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YFT : Shopping : Books : The Downhill Lie: A Hacker's Return to a Ruinous Sport
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The Downhill Lie: A Hacker's Return to a Ruinous Sport by: Carl Hiaasen  List Price: $22.00 Your Price: $14.96 You Save: $7.04 (32%)Prices subject to change. Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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Binding: HardcoverDewey Decimal Number: 796.352092 EAN: 9780307266538 ISBN: 0307266532 Label: Knopf Manufacturer: Knopf Number Of Items: 1 Number Of Pages: 224 Publication Date: May 06, 2008 Publisher: Knopf Release Date: May 06, 2008 Studio: Knopf Sales Rank: 2535 Related Items:
Editorial Review: Product Description: Ever wonder how to retrieve a sunken golf cart from a snake-infested lake? Or which club in your bag is best suited for combat against a horde of rats? If these and other sporting questions are gnawing at you, The Downhill Lie, Carl Hiaasen’s hilarious confessional about returning to the fairways after a thirty-two-year absence, is definitely the book for you. Originally drawn to the game by his father, Carl wisely quit golfing in 1973, when “Richard Nixon was hunkered down like a meth-crazed badger in the White House, Hank Aaron was one dinger shy of Babe Ruth’s all-time home run record, and The Who had just released Quadrophenia.” But some ambitions refuse to die, and as the years—and memories of shanked 7-irons—faded, it dawned on Carl that there might be one thing in life he could do better in middle age than he could as a youth. So gradually he ventured back to the dreaded driving range, this time as the father of a five-year-old son—and also as a grandfather. “What possesses a man to return in midlife to a game at which he’d never excelled in his prime, and which in fact had dealt him mostly failure, angst and exasperation? Here’s why I did it: I’m one sick bastard.” And thus we have Carl’s foray into a world of baffling titanium technology, high-priced golf gurus, bizarre infomercial gimmicks and the mind-bending phenomenon of Tiger Woods; a maddening universe of hooks and slices where Carl ultimately—and foolishly—agrees to compete in a country-club tournament against players who can actually hit the ball. “That’s the secret of the sport’s infernal seduction,” he writes. “It surrenders just enough good shots to let you talk yourself out of quitting.” Hiaasen’s chronicle of his shaky return to this bedeviling pastime and the ensuing demolition of his self-esteem—culminating with the savage 45-hole tournament—will have you rolling with laughter. Yet the bittersweet memories of playing with his own father and the glow he feels when watching his own young son belt the ball down the fairway will also touch your heart. Forget Tiger, Phil and Ernie. If you want to understand the true lure of golf, turn to Carl Hiaasen, who has written an extraordinary book for the ordinary hacker. Average Rating:
 Rating:  - The Downhill LieCarl Hiaasen shines a relentlessly humorous light on the agonies and the ecstasies that are well known to all amateur golfers. A must read for golfing adicts. Rating:  - Hackers BewareHiaasen's recent book is not more of the same. This one is NOT funny. If you are a golfer, love a golfer, or are related to a golfer, this book rings WAY too true. Bought it, read it, passed it on to my golfer son-in-law, and asked him to ignore the parts about politics and just wince at the rest of it. I've read all of Hiaasen's books and as many of his articles as I could lay hands on here in Michigan and when visiting Florida, and have always loved his stories. I would hope, for the sake ... Read More Rating: - Poking fun at GolfIn true Hiaasen form, this is a humorous look at what many contend to be a serious sport. I was laughing out loud by page 20, and appreciating his serious rant by page 38 as he decried the development of ever more golf courses and golf course subdivisions chopping up his beloved Florida landscape. Hiassen is a great writer, one of the best at using current situations to develop biting humor. This personal account of his return to golf after a 30-year hiatus is a great read. Rating: - A really fun bookI very much enjoyed this book as I do all of his books. This is a light fun and quick read. Being a duffer myself I can relate to what he went through. Rating:  - Complete boredomI used to play golf and quit for various reasons. I couldn't even finish this book because of the bad memories. Mark Twain said it best...." golf is a ruin of a perfectly good walk". Browse for similar items by category:
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