Freddie & Me: Life Lessons from Freddie Bennett, Augusta National's Legendary Caddy Master

First a disclaimer. I have lived in Augusta all my life, worked at the Augusta National during the Masters Tournament though out my teenage years, and actually met Freddie Bennett on a few occasions. This book took me back in time and reminded me what a great character Freddie was and I actually learned a bit along the way! Once I started reading it, I couldn't put it down.. I guess that really says it all!

What a wonderful read. While golf fans will surely love this book for the behind the scenes insights, I'm sure just as many will love it for the beautiful story it tells, and the smooth yet vivid way the author tells it. A boy's coming of age thru guidance from an unlikely source, in a unique backdrop. You will find yourself wondering who the Freddie in your life has been, and hoping you may one day be one for someone else.

From cover to cover this tale elicits smiles, laughter, and tears. There are good lessons revealed about friendship, growing up, and loss... and the difficulties we face with all of them. Having grown up in Augusta, Georgia, I found it brought forth memories of my own youth. You will love this story.

Freddie & Me is a beautiful story of a young boy who learns the most valuable lessons in life from a true Masters champion - and it's not any of those who have donned the coveted green jacket. This is not another golf book to collect dust on your coffee table - it's so much more than that. It's a story that will engage not only your mind and funny bone, but more importantly, your heart. The golf enthusiast will certainly enjoy Bowden's glimpse into the secrecy of golf's most prestigious and exclusive course. But those of us who don't know a birdie from a bogey will be captivated by the relationship that develops between a boy searching for himself and a man who has known who he is for many years. With each turn of the page, Bowden's gift of storytelling takes the reader from laugh out loud moments to those that are quiet and tender. And by the time you've finished this gem, you may find your eyes filled and your heart truly grateful for the Freddie in your own life. Bowden writes that "the world has lost its greatest storyteller" in Freddie, but perhaps a new one has been found.

Author Tripp Bowden draws you in immediately and, as soon as he is fishing with Freddie, there's no turning back - you are anxious to see what lies ahead. All throughout this beautiful story between two unlikely friends - Freddie, the CaddyMaster at the world renowned Augusta National and Tripp, his "doc's son" - you are taught valuable life lessons. Sometimes the most beautiful stories are the simplest. This book helps put life and what is truly important into perspective. It will touch your heart. It will make you think. It will make you laugh. It will be a treasure to read over and over again. And you don't even have to be a golfer to appreciate the wisdom. This book reads quickly yet there is so much in it's pages. In this life, we are blessed with people, our Freddies, who can light our way as we realize our potential. We just need to take the time to notice them. Or become one of them yourself. You never know whose life you may touch. I doubt Freddie ever thought about it. But look at his legacy.