PERSONAL FITNESS ARTICLES

"A superb and insightful portrait of the most elusive and complex champion in
golf history."Golf Digest

Ben Hogan was the hero no one knew. No one knew what drove him to practice
until his hands bled. No one knew what private demons built the high walls that surrounded him.
No one was even sure how he hit a golf ball with such godlike precision.He built a legend and a
mystique that captivates golfers still.

The components of this mystique were easy to see: a silent, almost eerie concentration that
intimidated his opponents, a presence any politician or actor would envy, and an ability to hit a
ball so squarely it sizzled as it left his club. Accomplishment was another part of his aura. Ben
Hogan won four U.S. Opens in six years, three of them after a near-fatal head-on automobile
collision with a bus. His injuries limited him to six tournaments in 1953, but he won five of
themthree of them majors. It was arguably the greatest year ever in the history of professional
golf.

Magazines placed his face on their covers, New York City gave him a ticker-tape parade, and
Hollywood made a movie of his life. Yet even in the midst of all this acclaim, myth distorted and
obscured Ben Hogan. Here at last is the Hogan no reader has ever encountered. From the poverty
and suicidal death of his father that scarred him as a youth, to the failure and conflict that stalked
him into middle age, Hogan is the rare sports book that transcends the genre.

Combining interviews with Byron Nelson, Jack Nicklaus, Sam Snead, and scores of other golf
professionals, as well as insights from Hogans friends and business associates, Hogan
traces the life of an amazing man and tells an unforgettable story.

Curt Sampson is the author of four other books, including the best-selling biography Hogan. He lives in Bristol, Texas, with his wife and two children.

Tom Parker, recipient of the Golden Voice award, records a remarkable variety of books while pursuing his love of theater by directing two or three professional stage productions a year in the Washington, D.C., area.