Getting Up & Down: My 60 Years in Golf

Growing up in San Francisco, he was drawn to the game for the solitude it offered, the best place for him to find himself - and his dreams. Though his often brilliant career was prematurely halted by injuries, he then emerged as the game's greatest ambassador throughout an unprecedented broadcasting career. Getting Up & Down is the story behind Venturi's captivating rise and fall - and rise again - to the top of the golf world and an inside look at the many different personalities within that world.

He suffered through much: hand injuries, marriage trauma, etc. But the biggest hurdles were those letdowns, those meltdowns which occur in sports when one is so close to seizing the brass ring, only to have it slip out of grasp. As Venturi would describe, someone else always played phenonemenal to do just that. He would be a previous generation's Greg Norman.

Anyone who was so close and fondly associated with the likes of Nelson, Sarazen and Hogan, now this is a special person. Or for Vince Lombardi to admire the look in an competitor's eyes, this is a special golfer. One who endured severe heat and win his country's national golf championship in the doing, this is a special golfer.

This carried over in his broadcasting. Concise, poignant, to the point. Let the golf describe most of the action. I like millions admired and respected his great gifts for commenting, but never really knew about the stammering. Maybe the greatest hurdle of all. What courage he showed and can encourage all who have such to do the same. A man of principle.

Somehow as good as this read was with all the fascinating stories and incidents, I thought it was slightly "I oriented" too much. Thus, four not five.


A prima donna, but an interesting golf life   May 26, 2004
 2 out of 3 found this review helpful

Venturi is a bit of a prima donna - you can't be on TV for 35 years without a touch of that - but at the same time he has lived a very interesting life in golf, and come across some very interesting people. I forgive him his brushes against Palmer and Player: I have no doubt that those people, while projecting saintly public images, are extremely fierce competitors willing to work everything possible in their favor, and I thank this book for having the nerve to reveal that side to me. In a similar but more positive way, I came away with a much more well-rounded sense of people like Ben Hogan and Byron Nelson.

Venturi's attitude about his own play and level is interesting: while he blames injury and circumstances for many losses and for not having achieved full potential, I think he minimizes the way many greats have overcome similar problems.

The main thing, though, is that I read this book because I sorely miss his voice - and attitude - on TV. He's been replaced by a generation of blabbermouths who, unlike Venturi, are unable to push their own considerable egos aside to comment on the sport itself. Johnny Miller is by far the worst offender, but they're all reasonably guilty. And if I see Peter Kostis "analyze" another errant swing I think I'll puke. I miss you, Mr. Venturi.