Royal and Ancient: Blood, Sweat, and Fear at the British Open
He’s done it again.
Fresh from his best-seller success with The Masters and his collaboration with Steve Elkington on The Five Fundamentals, Curt Sampson set out to do a story focusing on 5 or six professional golfers as they tried to win the 1999 British Open at Carnoustie. Since he also wrote the definitive biography of Ben Hogan, it was only fitting that Sampson would report on The Open at the site of Hogan’s 1953 triumph.
For various reasons, however, Sampson’s original approach to covering The Open didn’t pan out. Instead, Sampson wrote an even better story, with at least five separately fascinating subplots. The fact that he chose to write about the British Open in 1999, one of the most compelling major tournaments in recent memory, is simply an extraordinary bonus.
First, Sampson gives his readers a history of British golf, with Scottish golfers receiving the deservedly greatest focus. The triumphant yet tragic story of Tom Morris and his son helps define what some consider the Scottish national character, viewed from a golfer’s perspective.
Second, Sampson describes the history of The Open, from its admittedly humble beginnings to today. The influence of American golfers in enhancing The Open’s status, especially after Arnold Palmer’s 1961 triumph, is detailed here nicely. It’s also nice to see, however, an American writer who understands that The Open deserved its major status with or without American television interest or money. The money certainly helped, though.
Third, Sampson understands golf and golfers. He followed five players in particular, and their varying approaches to their British Open experience made for interesting reading.
Steve Elkington’s personality is more complex than one might have first thought. Andrew Magee’s honesty about professional golf and overall good humor will be a revelation to many readers. Clark Dennis’s travails will sound familiar to golfing fanatics who follow the fall PGA tournaments to see if their guy makes the top 125 on the money list for the next year. Zane Scotland, the improbably named boy who marked his 19th birthday by competing in The Open in his native land, shows some of the best qualities of amateur golfers in the intense atmosphere of a major tournament.
Then, of course, there is Jean Van de Velde. His prior professional experience gave no hint of his improbable performance at Carnoustie. Sampson revisits the final round and the playoff in all their complexities, while also taking care to show why Van de Velde’s first three rounds should not have been unnoticed.
No less an authority than Bob Charles provides several telling comments on the Frenchman’s performance in all four rounds. All the same, what happened on the 18th hole at Carnoustie on the final round stunned millions of viewers. On that day I sat in a hotel room in Seattle, watching The Open before leaving for a round at a new golf course. I almost missed my tee time.
The fact that someone could blow up a hole was not surprising. The fact that Van de Velde could blow up the last hole and a rare chance at a major tournament victory, and react with his combination of grace, perspective, and charm, was the real story.
Sampson does great reporting here, without giving short shrift to either Justin Leonard or Paul Lawrie, the eventual winner.
Fourth, Sampson writes about Carnoustie, a prime character in its own right. Each golf course in the traditional rota for The Open has its own unique features, and Sampson touches upon them.
Carnoustie, of course, receives special treatment, for the way the course reflects its town environment and for the way most golfers chose to play it in 1999. The related essay on fairness should spark a debate or two at many 19th holes.
Fifth, Sampson gives a well-rounded portrait of John Philp, Carnoustie’s golf course superintendent. During the weeks before, during, and after the event, Philp is alternatively defensive and assertive about the choices his club and the Royal and Ancient committee members made in setting up the course.
Sampson’s comments and reportage do not wholly support those who concluded that Philp was the epitome of a mad greenskeeper, bent on embarrassing the players. On the other hand, Sampson does not try to defend the Scotsman against all criticism. Instead, Philp comes across as a well-intentioned, talented man whose best efforts are nonetheless subject to uncontrollable elements–like rain, wind, and unmet expectations.
Along the way, Sampson treats his readers to several other vignettes. The personalities of Tom Watson and Gary Player, winners of two other Carnoustie Opens, are compared and contrasted here, warts and all. Ben Hogan’s continuing influence is a running theme for much of the book.
Sampson’s own travels and experiences in Scotland bring the author into the story more than his prior works, to good effect. His segment on the eighteenth tee early Sunday morning of the last day of the Open gives readers an understanding of the event that simply wasn’t reported anywhere else.
Sampson’s Royal and Ancient reveals a golf writer who’s really hit his stride.
Review date: July 2, 2000