Open: Inside the Ropes at Bethpage Black

Rating:
Summary: Way too much extra crap
Review: He writes with a lot of descriptive detail, to a fualt. Every person he mentions gets their biography put in. Way too much extra junk about people no one would ever here of. Chapters start out with the continuing story and quickly break down into the life story of some high ranking account for the PGA, and so on. Read only if you need to get some sleep.

Rating:
Summary: Enjoyable....but misleading
Review: I enjoyed the book, but it certainly occurred to me in the middle of reading it that a lot of people were going to be ticked off at how misleading the title is in relation to the actual direction of the book. As has been previously mentioned repeatedly, the book is more -- MUCH more -- about the behind-the-scenes personalities than the US Open golfers themselves. Feinstein's overall theme is that the US Open is more than a golf tournament, but it's a multi-year planning process with dozens and dozens of vital people playing important roles. The problem is that he spends a few hundred pages beating this idea over the head of the reader, while the reader wonders when the actual golf is going to start. You have to sift through a great deal of mini-bios -- and some not so "mini" -- on USGA and state characters before the Open tees off.

I must say that one of the main reasons I enjoyed the book was because I live 20 minutes from Bethpage Black and drive past the "Bethpage: Home of the 2002 US Open" water tower every day on my way to work -- so the geographical and course info, and other relevant stuff, caught my interest. Obviously I realize that this same info is meaningless and annoying to people not from the area, something Feinstein should have realized, and if he did, he apparently didnt care.

There certainly are a bunch of patches where the reader labors through incredibly unnecessary detail, but I thought most of it was made up for with SOME of the behind-the-scenes planning process, as well as the coverage of the Open Qualifiers. There is a lot of stuff here that is very interesting and entertaining, and you can learn a lot about what goes into putting on an Open. But if you simply want to read about the 2002 US Open's golf play and analysis, I wouldnt be surprised if you quit after 100-150 pages. The actual golf coverage takes up maybe the last 20% of the book, and its not all that fulfilling even when you reach it.

Simply put, the book is way too bogged down in details that have no business being in print. Outside of the families of said USGA officials, state politicians, etc., I dont know who would be the least bit interested in much of what Feinstein wrote. However, if you can stomach the rough patches and the misleading title and marketing -- and if things like network TV negotiations, traffic/parking issues, merchandise tent issues, local vs. state politics, etc. can hold your attention and intrigue you in any way -- I think you'll enjoy it. And you'll probably add a star if you're from the NY Tri-State Area.

Rating:
Summary: Below Par
Review: I like Feinstein's work but this book is a bore. The first 100 pages are mini-biographies of USGA staff. Someone out there must find interesting which college basketball team is the favorite of the USGA publicity director, but I am at loss to understand whom.

Rating:
Summary: Not as Good as "A Good Walk Spoiled"
Review: I loved "A Good Walk Spoiled," Feinstein's previous book. If you haven't read that one, read it--it's fantastic. But this book was disappointing, mainly because Feinstein introduces too many characters involved with the US Open at Bethpage. And I don't mean the golfers--instead I mean the architects, administrators, maintenance people, producers, etc. Feinstein doesn't really focus on golfers very much in the book--probably the book's fatal flaw. What the PGA crew did at Bethpage was great but Feinstein tells us too much about them--after a while, I just started flipping past the pages and pages about their upbringing, their career paths, etc. I just didn't find them that interesting as people--although what they did to set-up Bethpage was interesting. But I kept on reading, thinking Feinstein's description of the actual US Open competition would be fascinating. But instead, it's truncated and not really fleshed out--not much of a payoff for reading the rest of the book. I guess "A Good Walk Spoiled" spoiled me for his second book.

Rating:
Summary: Good Book - But Know What You're Getting
Review: If you are looking for a stroke by stroke description of the Open Championship, look elsewhere. As others have pointed out, this is a story about running an Open, not playing in an Open (perhaps the subtitle is a bit misleading).

If you have any interest in the topic, it's a pretty good book. Feinstein's style is pleasant and interesting and he does a nice job describing the myriad of tasks and personnel required to set up an Open. This is not as good a book as The Majors, but I enjoyed it as much as A Good Walk.

Rating:
Summary: Nuts And Bolts On Bethpage's Open Debut
Review: John Feinstein finds a lot more interesting things about the preparations for the 2002 U.S. Open than I would. He writes about parking pressures and vendor pilfering the way Cornelius Ryan wrote about D-Day.

Those expecting a play-by-play on the golf played during those four days in June, which saw Tiger Woods break away the first day and never look back, may be disappointed. Even when the book's narrative finally reaches the event itself, after some 260 pages, the focus remains on the behind-the-scenes organizers, the USGA, NBC, and state officials. It's a unique situation, Feinstein reminds us, to have used a municipal course to host the U.S. Open, but maybe it's not worth writing a book about.

That said, Feinstein's book is an interesting read, especially for those who care about things like event management, sports broadcasting, or professional golf. As an author, Feinstein is much more engaged than he was when he wrote "The Majors," his style coming up to that of his classic "A Good Walk Spoiled."

Some of his wit is back in evidence. When a volunteer realizes Tiger used the Porta-John he helped set up, he calls a friend to share the good news. "Yes, Woods thrilled people in many different ways," Feinstein concludes.

I also liked the fact he doesn't hold back with the players, something I noticed and minded with "The Majors" after his no-holds-barred approach in "Good Walk Spoiled." Woods still won't shake a TV reporter's hand 18 months after that reporter said Woods was in a "slump." Sergio Garcia has his star moments, while Jeff Maggert comes across as totally unpleasant. At least Feinstein whipping boy John Daly's on his best behavior this time around.

The portraits of the organizers and staff that center this book are smoother, and maybe Feinstein finds more of interest about them than you will. It's an interesting tack to take, though, writing not about the game's stars but those who help to make such marquee events happen. Feinstein is in uncharted territory here, and maybe reclaiming some lost ground as golf's most original working writer.

That said, "The Open" is still a bore in parts, and lacks a strategic or historical overview of what makes Bethpage's Black Course so special. What did course designer A.W. Tillinghast do with the track that was so unique, and how did it preserve that notoriety over the decades as an overused Long Island muni? There's a splendid tale about golf course architecture waiting to get out here that never quite does.

All the same, "The Open" is good for what it is, an appreciation of a very underappreciated aspect of sport. Too bad it isn't a little more interesting, but for those who care (and there are many, given golf's popularity), it will probably be worth your while to check it out.

Rating:
Summary: Another great Feinstein golf book
Review: Probably my favorite sports writer, Feinstein takes a different tack in The Open versus his previous golf books, A Good Walk Spoiled and The Majors. Instead of stories about the players on the tour, this story focuses on the people behind the transformation of the worn-out municipal golf course Bethpage Black into the great course that hosted the 2002 U.S. Open championship. I found I couldn't stop reading, as Feinstein's prose is once again funny, heartwarming, and flowing. My only critique is that I wished for more detail on Rees Jones' changes to A.G. Tillinghast's design, with illustrations. For a book about the transformation of the golf course, there isn't enough about the physical changes that were done. The book does a great job portraying the enormity of the project that was undertaken, so the satisfaction that is felt with the success of the championship seems to be well deserved.

Rating:
Summary: Another great Feinstein golf book
Review: Probably my favorite sports writer, Feinstein takes a different tack in The Open versus his previous golf books, A Good Walk Spoiled and The Majors. Instead of stories about the players on the tour, this story focuses on the people behind the transformation of the worn-out municipal golf course Bethpage Black into the great course that hosted the 2002 U.S. Open championship. I found I couldn't stop reading, as Feinstein's prose is once again funny, heartwarming, and flowing. My only critique is that I wished for more detail on Rees Jones' changes to A.G. Tillinghast's design, with illustrations. For a book about the transformation of the golf course, there isn't enough about the physical changes that were done. The book does a great job portraying the enormity of the project that was undertaken, so the satisfaction that is felt with the success of the championship seems to be well deserved.

Rating:
Summary: Feinstein sliced this book OB
Review: This is not what you expect, a book about the championship itself. While a small part does just that, this is the story behind the scenes of who and how this Open at Bethpage came to be. This is an excellent human interest story for people who love this game.

Rating:
Summary: Below Par
Review: Those who buy this book thinking they are going to get the inside story of the US Open golf tournament held at Bethpage Black in 2002 are going to be disappointed. The tournament doesn't even start until page 262.

What this book is about is how the United States Golf Association decided to bring it's prestigious Open Championship to a municipal golf course on Long Island, rather than the famed country clubs which have hosted this event since it's inception and what goes in to putting on such an event. The title says" Inside the Ropes at Bethpage Black." What you really get is inside the workings of the USGA, what goes on behind the scenes, how decisions are made (or not),how catastrophes were avoided (or not)and in the end you may have learned more about what was involved in bringing this tournament to this course than you really wanted to know.

To those of us who follow golf closely and have attended a US Open, this is a very interesting read. Feinstein researches his subject exhastively and tells the story in an interesting manner, but at the end of the book I don't believe the reader has gotten a full measure of what has been promised. So, be aware of what the book is about and what it is not about, and if it is your cup of tea, read on.