Gettin' to the Dance Floor: An Oral History of American Golf

by Al Barkow

Book Overview

To a golfer the dance floor means the putting green, but in the early days of pro golf, getting to the dance floor also meant joining the Tour -- and enduring bad food, constant travel and infrequent pay. Al Barkow interviewed the players who got to that early dance floor, and here tells their stories in their own words -- a unique document from golf's pioneer days, with first-hand accounts from Lighthorse Harry Cooper, Gene Sarazen, Sam Snead, and...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0689115172
• ISBN13: 9780689115172
• Release Date: January 1986
• Publisher: Atheneum Books
• Length: 282 Pages
• Weight: 1.61 lbs.

Customer Reviews

"Must" reading for all golfing fans and enthusiasts!

Gettin' To The Dance Floor is a unique and memorable history of American golf by former editor of Golf Magazine, Al Barkow. Included are first-hand accounts from legendary golfers such as Lighthorse Harry Cooper, Byron Nelson, Sam Snead, Gene Sarazen, and others. Gettin' To The Dance Floor describes how much of a grind it was for a player to be part of the Tour. Scraping up enough cash to eat, finding a ride to the next tournament, finding sleeping arrangements, all the while searching for a better golf swing with nowhere to practice and not time to do it. All this while keeping a club job and a family together while traveling around the country in the middle of the Depression. Gettin' To The Dance Floor is "must" reading for anyone who ever dreamed of going on Tour or who has admired those who did.

Barkow Can Dance ! And Write !

I had an opportunity to read "Gettin' To The Dance Floor" five or six years ago, having found it in the golf collection of the main branch of the Washington, DC, public library.Barkow's extremely interesting profiles of historic golf figures rekindled my long-dormant interest in the game, and had me checking out 5 or 6 books at a time !One of Al's profiles, on "Wild Bill" Melhorn, a star of the '20s and contemporary of Walter Hagen's (Hagen rated Melhorn's 2-iron as the best in the game, in a listing of the best players with each club), provided information allowing me to contact the author of a privately-published book on Melhorn. I ordered 2 copies, one for a friend, and was extremely delighted to read of the exploits of one of the very good, but lesser-known greats, of golf's transitionary era from the wooden shafts of the'20s to the introduction of steel shafts in the '30s.If Tiger hasn't read "Gettin' To The Dance Floor" (and he probably has !), he should. There are several compelling profiles of little-known (today) black golf pioneers.Every fan of golf's history in America during the period from 1920 - 1960 will enjoy this book. A great read !

Gettin to the Dance Floor is chocked full of good stories

Gettin to the dance floor is a book full of stories which can create inspiration in any golfer. To truly appreciate the game of golf you must know something about its past. This books covers the stories of Bill Spiller, Gene Sarazan, Sam Snead, and much more.... If you are curious about them or the history of golf this is a must have book..