Slaying the Tiger

A Year Inside the Ropes on the New PGA Tour

By: Shane Ryan

Narrated by: Sean Pratt

Length: 13 hrs and 53 mins

Publisher's summary

For more than a decade, golf was dominated by one galvanizing figure: Eldrick "Tiger" Woods. But as his star has fallen, a new, ambitious generation has stepped up to claim the crown. Once the domain of veterans, golf saw a youth revolution in 2014. In Slaying the Tiger, Shane Ryan introduces us to the volatile, colorful crop of heirs apparent who are storming the barricades of this traditionally old-fashioned sport.

As the golf writer for Bill Simmons' Grantland, Shane Ryan is the perfect herald for the sport's new age. In Slaying the Tiger, he embeds himself for a season on the PGA Tour, where he finds the game far removed from the genteel rhythms of yesteryear. Instead he discovers a group of mercurial talents driven to greatness by their fear of failure and their relentless perfectionism. From Augusta to Scotland, with an irreverent and energetic voice, Ryan documents every transcendent moment, every press tent tirade, and every controversy that made the 2014 tour one of the most exciting and unpredictable in recent memory.

©2015 Shane Ryan (P)2015 Tantor

Critic reviews

"[R]ecommended for anyone who wants to get real insights on the players and the sport." ( Publishers Weekly)

Great book with a terrible narration

I don’t think I’m prone to hyperbole and with that said, this may be the worst narration I’ve ever heard. Shane Ryan’s book is great and still holds up years later. I would love to ask him how Sean Pratt landed this job and got the constant mispronunciations through editing. Mr. Pratt’s voice is fine but with the book written in the author’s voice as a golfer. It undermines his credibility when 1/3 of the golfers names along with golf courses they are playing on are mispronounced. I can only imagine Shane Ryan’s dismay at the final product…

Good book bu the narration ruined it.

The stories were very interesting, but the narrator mispronounces the names of players and courses throughout. It’s obvious the narrator didn’t take the time to learn about golf. He calls Rory “Roy” the entire book and it drive me nuts. Rory is a mainstay in the book so you have to hear his name mispronounced hundreds of times.

Nice read...

Any additional comments?

I liked this book a lot and all those that gave it a bit of a negative review simply don't want to hear the truth it seems to me.

NOT ALL of today's players are like Palmer, Nicklaus and Player that represent this sport like it should be with class and dignity. We have people like Eldrick Woods that are LIARS, and cheat at the game and use people as they take short cuts with drugs and lie to there families and friends as easy as hitting a wedge. All the time our leadership lets him get away with it because he brings new people in and piles of cash reach everyone's pockets except the fans as always.

A few of our players do cheat, and do coke and dope and feel just as arrogant and entitled as the rest of this generation does and show it at every chance EXCEPT when the cameras are on them so they don't chase any sponsors or money away.

If you don't see this or want to hear it, then don't get this book, but if the truth is something you can handle then this is a pretty nice read and opens yours eyes that these are just people today and most (not all) are not concerned really with tradition, ethics or morals at all, but far more in the financial rewards of playing.

What I don't get is the authors audacity of calling others out and yet himself is a pushy, arrogant jerk like he talks about others and has little respect for the actual game. He derides even small towns as NOTHING to do when some of us LIKE towns that are quiet and not loaded with traffic jams and crime everyday. Why are these things wrong because he loves the rubble and poverty of big cities and no one that speaks English or talks to your neighbors?

Dustin Johnson brings shame to this sport just like Woods does and if you don't see it like that then this may not be a good read for you. If you want golf to be filled with the same trash talking, dope smoking criminals of the other major sports, then let the PGA do it's thing to try and keep at least one sport something to be a little proud of or aspire to in a world gone nuts with selfish money grubbing fools at every turn.

I liked the book.....and thank goodness for people like Rory, Crenshaw, Day, Adam Scott and Jordan that makes us all proud.

The narrator is HORRIBLE as he mis-pronounces a huge portion of names of high profile golfers, towns or courses that clearly show he knows nothing about the game.

Decent story, mixed narrator

Narrator mispronounced a good portion of the names of courses and players, but had a nice pace. Clearly a professional, but not a golfer.

Poorly narrated

I found it very annoying as the narrator frequently mispronounced the names of some of the most famous golf courses and golfers in the world. The author should consider "slaying the narrator".

Incredible book, weak narrator

He mispronounced several of Golf's notable names. Some examples include calling Rory "Roy", referring to Jason Dufner as Justin Dufner, and butchering the pronunciation of Kiawah, Olazabal, Koepka and Zoeller.

The book, however, may have been my favorite ever.

Great read for golf fans

Really enjoy the in depth look at the PGA Tour and the young players specifically. If you are a golf fan who isn't too familiar with the behind the scenes of the tour, this book is a great listen.

just as advertised

made me want to play and watch more golf. also gave me fun information on the pros lives.

Slaying the Tiger

Worst narration of an audiobook I’ve ever listened to. Just an avalanche of mispronunciations, my favorite being the probably 400 references to “Roy McIlroy”

Shane Ryan does good work: narrator can’t say “Rory” to save his life

Shane Ryan is a great writer who doesn’t skimp on research. His book about the PGA with a greatly diminished Tiger Woods provides great insight. It’s entertaining! On the other hand, the narrator, while blessed with a silky smooth voice, could not seem to get names right. It’s maddening after a while. He seems to say “Roy McIlroy” throughout the book. The narrator has incredible voice talent, no doubt, but his inability to pronounce names properly makes me think he should stay away from non-fiction gigs.