The First Major: The Inside Story of the 2016 Ryder Cup

Written by John Feinstein

Narrated by John Feinstein

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Good Walk Spoiled, a dramatic chronicle of the bitterly-fought 2016 Ryder Cup pitting a U.S. team out for revenge against the Europeans determined to keep the Cup out of American hands.

Coming into 2016, the Americans had lost an astounding six out of the last seven Ryder Cup matches, and tensions were running high for the showdown that took place in October, 2016 in Hazeltine, Minnesota, just days after American legend Arnold Palmer had died. What resulted was one of the most raucous and heated three days in the Cup's long history. Award-winning author John Feinstein takes readers behind the scenes, providing an inside view of the dramatic stories as they unfolded: veteran Phil Mickelson's two-year roller-coaster as he upended the American preparation process and helped assemble a superb team; superstar Rory McIlroy becoming the clear-cut emotional leader of the European team, and his reasons for wanting to beat the US team so badly this time around; the raucous matches between McIlroy and American Patrick Reed - resulting in both incredible golf, and several moments that threatened to come to blows; the return of Tiger Woods not as a player but an assistant captain, and his obsession with helping the US win - which was never the case when he was playing. John Feinstein's classic bestseller, A Good Walk Spoiled, set the bar for golf books. Now Feinstein provides his unique take on the Ryder Cup, which has clearly become golf's most intense and emotional event...it's 'first Major.'

• Language: English
• Publisher: Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group
• Release date: Oct 24, 2017
• ISBN: 9780525496144

John Feinstein

John Feinstein was a sports writer and bestselling author of more than forty books, including A Season on the Brink, A Good Walk Spoiled, The Ancient Eight, and Five Banners: Inside the Duke Dynasty. He was a longtime columnist for The Washington Post, Golf Digest, and was a frequent contributor to a variety of radio programs. 

Reviews for The First Major

[coachtim30 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Great storytelling as usual from John Feinstein. He gets a large number of quotes and comments from players, captains, and other Ryder Cup personnel throughout the book. My only complaint is that some of the stories are repetitive and told more than once or twice in the book. All in all, though, golf fans will love reading this look at not only the 2016 Ryder Cup but some of the other Cups in the 21st Century.

[gmillar_8 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I loved this book. I was in hospital getting through a major abdominal surgery when I was able to finish it. Therefore I was in a very emotional state and Mr. Feinstein's writing about this event gave me a pride in an America that I thought had disappeared completely over recent years. He also changed my mind about Rory McIlroy, a man I now appreciate and admire. This US team performed and behaved so well that I read much of it with a lump in my throat and a new appreciation of the man Tiger Woods has become. There is much more I could and would like to write but You should read it yourself. I hope you get a similar feeling from it.