Playing a Round with the Little Pro: A Life in the Game

In the world of professional golf, everyone knows "The Little Pro," Eddie Merrins, the head professional emeritus at the Bel-Air Country Club. A living bridge between the Golden Age of the sport and the greatest champions of today, from Bobby Jones to Tiger Woods, Merrins is an embodiment of the highest principles of the game, both on and off the course. In Playing a Round with the Little Pro, Merrins shares, with his trademark wit and modesty, dozens of personal anecdotes about the decades he spent in the company of Hollywood stars, celebrated athletes and coaches, and countless lovers of the game seeking his advice and encouragement. He also offers, for the first time, all his insights into the mental, physical, technical, and spiritual aspects of the sport. Celebrating a wonderful life lived in and for the great sport of golf, this book is destined, like its author, to be a classic of the game.

Eddie Merrins is a true golf legend, one of the most admired and respected figures in the game for more than half a century. An accomplished junior and amateur player growing up in Mississippi, he turned professional in 1957 and has played in over 200 PGA Tour events. After stints as an instructor at the legendary Merion Golf Club outside Philadelphia, Thunderbird Country Club in Palm Springs, and the Westchester Country Club in Rye, New York, in 1962 he became head professional at the Bel-Air Country Club in Los Angeles and has stayed there ever since. At Bel-Air, Merrins has worked with some of the biggest names in professional golf and in the entertainment industry. In his spare time, he has coached the UCLA golf team to national prominence, winning the NCAA championship in 1988.