Herbert Warren Wind
Encyclopedia
Herbert Warren Wind was an American golf
er and golf writer, who also wrote on other subjects.
. He began golf at age seven at the Thorny Lea Golf Club in Brockton, and played whenever he could. He graduated from Yale University
, and earned a Master's degree in English Literature
from the University of Cambridge
.
Wind was a low handicapper who played golf well enough to compete in the 1950 British Amateur Championship, and maintained a lifelong interest in the sport.
in 1941, covered golf and sometimes other sports for that weekly magazine from 1947 until 1953, and again from 1960 until his retirement in 1990. From 1954 to 1960, he covered golf and sometimes other sports for Sports Illustrated
magazine.
In 1958, Wind coined the phrase 'Amen Corner' to describe the second shot at the 11th, all of the 12th, and the tee shot at the 13th hole at the Augusta National Golf Club
, site of the annual Masters Tournament. That nickname, which is derived from a 1935 song that Wind had heard while a student at Yale
, -- namely "Shoutin' in that Amen Corner" written by Andy Razaf, which was recorded by the Dorsey Brothers Orchestra, vocal by Mildred Bailey (Brunswick label No. 6655) -- stuck. Wind covered more than 30 Masters tournaments.
His first book was The Story of American Golf, which first appeared in 1948, and was updated and re-issued twice, the most recent in 1975. This book was the most comprehensive history of American golf to that juncture. Along with Ben Hogan
, Wind co-authored Five Lessons: The Modern Fundamentals of Golf in 1957. This book has become one of the all-time classics of golf instruction, and has been re-issued many times.
He was a co-author of the 1976 book The World Atlas of Golf, a popular survey of the world's top golf courses, which has been re-issued since in several revised editions.
In 1983 with the help of Robert S. Macdonald, Wind co-founded and curated the Classics of Golf Library -- a collection of the greatest literature culled from the entire universe of golf books and penned by some of the game’s most celebrated authors and personalities. Under the guidance of Wind, the Classics of Golf Library was created to preserve and make available the works of the leading authors of early and modern golf literature. Wind and Macdonald reprinted these classic golf books and added Forewords and Afterwords to provide insight and perspective to the great literary works. Sixty-nine books make up the Classics of Golf Library today, which is featured in the USGA Museum
.
Wind died in Bedford, Massachusetts at age 88. In 2006, the United States Golf Association
renamed its annual Book Award in his honor.
Wind was elected to the World Golf Hall of Fame
in 2008 in the Lifetime Achievement category.
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
er and golf writer, who also wrote on other subjects.
Early years
Wind was born in Brockton, MassachusettsBrockton, Massachusetts
Brockton is a city in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States; the population was 93,810 in the 2010 Census. Brockton, along with Plymouth, are the county seats of Plymouth County...
. He began golf at age seven at the Thorny Lea Golf Club in Brockton, and played whenever he could. He graduated from Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
, and earned a Master's degree in English Literature
English literature
English literature is the literature written in the English language, including literature composed in English by writers not necessarily from England; for example, Robert Burns was Scottish, James Joyce was Irish, Joseph Conrad was Polish, Dylan Thomas was Welsh, Edgar Allan Poe was American, J....
from the University of Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
.
Wind was a low handicapper who played golf well enough to compete in the 1950 British Amateur Championship, and maintained a lifelong interest in the sport.
Writing career
Wind began writing for The New YorkerThe New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
in 1941, covered golf and sometimes other sports for that weekly magazine from 1947 until 1953, and again from 1960 until his retirement in 1990. From 1954 to 1960, he covered golf and sometimes other sports for Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
magazine.
In 1958, Wind coined the phrase 'Amen Corner' to describe the second shot at the 11th, all of the 12th, and the tee shot at the 13th hole at the Augusta National Golf Club
Augusta National Golf Club
Augusta National Golf Club, located in Augusta, Georgia, is a famous men's golf club. Founded by Bobby Jones and Clifford Roberts and designed by Alister MacKenzie on the site of a former indigo plantation, the club opened for play in January 1933. Since 1934, it has played host to the annual...
, site of the annual Masters Tournament. That nickname, which is derived from a 1935 song that Wind had heard while a student at Yale
YALE
RapidMiner, formerly YALE , is an environment for machine learning, data mining, text mining, predictive analytics, and business analytics. It is used for research, education, training, rapid prototyping, application development, and industrial applications...
, -- namely "Shoutin' in that Amen Corner" written by Andy Razaf, which was recorded by the Dorsey Brothers Orchestra, vocal by Mildred Bailey (Brunswick label No. 6655) -- stuck. Wind covered more than 30 Masters tournaments.
His first book was The Story of American Golf, which first appeared in 1948, and was updated and re-issued twice, the most recent in 1975. This book was the most comprehensive history of American golf to that juncture. Along with Ben Hogan
Ben Hogan
William Ben Hogan was an American golfer, generally considered one of the greatest players in the history of the game...
, Wind co-authored Five Lessons: The Modern Fundamentals of Golf in 1957. This book has become one of the all-time classics of golf instruction, and has been re-issued many times.
He was a co-author of the 1976 book The World Atlas of Golf, a popular survey of the world's top golf courses, which has been re-issued since in several revised editions.
In 1983 with the help of Robert S. Macdonald, Wind co-founded and curated the Classics of Golf Library -- a collection of the greatest literature culled from the entire universe of golf books and penned by some of the game’s most celebrated authors and personalities. Under the guidance of Wind, the Classics of Golf Library was created to preserve and make available the works of the leading authors of early and modern golf literature. Wind and Macdonald reprinted these classic golf books and added Forewords and Afterwords to provide insight and perspective to the great literary works. Sixty-nine books make up the Classics of Golf Library today, which is featured in the USGA Museum
USGA Museum
The United States Golf Association Museum and Arnold Palmer Center for Golf History is home to the world’s premier collection of golf artifacts and memorabilia...
.
Wind died in Bedford, Massachusetts at age 88. In 2006, the United States Golf Association
United States Golf Association
The United States Golf Association is the United States' national association of golf courses, clubs and facilities and the governing body of golf for the U.S. and Mexico. Together with The R&A, the USGA produces and interprets the Rules of Golf. The USGA also provides a national handicap system...
renamed its annual Book Award in his honor.
Wind was elected to the World Golf Hall of Fame
World Golf Hall of Fame
The World Golf Hall of Fame is located at World Golf Village near St. Augustine, Florida, in the United States, and it is unusual among sports halls of fame in that a single site serves both men and women. It is supported by a consortium of 26 golf organizations from all over the world.The Hall of...
in 2008 in the Lifetime Achievement category.
Major works
- The Story of American Golf, by Herbert Warren Wind, Classics of Golf, 1948 (1st ed.) and 1975 (3rd ed.), ISBN 0394490207.
- The Complete Golfer, by Herbert Warren Wind, New York, Simon & SchusterSimon & SchusterSimon & Schuster, Inc., a division of CBS Corporation, is a publisher founded in New York City in 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. It is one of the four largest English-language publishers, alongside Random House, Penguin and HarperCollins...
, 1954. - Five Lessons: The Modern Fundamentals of Golf, by Ben HoganBen HoganWilliam Ben Hogan was an American golfer, generally considered one of the greatest players in the history of the game...
and Herbert Warren Wind, 1957, ISBN 0434981052. - Herbert Warren Wind's Golf Book, by Herbert Warren Wind, New York, Simon & SchusterSimon & SchusterSimon & Schuster, Inc., a division of CBS Corporation, is a publisher founded in New York City in 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. It is one of the four largest English-language publishers, alongside Random House, Penguin and HarperCollins...
, 1971, ISBN 067120808X. - The World of P.G. Wodehouse, by Herbert Warren Wind, Praeger, 1972, ISBN 0091456703.
- Game, Set, and Match: the Tennis Boom of the 1960's and 70's, by Herbert Warren Wind, New York, E.P. Dutton, 1979, ISBN 0525111409.
- Following Through, by Herbert Warren Wind, New York, Ticknor & Fields, 1985, ISBN 0899193986.