Bud, Sweat, And Tees: Hootie, Martha, and the Masters of the Universe

by Alan Shipnuck

The PGA Tour is the most interesting subculture in sports, though you wouldn't know it from most golf books. The Tour is home to rowdy, randy young men often drunk with money and fame; fueled by alcohol and adrenaline, they barnstorm from town to town like rock stars, with all the attendant excesses. And in each player's shadow is his faithful caddie -- performing a thankless six-figure job that comes with all the security of a handshake deal. The PGA Tour offers fabulous rewards, but its good life does not come without a price. In Bud, Sweat, and Tees, Alan Shipnuck takes a no-holds-barred look at modern professional golf. Rich Beem, the hero of our story, joined the Tour as the most clueless of rookies, a logo-free rube only a couple of years removed from the straight world, where he made seven dollars an hour hawking cell phones. Beem took his winnings from big-money matches all across the state of Texas and scraped together enough to go out on Tour, but as he would quickly find out, getting to the big leagues is only half the battle. The fun-loving Beem, more likely to pound beers than range balls, first struggled to fit in among the country-club brats who populate the pro golf scene, and then had to fight to survive the cutthroat competition and crushing self-doubt. Staying true to his girl back home would prove equally challenging.

Meanwhile, Steve Duplantis, the one-time golden boy of the Tour's caddie ranks, was enduring his own tribulations. At the tender age of twenty-one Duplantis began packing for Jim Furyk, and together they reached the pinnacle of the golf world, from Ryder Cup dustups to near misses at the Masters. But like Beem, Duplantis has a taste for the wild life, which helps explain how he wound up as a single dad, trying to balance the demands of fatherhood with the siren song of the road -- a juggling act that eventually cost him his lucrative job on Furyk's bag. Fate brought Duplantis and Beem together, and in their first tournament, the Kemper Open, they pulled off one of the most improbable triumphs in golf history.

What happens next, at this unlikely intersection of lives and careers? How does a lifelong underdog like Beem handle overnight fame and fortune? Would Duplantis make good on this second chance and turn his career, and maybe his life, around? And would Beem and Duplantis's partnership survive the course of a turbulent season chock full of enough misadventures to land them in a Scottish jail?

"Bud, Sweat, and Tees" is a sometimes bawdy, often hilarious, and always unpredictable account of a strange and magical year in the lives, on and off the course, of golfer and caddie. An exciting and often poignant story, it stands as the best insider's sports book since Jim Bouton's Ball Four, and marks Alan Shipnuck as a writer of extraordinary promise.

Genres: Sports, Biography, Nonfiction

288 pages, Hardcover

First published January 9, 2001

Reviews

[Sheena Lambert · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are two reasons you might want to read this book.
1. You are a golf lover. You play the game, watch the tournaments, wear the clothes. If this is you, you will really enjoy this insider's view on the world of the PGA life and lifestyle, and the politics of professional golf and caddying.
2. You are going out with/TRYING to go out with someone described in #1 above. This is me. I read this book to impress my husband (he might have been just boyfriend then, can't remember now, it's been a few years - Tiger was still a Tiger when I read this). Anyway, it worked. And as a happy aside, it was a great read, even if you couldn't care less about golf and think tee times involve cream buns. It might not exactly be Penny Vincenzi, but it's got its fair share of drama and soap opera.

So forget the "Men are from Mars...." how-to books. If you want to woo a golfer, read a book like Bud, Sweat and Tees.

[Dakota · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love Shipnuck’s writing. A lot of cool insight on some lesser-known guys in golf.

[Antonio Santos · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5-3.75. I haven’t read a lot of books about golf, but I found this story compelling enough to give it a try. Alan Shipnuck does a great work in explaining how the grind of the professional tour usually takes a toll on the performance of the players, but I think that the colourful player-caddie relationship between Rich Beem and Steve Duplantis is the essence of this book, and what makes it worth it.

[Randy Wojtasiak · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is only the second book that I’ve re-read. Golf can be a tough subject but this book is very entertaining. I’m looking forward to reading more of Alan Shipnucks books. Pace was steady, never boring and he chose very entertaining subjects to follow.

Great look behind the curtain of what can be the less than glamorous life of PGA professionals.

[a.t.m. · Rating 4 out of 5]

interesting book about the realities of pro golf

Painful book to read and absorb all the lost talent that comes with lost opportunities in the world of pro golf. On the other hand, those who make it big are disciplined, very talented, and learn from their experiences. Helps to have a little luck, I recommend this book.

[Josh Bokor · Rating 4 out of 5]

4/5
"Bud, Sweat, and Tees" does a great job detailing the struggle from being a nobody golfer to a PGA Tournament champ, the tightly knit relationship between golfer and caddie, and the many trials and tribulations professional golfers (and imperfect, flawed humans) face. Even nearly 25 years ago, Shipnuck was a well versed, solid sports writer like he is today.

[Harrison Thompson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beem and I got paid the same amount for this book

A great intro to the pga tour. An incredible story of two colorful characters. Shipnuck’s analogies are sometimes wtf level but he knew his audience.

[Martin McGovern · Rating 2 out of 5]

Pretty average. A bit of fun, plenty of romps, and bad behaviour, but I have to admit I skipped a few chapters to get to the 2001 PGA victory.

[Matthew Limoges · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun read about a crazy side of the golf world. Worth a quick read, good for giving your mind a break between other books.

[Andrew McLellan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read this book at least 3 times. Best golf book I've ever read perhaps the best sports book also.

[Lietke · Rating 2 out of 5]

Claimed to be the best inside sports biography since Ball Four. Crazy stories... Hijinks. Stories were so tame it really wasn't the debauched life retelling promised.

[Elijah Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hilarious

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book while I was in high school and it was a very abrupt awakening into the world of professional golf (and pro sports in general). I have always admired Rich Beem after reading this book, because of the adversity he faced on his path onto the PGA tour, but this book is meant to provide some perspective on all golfers, and all sport. It's an excellent view on the backroom under the skin hidden effects of pro sports life on its athletes and the people around them. The modern reader must keep in mind this is all before twitter and much of the instant media we see today.

[Robert Thacker · Rating 2 out of 5]

The true story of the rookie season of a professional golfer. Interesting, inside looks a few of the greats and not so greats, but incredibly the book dissolves into the story of the caddies. Could have been and should have been really funny, but it didn't happen.

[Allan Woods · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty good book. Entertaining as it talks about the party side of golf

[Jesse · Rating 4 out of 5]

Must have for sports / golf fans. Very enjoyable, quick read.

[Benny]

loved it

[Brandon · Rating 4 out of 5]

An entertaining "Inside Baseball" survey on the lives of a journeyman golfer and caddie.

[Kyle Porter · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read it because Shipnuck is probably the most talented current golf writer. It was lively and certainly broadened my knowledge and understanding of how the PGA Tour works.

[Courtney · Rating 2 out of 5]

Kevin's book, I read it where he kept it... no a great golf story but a peek at the lifestyle.