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Gold Albatross by Tate Volino Lulu
book review by L. Alonso
"'It went in didn't it?' he asked, turning to Garris. ... 'I'm pretty sure it did,' nodded Garris, still somewhat in disbelief himself. He walked over to Bryan and extended a hand. 'Congratulations. A double eagle. That's rarer than a hole-in-one.' "
Employed as an analyst for Chambers Data Systems, Bryan Minton spends his weekdays trapped behind the partitioned walls of his nine-by-nine foot cubicle, drifting through the tedium of his eight-hour workdays and longing for a tee time. When Bryan gets stood up by his golfing buddy on a sunny spring morning, an unexpected partnership with an older gentleman named Jim Garris, leads to an unlikely friendship between the two players.
During the game, a combination of skill and chance causes Bryan to hit a rare double eagle, or three under par, on the seventeenth hole. This extraordinary event inspires Jim, shortly before his death, to bequeath an even more rare object to the younger man, an object of remarkable value that will subsequently stand at the center of a legal tug-of-war that will challenge Bryan's resolve, patience and perspective.
Set against the backdrop of recreational golf, Volino's knowledge, affection, and respect for the sport and its players are evident from the first chapter. While the plot itself is a little slow to begin, it is the novel's central character Bryan who carries the story. A likable guy with a sturdy moral compass, Bryan's struggle is both engaging and compelling. Witnessing the hero's personal growth and ultimate perseverance is central to this well written golf tale that is rich with detail and tidily concluded. Volino's competent storytelling abilities and vast golf expertise lend authority to the tale without excluding readers unfamiliar with the sport itself.