Monarch of the Green: Young Tom Morris: Pioneer of Modern Golf

by Stephen Proctor

Shortlisted for The Telegraph Sports Book Awards Biography of the Year

'A splendid new biography. How good was young Tom Morris? Stephen Proctor makes his case cogently. Young Tom Morris was one of the greatest of them all' - Allan Massie

Young Tom Morris, the son of the legendary pioneer of golf, Tom Morris, was golf’s first superstar.

Born at a pivotal moment in history, just as the new and inexpensive ‘gutty’ ball was making golf affordable and drawing thousands of new players to the game, his genius and his swashbuckling personality would set a game that had been frozen in amber for four centuries on the pathway to becoming worldwide spectator sport we know today.

Exhaustively researched and beautifully illustrated, Monarch of the Green is a stirring and evocative history of Tommy’s life (which also includes, for the first time, a compilation of his competitive record in stroke-play tournaments, singles matches, and foursomes) and demonstrates how, in one dazzling decade, this young superstar dominated the sport like few others have ever done.

240 pages, Hardcover

Published June 11, 2019

Reviews

[John Matthew IV · Rating 4 out of 5]

I very good biography of Young Tom Morris but I feel that Tom Morris of St. Andrews by David Malcom and Peter Crabtree covered most of the same material.

Stephen does try to put the time in historical context. He also has comprehensive stats and a great timeline at the back of the book.

It is well written and has some unique photographs.

p. 8: Old Tom Morris' first shop was at 15 The Links.

p.9: Old Tom Morris took a ferry on the way from St. Andrews to Prestwick. Not sure where there's a ferry between those two cities.

p. 10: Old Tom lived in the Golf House across the street from The Red Lion in Prestwick.

p. 23: The Great Foursome of 1849: "The defining event of golf's age of match play."
Old Tom Morris and Allan Robertson vs. Willie and Jamie Dunn

p. 34: North Inch Golf Club in Perth: https://www.northinchgolf.co.uk/

p. 42: In 1866, the Morris family moved to 6 Pilmour Links in St. Andrews.

p. 48: Harry Vardon: "There is no shot in golf which gives greater joy -- I am not sure there is any which affords such complete satisfaction -- as a well-hit ball with a cleek."

p. 49: James Wolfe Murray sent a letter to Old Tom addressed to "Misser of Short Putts, Prestwick"

p. 87: "His victory at Prestwick and the proliferation of professional tournaments that followed foretold the end of golf's age of match play."

p. 104: Mackay, Cunningham & Company created the Claret Cup. No longer in business.

p. 135: "domestic affliction" was used as a euphemism for the deaths of Young Tom's mother and son

p. 213: On Tom Morris of St. Andrews: "Their book is without peer as an exhaustive study of the man, his family, and his era."

p. 215: The Story of Golf

Great Bibliograhy

[J.J. White · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first golf clubs I ever swung belonged to my father who had inherited them from his father. There was no manufacturer's mark on them other than a logo burned into the hickory shafts that read, “Young Tom Morris Specials.” I was 12 at the time and had no idea how to use a golf club let alone swing one that had wooden shafts, yet I had heard of Young Tom Morris. Later that night, when I had to explain to my father that all of his hickory-shafted clubs had snapped when I tried to hit balls over the high school goal post, he explained to me just how important young Tommy had been to modern golf. This was of course after my punishment for destroying the 50 year old clubs. Years later, I can now put a face to the name on those shafts after reading “Monarch of the Green,” a wonderful book about the golf prodigy, Tom Morris Jr. I found this biography of Young Tom Morris unique from others I’d read, in that most of what is written by the author of the young golf genius takes place in his golfing prime. Proctor writes a detailed, well-researched tale of triumph and tragedy with such vividness that the reader can almost feel what Old and Young Tom are feeling as they compete against some of the greatest golfers of their time. The book is creatively written and exhaustively researched and should be on the shelf of every lover of golf history. This is a book you’ll want to keep in your library.

[Gonzaga Escauriaza · Rating 4 out of 5]

El trabajo de investigación es impresionante y el libro hace justicia a la figura de Young Tom Morris como jugador.

Cuenta muchos detalles muy interesantes sobre la competición de aquella época pero al final llega a relatar partidos y competiciones con tal minuciosidad que se me hizo un poco pesado.

De todos modos, es una lectura interesante e imprescindible para un amante del golf y especialmente de St Andrews.

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great book for any golf fan. Very well researched and engaging, it tells the tragic story of Tom Morris Jr, who was nothing short of the Tiger Woods of his era, until his untimely death at age 24. A quick but very interesting and detailed story.

[Wayne J Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Five Stars - This book is so much more than a history or biography. It surpasses so many in this genre with a story of Young Tom Morris. How Young Tom and his family lived and worked for the honour and glory of this game. Its accuracy is solid due to the extensive research that must have been performed in this labour of love. Quite, simply I loved every page and appreciated the work behind every word. Thank you, sir.