careers. Interesting history and a fair book but not one of the non-fiction sports classics.