The Grand Slam

Bobby Jones, America, and the Story of Golf

By: Mark Frost

Narrated by: Grover Gardner

Length: 19 hrs and 6 mins

Publisher's summary

In the wake of the stock-market crash and the dawn of the Great Depression, a ray of light emerged from the world of sports. In the summer of 1930, Bobby Jones, a 28-year-old amateur golfer, mounted a campaign against the record books. In four months, this natural, self-taught player conquered the British Amateur Championship, the British Open, the United States Open, and finally the United States Amateur Championship, an achievement so extraordinary that writers dubbed it the Grand Slam. No one has ever repeated it.

Yet, soon after the Grand Slam, Jones made the shocking announcement that he was retiring from the game. His abrupt disappearance from the public eye helped create the mythological image of this hero from the Golden Age of sports that endures to this day. Mark Frost uses a wealth of original research to provide an unprecedented intimate portrait of golf great Bobby Jones.

©2004 Good Comma Ink, Inc. (P)2004 Blackstone Audiobooks

Critic reviews

"A swift, surefooted account of Jones's remarkable life and career." (Publishers Weekly)
"Frost does a fine job of recounting the tenor of the times....Highly recommended for all sports collections." (Library Journal)

Story telling at its best

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?
Yes, it is a book that not only provides heartful insight into the most difficult game in the world but also one of the very best players to date to have played it

What other book might you compare The Grand Slam to and why?
None as yet

What does Grover Gardner bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?
Passionate story telling

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?
Good to great

Any additional comments?
No

Excellent bio of Bobby Jones and America during the time

This book is a great biography of Bobby Jones while adding detailed and relevant insight into happenings around America and the world. While the read time looks long, it the story does not drag on if you are a golf and history buff.

Incredible story.

Hated to have to stop listening, and was bummed when it was over. What a story. He was special in so many ways.

An Authentic Sports Hero

Terrific account of a man who, by all examples, is what we’d like to see in athletes and celebrities through the ages. Blessed in success and gritty in challenge, the reader will cheer for him and admire him. Well done narration, as usual, by Grover Gardner. Even as a non- golfer, there are enjoyable accounts of matches that served to educate and entertain.

Fabulously told story of an American legend

Excellent job setting time and place, carrying you through the years of Bobby jones influence. Excellent narration

A great lesson in history

This is not just a story about golf, but a lesson in history. Mark Frost does a wonderful job telling the story of Bobby Jones and putting some great stories about history in the middle of it. You will learn a lot with this Audiobook. Grover Gardner does a wonderful job again.

Grand In All

Dignity, grace and greatness are often hard to find together, and even more difficult to reconcile when they are discovered among one another. Mark Frost writes about the life of the life of Bobby Jones, a man who embodied those traits, with a grace and skill worthy of Mr. Jones.

A great story, but it is historical fiction.

I really enjoyed the book once I realized it was historical fiction much like Jeffrey Shaara's Pulitzer prize winning novel, The Killer Angels. The events all took place however, the conversations and the thoughts are those of the author. There's nothing wrong with that, but to advertise this as nonfiction is not quite correct. Whether one enjoys golf or not, this book is a great tale of a man that every man would want as a friend. this book gives a great insight into how tough it was to win a major back in the day of the classical golfers such as Bobby Jones and Walter Hagen. to play four rounds of golf in two days and a major is unimaginable. to play them with hickory shafted clubs and irons that were non-standard is even more amazing..

This book placed me right there amongst the action

Outstanding and charming. I never knew the strain this put on Mr. Jones. A true legend.

A must for the golf and US history fan

If you could sum up The Grand Slam in three words, what would they be?

Truly an insightful and full look at the development of Bobby Jones, US history of the time as well as golf in America as a major sport. Captivating all the way throughout, this is a must if you are a golf fan. In addition, you can't help but walk away from the book with a greater appreciation for the game, Bobby Jones as not only a tremendous golfer but man as well. Cannot do anything but recommend this book.