Hogan

by Curt Sampson

This updated edition of a NEW YORK TIMES best seller includes a final chapter, which chronicles the last years of his life and examines his enduring legacy. Included are quotes and tributes from many of golf's greats such as Byron nelson and a perceptive assessment of the life and legend of the man who may have been the greatest golfer ever-Ben Hogan.

Genres: Sports, Biography, Nonfiction, Biography Memoir, History

275 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1996

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

[Patrick]

(AUDIOBOOK REVIEW)
I had little to no knowledge about Ben Hogan before giving this book a try. I'm relatively new to golf, with a few games here or there throughout my life. So I read the reviews on this book and went with the advise.

This book opened my eyes to a man who I had no clue about just a few months ago and actually only knew his name, not the person. If there's a better biography of this man out there, I'd say it's met it's match. The narrator Tom Parker (Grover Gardner or what other names he goes by) did an excellent job and once again, made the book even more interesting with his soft tone.

While reading the book I found myself bookmarking certain moments periodically. One being the description of Hogan's practice habits, another was how he and the game of golf meshed so well and why. This related so well to me and explained why I decided to take up the sport when I couldn't find the words to describe my new found hobby. Other golf books out there tend to be just a little too technical and get ahead of themselves. This one does not, and is a very easy read (listen.)

At first, and with most audiobooks I use my credits on, I was hesitant to get this biography. It wasn't long enough (hours wise) to justify spending my credit was one of the reasons. However, by the end of the introduction to the book, I was hooked like Ben Hogan's ball strike path. Highly recommend this book to anyone, with or without golf knowledge. You can thank me later...

[Leon]

What a wonderful insight into one of the golfing Greats, makes you whish you could've joined him in a round - no matter how stoic he might have been.

[Lance]

I decided to get the audio version of this book after reading a couple other books by Curt Sampson and liking his writing about golf. Figuring this would be a good look at Hogan's career and would provide much information that most golf fans today would not know, the book delivered on that end. The narration wasn't bad, wasn't all that good, just okay. Some of the wins by Hogan as well as the description of his near-fatal crash seemed to just blend into the rest of the narration, which is the only issue I had with this book. I will look for the printed or electronic version of this one to get an even better perspective of this golfing legend.

[Joe Bruno]

Excellent

[Scott Hodoval]

As a golfer who only knew of the legend of Ben Hogan but little in the way of details, I found this book to be an interesting read. Hogan battled Nelson and Snead in his prime and won more majors than both of them. He was not, however, the outgoing player that Snead was nor the gentlemanly Nelson, which made them popular with fellow players and fans. Hogan's reputation was that of a loner and a man of very few words who found solace in hitting a few hundred golf balls every day versus engaging with anyone. His comeback from a severe car accident to compete and again dominate and win on the professional tour was truly remarkable. Any golf fan will enjoy this detailed history of one of the greatest golfers of all time.

[Billy Hart]

Even casual golfers have heard the name "Ben Hogan" so I thought it best to know the history of this guy. Author Curt Sampson has complete his homework as the book is well researched.

Little Ben as a high school drop-out was first introduced to golf as a caddie in the 1920's turn earn money in a hard working blue collar family. Of course he got to hit golf balls while hanging out at the country club! As the story goes little Bennie improved, played amateur tournaments and eventually moved into the pros and become one of the all time golfing greats (some say the best ever). Sampson's writing ability keeps the reader interested.
We soon discover Ben is a rather serious guy shunning friends, interviews, after-match dinners etc. Perhaps the only individual he treated with the most kindness was his wife Valerie.

Although a rather abrupt individual, a reader will cheer for Ben during his competitive matches. Interesting relationships with well known fellow golfers as Sam Snead, Arnold Palmer, etc.

Book highlights? 1) Terrific detail of a life-threatening car accident and amazing recover by Hogan. 2) The amount of practice (in detail) this guy would achieve while other golfers partied away. 3) School drop out turned pro golfer and business owner. Great Story, even for non-golfers.

[Biff]

This was a very interesting and readable book about Ben Hogan, arguably the greatest golfer of all time or, at the very least, his generation. Mr. Hogan had a reputation as a distant and cold person which, to an extent, may have been true. The author, however, does show a different, warmer side of this golf icon. He also well-describes the golfer's work ethic which was the foundation of his incredible career.

[Michael]

Hogan was okay. When the author starts off the book with the subject having no friends and not trusting reporters, it makes the reader wonder how 274 pages could have been written about Ben Hogan. Sampson does a good job sharing Hogan’s story through his golfing without bogging the story down. The chapter that focused on Hogan’s near-fatal car accident and then recovery was one of the more interesting parts of the book.

[Anthony Tenaglier]

“Suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope.” Amazing to learn how hard work really does pay off. An endless desire to polish his golf swing, Ben Hogan is an inspiration. Surviving a car accident to then go on to win 5 of 6 tournaments in one year, 3 of them majors, while still suffering from his injuries.

[Jack Frost]

A great look at a very private man!

[John]

Easy read. Not much beyond surface and not enough of others of Hogan's era.

[Jason]

Listened to the audiobook

[David Fryer]

Interesting read on Ben Hogan's life. Overcame many obstacles to become one of the greats in golf. Photos throughout the book bring his story to life.

[Andrew R.]

Good read on Hogan. Sampson is a Texan and a former pro golfer, yet he presents a balanced and well-researched story. I found myself YouTubing Hogan for both his swing and later-in-life interviews.

[Phillip V]

Awesome book, a must for any Hogan fan.

[Johnnyc]

Not bad but would have liked more golf talk.

[Bill Webber]

...as good as it could be I guess...the man kept to himself...not surprising considering everything he went through...

[Andrew Ritchie]

4.25
One of sports greatest stories of triumph over adversity

[Kayla Barton Hadden]

Learned so much. Was such an appropriate book as another Grand Slam winner was added this week. Hogan was fascinating and ahead of his time.

[Tom]

A hero.

[Brent Lloyd]

Ben Hogan is a titan of golf, one of the second generation of great American golfers that defined the era alongside Byron Nelson and Sam Snead, reinvigorating the love of golf in the United States at a time in which loving golf was hard. Perhaps no golfer before, or maybe even after, put so much effort and sheer will into the game, forcefully molding himself into an elite golfer regardless of natural athletic talent or skill. In this eminently readable and not too long biography of the great golfer, Sampson does an excellent job of telling the story of Hogan, his achievements, what drove him, and the people around him.
Hogan was largely a solitary creature, working hard and with an outer shell that could make it hard to understand him. But he was also an admirable figure who proved that hard work and practice could pay off in big ways, and whose story of overcoming injury to achieve one of the greatest feats in golf history is truly inspiring. Any golf lover, or anyone interested in a good sports story, will love reading this book and the tale of the golf legend.

[Paul]

As close as you will ever get to Hogan. Good read.

[Joya Cousin]

This the biography of Ben Hogan, a man who became one of the most admired and mysterious champions to ever play the game of golf. Ben Hogan's success was not driven by mere talent, luck or personality, but by an unromantic, single-minded mental focus and compulsion to practice. While Curt Sampson's succeeds to some extent at unravelling Hogan's mystique, the book serves more as a poignant reminder that extraordinary achievement often comes at an extraordinary cost.

Here are two of my favorite passages from the book:

"After at least a decade of unremitting effort, The Hershey Four Ball was Benny's first win at anything. His will and perseverance had overcome a bad grip, faulty technique, poverty and tragedy. No one had ever paid more dues. Now, he was ready to collect."

"Yet in the bigger picture, Hogan left no doubt as to his place. He became an idea quite apart from golf. His name alone defined concentration, determination, even perfection. The little man had no yardage book, no golf glove, no self congratulation, no logo, no bull____, and no pretense. Everything he accomplished, he dug out of the ground. Ben Hogan was an imperfect, but honorable man, a champion, and a gentleman."

[Jonathan Watts]

Sampson's biography is an excellent introduction to the man behind the legend. It's a biography that reads like fiction, yet it is packed with all the important information relevant to Hogan's incredible and unlikely career.

Personally I found this story inspiring, and it had a profound impact on my work ethic... Hogan's method of becoming who he was by "digging it out of the dirt" really resounded with me, and I felt motivated to work harder as a result of reading this book.

I've read a lot of books about Hogan, and it may be that because Sampson's was the first it stands out for me... it's a great bio and well worth reading if you are interested in Ben Hogan.

[Evan Kirby]

Curt Sampson writes the best golf books, and this one is no exception. It's a bit breezy in that it just glides through the highlights of Hogan's career and life, but it definitely serves it well allowing it to be easily read in a short amount of time. Hogan to me, and countless others, is maybe the most fascinating golfer in history due to his incredible skill and success bred from his tortured past, personality and practicing habits. The books kind of confirms a lot of what you knew of Hogan, but expertly paints in those blank crevasses and manages to create a fair portrait of the man who was both giving and sheltered.

[Neil Crocker]

I guess if you finish a book, you probably liked it, so you need to give it 3 stars...or else it is the only book available during a rainy cabin weekend. This book is only okay. An unauthorized biography of an ultimately not very interesting golfer who eventually got the yips and stopped winning, but didn't really have much else to do with his life. He's one of the big 5 or so from the 1900's and his success came from unrelenting practice.

[Bhall]

Great insight into the life of this Ft Worth native...i learned to play golf on the same course Ben did!

and i wore his hat while in college and copied his swing and grip...they have all served me well...

[Kevin]

One of the best biographies of Ben Hogan available. Wonderful detail into the man's life. A must read for any golfer.

[Neil Sagebiel]

My favorite Hogan biography.

[Major Doug]

Listened to this book: good background about Ben; however, he was kind of an a-hole...