The Magnificent Masters

Jack Nicklaus, Johnny Miller, Tom Weiskopf, and the 1975 Cliffhanger at Augusta

By: Gil Capps

Narrated by: Joel Richards

The 1975 Masters Tournament always seemed destined for the record books. A veritable Hall of Fame list of competitors had gathered that spring in Augusta, Georgia, for the game's most famous event, including Arnold Palmer, Tom Watson, Gary Player, Lee Trevino, Hale Irwin, Billy Casper, and Sam Snead. The lead-up had been dominated by Lee Elder, the first black golfer ever invited to the exclusive club's tourney. But by the weekend, the tournament turned into a showdown between the three heavyweights of the time: Jack Nicklaus, Johnny Miller, and Tom Weiskopf. Never before had golf's top three players of the moment summoned the best golf of their lives in the same major championship. Their back-and-forth battle would rivet the sporting world and dramatically culminate in one of the greatest finishes in golf history.

In The Magnificent Masters, Gil Capps, a 22-year veteran of the golf industry with NBC Sports and Golf Channel, recaptures hole-by-hole the thrilling drama of this singular event during golf’s golden era, from the media-crazed build-up and intertwined careers of the three combatants to the tournament's final dramatic putts that would change the game of golf forever.

©2014 Gil Capps (P)2014 Audible, Inc.

Good history of the Masters,but distracting reader

Is there anything you would change about this book?

I would hire someone who knows golf ro read it. The mis-pronounciations of golf terms, names and places are very distracting

What did you like best about this story?

Great history, but the book jumps around a lot

Would you be willing to try another one of Joel Richards’s performances?

if it isn't about golf

Was The Magnificent Masters worth the listening time?

not really

Great story, but needs a better reader

Any additional comments?

This is a very good golf book. Nicklaus may be the greatest of all time, but there have not been that many interesting books featuring him. Hogan, Palmer and Jones have had theirs. Even Tiger recently. So it's nice to have a good one featuring the Bear at a time when he was at the top of his game. It has also been rare to have a golf book featuring a young Johnny Miller, so that was an added bonus. The 1975 Masters is considered one of the best of all time. So it made for a great backdrop to explore some of the best golfers of the 1970's.

The reader, however, will be a distraction for any golfer. He mispronounces many golf terms. He also shows a total lack of golf knowledge on others. For example, he reads -3 as negative 3 instead of 3 under as any golfer would. Despite those distractions I enjoyed the book.

Awesome Journey

Awesome road back to the. 1975 Masters, Nicklaus is the best, was the beat #1!

Loved It!

Well written. Good info on the three lead characters. Builds tension even though I knew who was going to win! Narrator mispronounced a word or two like hosel and Doral but then again, English is super tough. (I am not being sarcastic. It is tough.)

Great book! I grew up a golfer and got into golf right after this Masters so I didn’t watch it live. It was always the Masters that had legendary status. Great to have the backstory and know of all the other big things that happened during the 1975 tournament.

Great Background to an Epic Masters

Must listen for any Masters/Golf fan. Narrator had many mispronunciations, but does not distract from the business of the tale.