The Caddie Who Played with Hickory

by John Coyne

Before there were titanium woods and graphite shafts, golf clubs were made from the wood of hickory trees and had intriguing names like cleek, mashie and jigger. Golf was a game played not with high-tech equipment but with skill, finesse, and creativity. And the greatest hickory player of all time was Walter Hagen---until the day he met a teenage caddie at a country club outside Chicago.
America’s first touring golf professional, Hagen made (and spent) more prize money than his friends Babe Ruth and Jack Dempsey earned from baseball and boxing during the Golden Age of Sports. In this novel, set in the halcyon post-war Midwest of 1946, Hagen comes to historic Midlothian Country Club as the champion he is---but also as a man handicapped by a secret.
Waiting for him are two caddies. Harrison Cornell—a onetime rich playboy from the Bahamas—has a past; the other---Tommy O’Shea, a farm boy who caddies at the country club---may have a future . . . but only if he can somehow beat Hagen on the links, in one last game played with hickory.
Cornell is a mystery man who appears from nowhere and presents himself as a “looper,” a professional caddie. Soon everyone sees that he has a gift---within weeks he has improved the games of dozens of members. Only Tommy O’Shea, his eager pupil, knows Cornell’s real motive for coming to the his grudge against Walter Hagen, over something that happened during the Second World War in the lovely paradise known as the Bahamas.
As the playboy and the farm boy become friends, Harrison teaches Tommy the secrets of playing golf with hickory, along with lessons in life and love. But the shadow of Hagen, and the upcoming match, fall across the Midwest summer, and as the competition nears, Tommy’s hopes for the future---and his love for a member’s daughter---are threatened when the truth about Harrison’s past is revealed. Not until the climax, played out in an exciting shot-for-shot match, will all the questions be answered and all the scores settled.
As in his previous novel, The Caddie Who Knew Ben Hogan , author John Coyne has created a world rich in characters, action, and golf lore---this time including the fascinating history of hickory play. An entertaining, suspenseful read for anyone who loves the game, it is also a book that offers a pure dose of Midwestern soul, written by a new voice in golf literature who has firmly established himself as one of the leaders of the genre.

Praise for The Caddie Who Played with Hickory :

"A highly entertaining must-read for anyone interested in hickory golf or the history of the game. I loved it!"
-- Randy Jensen, 7-time National Hickory Golf Champion

"John Coyne knows his golf history, its characters and the game. He spins a story that includes a mysterious character, a hero, a romance, a semi-villain, and a classic golf match into a believable tale."
-- Dr. Gary Wiren, noted golf teacher, and former Director of Research and Learning for the PGA of America

“The legendary Walter Hagen, Chicago’s greatest amateur golfer, Chick Evans, hickory clubs and Chicago’s Midlothian Country Club are all featured in this tense story of championship golf and summer romance. John Coyne spins a tale so involving, the reader is in enjoyable suspense about the outcome of every putt.”
-- Jerry Dudek, Director of Development, Evans Scholars Foundation/Western Golf Association

Genres: Fiction

336 pages, Hardcover

First published April 29, 2008

About the author

John Coyne (born 1937) is an American writer. He is the author of more than twenty-five nonfiction and fiction books, including a number of horror novels, while his short stories have been collected in "best of" anthologies such as Modern Masters of Horror and The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror. A former Peace Corps Volunteer and a life-long lover of golf, Coyne has edited and written a number of books dealing with both subjects, the most recent two novels areThe Caddie Who Knew Ben Hogan and "The Caddie Who Played With Hickory".

Reviews

[Ryan Mac · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you like golf fiction with characters plopped into real historical situations, you will probably like this book. The narrator, Tommy, is a caddie at Midlothian Golf Club in Chicago. In the summer that the book takes place, aging pro Walter Hagen is coming back to commemorate his first U.S. Open win at that golf course by playing it again. Our caddie friend wants to be Hagen's caddie. A mysterious golfer/caddie, Harrison, shows up at the club in early summer and befriends our narrator. His goal: to teach Tommy to play with hickory clubs so he can beat the great Walter Hagen. There are some subplots around country club politics, Tommy's love life and the unraveling of the mystery behind Harrison. Overall, very good golf book. I especially liked it because it featured Chick Evans and I was the fortunate recipient of the Evans Scholarship at the University of Minnesota. Go caddies!

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very quick read about playing golf with Ben Hogan

[Shanna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this so that I would have more to converse with when I visit my father-in-law. I was not too bad. I hope it works.

[Jeanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

After reading The Caddie who played with Hickory, I have more respect for the game of golf. I loved this story, not just for the golf lessons, but for the well-written characters and look into life post-WWII. Though it was fiction, the facts in the story drew me in. A non-golfer might skip over some of the technical golf scenes, but will be enthralled with the story of a young man dealing with his lot in life and working to build a future for himself.

My Dad was an avid golf, so I recognized the non-fictional golfers’ names of that era: Chick Evans, Ben Hogan, Gene Sarazen, Bobby Jones. I grew up near the featured Midlothian Country club, where my Dad played many times, but I’d been there only once visiting high school friends. I dated a boy who caddied at Midlothian and won the Chick Evans award in the late sixties, but until reading this book, I had no idea what that was all about.

The story captured the snootiness of country club life, (actually the few bad apples that generated that haughtiness). My parents were members of a club near Midlothian and my siblings and I felt the sting of that attitude many times. The story captured it well. The caddie triumphs, not only on the golf course, but in life through hard work, talent, and persistence. A good life lesson.

[Michael Frasca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eighteen year old Tommy O'Shea is at a crossroads in his life. What direction should he take...college, the military, work on his father's farm, or just keep marking time as the best--and oldest--caddie at Midlothian Country Club? Then a mysterious and spooky Englishman shows up at the caddie shack and Tommy finds himself involved in a golf match with Walter Hagen, Chick Evans and destiny. And oh yes, hickory sticks.

Enjoyable read, especially if you are a golfer.

[Kris Hansen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am not a golfer and this was not a book I would typically even consider reading but II thoroughly enjoyed it. A great story and lots of play-by-play golf made it hard to put down. I recommend this book as a change of pace.

[Eric Madeen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a novel that began on an exuberant note then continued riffing melodiously on the inner and outer worlds of the head caddie of a posh country club in a Chicago suburb. Moreover, the voice in first person allows for an immediate emotional entryway into a story that vibed with me and my midwestern roots on multiple levels. When the savvy, smooth and charming Harrison Cornell meets the narrator Tommy O'Shea all kinds of magic happens. Harrison has a past; Tommy doesn't as the innocent and thus highly reliable and likeable narrator. When Harrison coaches Tommy during a match early on he imparts all kinds of wisdom about game and life that held me steadfast, e.g., you can't squeeze women but rather nurture them, and slow your play when your opponent rushes his to throw him off his game. Gems like these stream from wizardly Harrison throughout the book and it is this vibrant bonding between the two that exceeds reader expectation and thus achieves rollicking narrative drive. In the muddle and love riffs and class conflicts and such I found myself switching onto skimmer mode but then the match and how it will work out crop back up and I ... was ... there. Coyle's knowledge of the game and its rich history as in hickory and its star players plus the country club scene with all its sundry characters keeps one glued to how to read a putt ... elogiously, making for a crackling fictional reality. A mashie hit sweet ... Fore!

[Dan Hiner · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book very much! I will read more of this series.

[Kathleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the parts about their lives. Skimmed the play by play of golf on each hole.

[Ted Blackwell · Rating 4 out of 5]

good read

A lot of golf and very enjoyable but it is really a book about the challenges of life more than it is about golf.

[Iamthird · Rating 2 out of 5]

"Bobby Jones said the secret of a good swing was to grip the club lightly, especially with the right hand. That would keep him from tensing up. His shoulders and arms were relaxed....That's what love is, Tommy. It's holding something close to your heart, nurturing it without squeezing it, and having the patience to wait your turn, for love will find you when it's your time." "Scrambling is more than how you play golf. It's a way of life. Hagen was a scrambler off the course as well. You keep risking yourself to get what you want. That's what I mean. You're a born scrambler. You don't play safe. But you still need to adjust your swing to play with hickory."

[Ginney Etherton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Coyne has written "The Caddie Who..." series for golf fans, instead of targeting both golfers and non-golfers like my book does ("Looping for Love"). I enjoyed it, but there are a lot of golfie bits that might lose non-fans of the game. It is well-written and has a sweet love-story and class struggle mixed in with the country-club environment. It's a period piece, too, which adds interest. One nit-picky complaint -- he interchanges first and last names (& nicknames) of all the characters frequently. I found it confusing.

[Tom · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book will take you so fully on to the golf course that you will forget you are sitting in a chair in your living room. You will feel the warmth of the sun on your face and smell the grass on the course. Your body will tense with every putt and you will find yourself holding your breath, waiting for the ball to drop into the hole. It is a another great golf story by John Coyne.

[Brian123 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just started it, cant wait to see how it ends up!!!!

[Brad Larsen]

Just a really enjoyable story. If you love golf fiction (and really, who doesn't?), then this book is pretty hard not to like.

[Deanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked this book quite a bit. What a great story and good character detail. You don't even have to know about golf to enjoy this book.

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having been a caddy at Edgewater CC much of the story at caddie shack and around the clubhouse brought back many memories of summers past. A good and easy read.