Rating: 
Summary: Good Story, Poor Execution
Review: The story of a gifted golfer, who by a turn of fate, is denied the glory that would come to such a person in the world of professional golf. However, there are more important things than fame, namely the thrill of competition, the rush of sticking a 4-iron tight, the excitement of looking over a 40 foot putt on the 18th hole in a tied match against a worthy opponent. Beauregard Stedman must live in anonymity, but he cannot live without golf. This novel is a good story poorly delivered. It provides a good, albeit brief, professional biography of the great professional golfers of the last century, and has a message that all who play the game, be they Tiger Woods or a weekend public course hacker, can relate to. However, Veron fails in several ways in developing the story. The narrator of the tale is a law student looking through the files of golf legend Bobby Jones (who was also an attorney) as an assignment as a summer intern at the deceased Jones's Atlanta law firm. As he looks through the files, the narrator discovers correspondence and press clippings involving a talented young golfer named Beau Stedman. The narrator also learns of the events that prevent Stedman from achieving immortality as a golfing great. The narrator then sets out to share the story of Beau with the world. I say, "the narrator" because the author does little to develop the character. Of course, Beau is the real protagonist, but it is the law student Charley Hunter who is telling the story and trying to put Beau in his proper place among the greats. Charley's obstacles are not as important to a reader when Charley has no personality. His miracle round of golf at Augusta National means little when you don't care about him, especially when the hole-by-hole discussion of his round is told briefly and with little emotion. Veron also ran through what could have been very good moments in the novel, such as the father and daughter reunion to which Veron only dedicated a couple of paragraphs or the climactic courtroom scene that could have been more fully developed for greater dramatic effect. Still, the novel has its merits. It's a good little recap of the careers of the greatest professional golfers over the past century, most of whom are woven into the plot, and many of whom are just names to casual golf fans. This not only helps one appreciate the accomplishments of these golfers, but also attests to the timelessness of the sport. Also, Beau's story is a good one; it's just not depicted as well as it could have been. I recommend this novel for golf fans. Non-golf fans shouldn't bother, as the poorly delivered tale will mean little for those who do not appreciate the game.
Rating:
Summary: Good Story, Poor Execution
Review: The story of a gifted golfer, who by a turn of fate, is denied the glory that would come to such a person in the world of professional golf. However, there are more important things than fame, namely the thrill of competition, the rush of sticking a 4-iron tight, the excitement of looking over a 40 foot putt on the 18th hole in a tied match against a worthy opponent. Beauregard Stedman must live in anonymity, but he cannot live without golf. This novel is a good story poorly delivered. It provides a good, albeit brief, professional biography of the great professional golfers of the last century, and has a message that all who play the game, be they Tiger Woods or a weekend public course hacker, can relate to. However, Veron fails in several ways in developing the story. The narrator of the tale is a law student looking through the files of golf legend Bobby Jones (who was also an attorney) as an assignment as a summer intern at the deceased Jones's Atlanta law firm. As he looks through the files, the narrator discovers correspondence and press clippings involving a talented young golfer named Beau Stedman. The narrator also learns of the events that prevent Stedman from achieving immortality as a golfing great. The narrator then sets out to share the story of Beau with the world. I say, "the narrator" because the author does little to develop the character. Of course, Beau is the real protagonist, but it is the law student Charley Hunter who is telling the story and trying to put Beau in his proper place among the greats. Charley's obstacles are not as important to a reader when Charley has no personality. His miracle round of golf at Augusta National means little when you don't care about him, especially when the hole-by-hole discussion of his round is told briefly and with little emotion. Veron also ran through what could have been very good moments in the novel, such as the father and daughter reunion to which Veron only dedicated a couple of paragraphs or the climactic courtroom scene that could have been more fully developed for greater dramatic effect. Still, the novel has its merits. It's a good little recap of the careers of the greatest professional golfers over the past century, most of whom are woven into the plot, and many of whom are just names to casual golf fans. This not only helps one appreciate the accomplishments of these golfers, but also attests to the timelessness of the sport. Also, Beau's story is a good one; it's just not depicted as well as it could have been. I recommend this novel for golf fans. Non-golf fans shouldn't bother, as the poorly delivered tale will mean little for those who do not appreciate the game.
Rating:
Summary: Tantalizingly close to being great
Review: This book looks at the career of a fictional golfer who plays and beats nearly every great golf professional of his day. He does it in secret, and with the support of Bobby Jones. The book is very, very close to being great. It is told through the frame of a present-day lawyer looking through Jones' law files and weaving together the threads of the story. Unfortunately, for me, not enough detail is given about the matches played. This was a perfect opportunity to capture the character (in defeat no less!) of every golfer from Hagen to Hogan. The story gives more energy to the lawyer's efforts to find the greatest player who never lived than the golf he played.
Rating: 
Summary: What If?
Review: This book was fantastic. I read it in about one day. I found myself actually rooting for Beau Steadman while I was reading the book. The book moves like a thriller, and for golf enthsiasts, it is a must read. Read this book and live it along with the author.
Rating:
Summary: A Book Every Golfer Should Read and Pass Along.
Review: This book was recommended to me by a friend and his overwheling endorsement convinced me to read it. I can never thank him enough ! This is without argument one of the finest books I have read and it is an amazing effort by J. Michael Veron. For anyone remotely passionate about golf this is a must read. This book transports you to another era, to when golf was in it's infancy and our nation was as well. The name Bobby Jones has always conjured up images of insurmountable golf achievements, this book brings to life the man and his unshakable devotion to someone seemingly unworthy of his cosideration. Loyalty, True Friendship, Devotion, Respect and Honor are all attributes that emerge in this captvating book. Anyone who reads this will forever have a deeper appprecation of the above traits and an increased fondness for the essence of the great game of golf.
Rating: 
Summary: Good story, bad history
Review: This is a decent yarn with enough suspense to keep a golf fan interested, but I doubt than anyone outside of golf will enjoy the book.
The protagonist is Beau Stedman, a caddy with great golf talent who is befriended by Bobby Jones. At a young age he is falsely accused of killing the wife of a resort developer at Hilton Head Island, SC. He flees and spends the rest of his life living and competing under assumed names, all with help from Jones. His story becomes public after an intern at Jones' old law firm finds Jones' files on Stedman and follows up on what he finds.
For someone with knowledge of the locales in the story, particularly Augusta National and Hilton Head Island, the author gets so many background facts wrong that it's hard to get into the story. A fictional round at the Augusta National course starts with an error having #1 as a dogleg left, and ends with an error having #10 fairway to the left of #18 fairway. Another error is in a major premise, the development of resorts and golf courses on Hilton Head Island as early as 1930. Resort development of Hilton Head did not begin until construction of a bridge to the island in the 1950s.
An essential of good ficition is that the reader must be persuaded to suspend disbelief temporarily and treat the story as true. Can't do that when you constantly run into background facts that you know to be untrue. The author is supposed to be a trial lawyer. He should have had a paralegal check his facts.
Rating:
Summary: Good story, bad history
Review: This is a decent yarn with enough suspense to keep a golf fan interested, but I doubt than anyone outside of golf will enjoy the book.
The protagonist is Beau Stedman, a caddy with great golf talent who is befriended by Bobby Jones. At a young age he is falsely accused of killing the wife of a resort developer at Hilton Head Island, SC. He flees and spends the rest of his life living and competing under assumed names, all with help from Jones. His story becomes public after an intern at Jones' old law firm finds Jones' files on Stedman and follows up on what he finds.
For someone with knowledge of the locales in the story, particularly Augusta National and Hilton Head Island, the author gets so many background facts wrong that it's hard to get into the story. A fictional round at the Augusta National course starts with an error having #1 as a dogleg left, and ends with an error having #10 fairway to the left of #18 fairway. Another error is in a major premise, the development of resorts and golf courses on Hilton Head Island as early as 1930. Resort development of Hilton Head did not begin until construction of a bridge to the island in the 1950s.
An essential of good ficition is that the reader must be persuaded to suspend disbelief temporarily and treat the story as true. Can't do that when you constantly run into background facts that you know to be untrue. The author is supposed to be a trial lawyer. He should have had a paralegal check his facts.
Rating:
Summary: Great Read!
Review: This is a great book. I read it in three short nights and couldn't wait to pick it back up after struggling to find a stopping point each night. If you love golf, have a little understanding of the history of golf and its great players, you'll love this. Can't wait for the next one!
Rating:
Summary: my farorite book
Review: This is one the greatest books I have ever read.Once you start you reading this book you can't put it down.I highly recomend this book to golf lovers and even non golf lovers it combines mystery, golf, law, and suspence.This book is 5 stars and I recomend it.
Rating: 
Summary: "Dual parts John Grisham and John Feinstein" --Seattle Post
Review: Unwritten in the annals of the sporting world is the story of a man with unlimited potential who was denied his rightful place in the lore of golf... His story had remained a mystery for so many years, yet it wasn't a mystery at all, since he had long been forgotten. It is a story that may never have been told had Charley Hunter not accepted a summer internship at Butler & Yates, a presitgious Atlanta law firm. The Greatest Player Who Never Lived was called "Dual parts John Grisham and John Feinstein" by the Seattle Post,and the Miami Herald compared it with To Kill A Mockingbird. The LA Times said, "Skillfully written, Beau Stedman leaps off the pages and becomes one of the games greatest players." We find it hard to disagree with these reviews and invite you to share "The Greatest Player Who Never Lived.
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