Golf Movies

* RecommendedTitles

Part Time Wife (1930)… Edmund Lowe, Leila Hyams, Tommy Clifford,Walter McGrail, Louis Payne, Sam Lufkin, George Corcoran.

You’re Telling Me! (1934)… W.C. Fields, Joan Marsh, Buster Crabbe,Adrienne Ames, Louise Carter, Kathleen Howard, Tammany Young, Dell Henderson.Sam Bisbee, an alcoholic inventor who is trying to sell his puncture-prooftires, loses his car, ruins his daughter's potential marriage and gets intotrouble with the police. The golfing scene is one of Fields’ classic routines.

Dead of Night (1945)… Mervyn Johns. ArchitectWalter Craig starts working at a British country farmhouse, while listening tothe guests' bizarre psychological tales all the while hoping to solve his ownproblems. Five short stories (only one of which pertains to golfing)climax into one at the end.

Follow the Sun (1951)…Glenn Ford, Anne Baxter, Dennis O'Keefe, JuneHavoc. Biography of Ben Hogan is more fiction than fact but is worth a look forthe cast. The film shows how Hogan survived a near fatal car crash whilestruggling to regain his championship form. HOF golfers Sam Snead, JimmyDemaret and Carey Middlecoff and legendary sportswriter Grantland Rice havecameos.

Pat and Mike (1952)… Katharine Hepburn, Spencer Tracy, Aldo Ray,William Ching, Jim Backus, Carl Switzer, Chuck Connors. Comedy about asensational female athlete is managed by a hard-nosed sports promoter. Hepburndid all her own stunts too. Based on the Ruth Gordon-Garson KaninOscar-nominated screenplay. Babe Didrickson and Betty Hicks among others havecameos.

The Caddy (1953)… Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis, Donna Reed. Not one oftheir better efforts but M&L fans will still like it. Tom Harmon, BenHogan, Sam Snead, Byron Nelson, Jimmy Thompson and Julius Boros have cameos.[Martin was a very good golfer in real life and also sings Oscar-nominated hitsong "That's Amore." … 'Lighthorse' Harry Cooper was the technicaladvisor and also appears as himself.] Actual shots of hysterical overflowing crowdsare real for the team.

Banning (1967)… Robert Wagner, Anjanette Comer, Jill St. John, GuyStockwell, James Farentino, Susan Clark, Gene Hackman. Soap opera storyrevolves around pro golfer Wagner's romantic escapades at an exclusive LosAngeles country club. Well done if you like that sort of thing.

Once You Kiss a Stranger (1969)… Paul Burke, Carol Lynley, MarthaHyer, Peter Lind Hayes, Philip Carey, Stephen McNally, Whit Bissell, ElaineDevry, Kathryn Givney, Jim Raymond, Orville Sherman, Maura McGiveney, AnnDoran. A woman seduces a pro golfer and then offers to kill his opponent if thegolfer will kill her psychiatrist because the doctor wants her committed. Pass.George Fenneman, Groucho’s announcer on You Bet Your Life, has a cameoas the commentator.

* Babe (1975)… Susan Clark, Alex Karras, Slim Pickens, JeanetteNolan, Ellen Greer, Ford Rainey. TV-movie on the life of Babe DidricksonZaharias. Clark won an Emmy for her portrayal of probably the most famous ofall female athletes. Adapted from This Life I've Led, her autobiography.[Babe, who's real name was Mildred, competed in the 1932 Olympics and alsostarred in track, softball and basketball.]

Caddy Shack (1980)… Chevy Chase, Rodney Dangerfield, Ted Knight,Michael O'Keefe, Bill Murray, Brian Doyle-Murray. Entertaining country clubcomedy that falls short in some scenes. Dangerfield's performance is by far thefunniest. Taglines: The snobs against the slobs! … and … At last, a comedy thatbites!

Two of a Kind (1982)… George Burns, Robbie Benson, Barbara Barrie. Amentally challenged 21-year-old rehabilitates his ailing grandfather. TV-movie.

Goofballs (1987)… Ben Gordon, Ron James, John Kozak. Josh Wheelerbecomes the manager of a golf course resort in the Barbados where mob thugs arehiding out. A couple bars of gold end up with the trophy of the upcoming GolfTournament. The gangsters enter the tournament to get the gold back.

Caddy Shack II (1988)… Jackie Mason, Dyan Cannon, Robert Stack, DinaMerrill, Chevy Chase, Dan Aykroyd, Randy Quaid. Average sequel but story andcast are totally different from original. Mason spends most of the movie tryingto get his daughter accepted at the local country club.

Dead Solid Perfect (1988)… Randy Quaid, Kathryn Harrold, Jack Warden.Made for cable comedy-drama about life on the professional tour. KeithOlbermann, Bob Harrison, Lindy Miller, Mac O’Grady and Peter Jacobsen havecameos. Taken from Dan Jenkins (Semi-Tough) book of the same name. Worthseeing.

Blades (1989)… David Aldrich, Hank Berkheimer, Ron Butko, KaraCallahan. Tongue and cheek remake of Jaws – on the golf course! Pass.

* The Man with the Perfect Swing (1995)… James Black, Suzanne Savoy,Marco Perella, James Belcher. Down-on-his-luck Anthony "Babe"Lombardo stumbles onto the perfect golf swing and sets out to sell and marketit. Unpretentious little film captures the feel of real life struggles and isloosely based on a true story. Shot on location in and around Houston, Texasaccompanied by an excellent Paul English soundtrack.

* Tin Cup (1996)… Kevin Costner, Rene Russo, Don Johnson, CheechMarin. Costner plays Roy McEvoy, a down-on-his-luck pro that makes it to theU.S. Open with the help of Russo and Marin. Costner's charm and Ron Shelton's (BullDurham, White Men Can't Jump) script and direction make this film a winner.Several cameos throughout including golfers Peter Jacobsen, Gary McCord, JohnnyMiller, Craig Stadler and CBS announcer and former pro Ken Venturi. Listen forMickey Jones singing Double Bogey Blues. Costner’s real parents appearas the grandfather and grandmother with the dog.

Happy Gilmour (1996)… Adam Sandler, Christopher McDonald, JulieBowen, Frances Bay, Carl Weathers, Joe Flaherty. Cameos by Bob Barker, VernLundquist, Kevin Nealon and Lee Trevino. Sandler is Happy Gilmour, a frustratedhockey player who discovers he can hit a golf ball 400 yards with his slap shotswing. He wreaks havoc on the pro tour for the rest of the movie. Comedy fallsshort but has its moments.

The Tiger Woods Story (1998)… Khalil Kain, Keith David, Freda FohShen. TV-movie examines Woods’ private life, especially the relationship withhis dad and struggles with racism. Below average.

National Lampoon's Golf Punks (1998)… Tom Arnold, James Kirk, ReneTardif. A down-on-his-luck golfer has to teach a motley group of kids how toplay on a public course. Arnold is good; script is bad. Tagline: Nowonder everyone is teed off.

Golf Balls! (1999)… Greg Logenhagen, Todd Allen Durkin, ChristyTummond, Dan Barkley, Naia Kelly, Amy Lynn Baxter. Silly comedy abouttwo rival golf courses ending in a winner-take-all match. The strugglingPennytree decides to recruit beautiful women (featuring Baxter as "Barbarathe Bod") to pick up business. A couple of good gags and a lot of nudity.Definitely not for the kids. Decent soundtrack though.

* The Legend of Bagger Vance (2000)… Will Smith, Matt Damon, CharlizeTheron, Bruce McGill, Joel Gretsch, Lane Smith, Jack Lemmon, J. MichaelMoncrief. Based on the Steven Pressfield novel, it is the story of a 1931 matchbetween Bobby Jones, Walter Hagen and Rannulph Junuh plus his mysterious caddy.Junah is a former pro and disillusioned war veteran. The caddy teaches him anew golf stroke and a secret to finding meaning in life.

Mulligan (2000)… Steve Lattery, Joshua Will, Trei Michaels, CedricYarbrough, Bill Borea, Alex Cole. This movie tries to compare life with a roundof golf for four good friends. It touches on the attitudes and behavior of thefoursome with frustration seemingly the main theme, as in the game itself. Theguys talk about women, sports and everyday life as well. During the game,several outrageous things happen. Filmed onlocation at Superior National Golf course and Papa Charlies in Lutsen Minnesota.Borea also co-wrote.

A Gentleman's Game (2001)… Mason Gamble, Gary Sinise, PhilipBaker Hall, Dylan Baker, Henry Simmons, Ellen Muth, Brian Doyle-Murray, DavidZayas, Kevin Thoms. Coming of age story about a teen prodigy and his fatherwhose lives are drastically changed at an exclusive East Coast country club.

The Boys of Sunset Ridge (2001)…Ronny Cox, Brian Tochi, Burt Young, John Heard. The lives of four men areplayed out through the game of golf.

* Bobby Jones, Stroke of Genius (2004)… James Caviezel, ClaireForlani, Jeremy Northam, Malcolm McDowell, Connie Ray, Brett Rice, Aidan Quinn,Larry Thompson. The story of Bobby Jones, golfing legend. He remains the onlyman to win golf’s toughest victory, the Grand Slam – the U.S., British, andAmateur Opens – even though at 28, he retired as an amateur. He won 13 national championships in 8 years.He designed Augusta National and helped create the US Masters Championship. Jones overcame his flaws (drinking, smoking, bad temper) tobecome one of the all-time greats. But the real story is of Jones andhis family and the way he overcame his physical and emotional problems. Jeremy Northamis excellent as golfing legend and party animal Walter Hagen. Caviezel, asalways, does a good job. Caviezel and his double studied old instructionalfilms that Jones made for Warner Brothers in the 1920s. Partially filmed inScotland.

Life, Death and Mini-Golf (2004)… Jim Akman, Joel Bryant, Nick Diltz,Adam Donshik, Andy Forrest, Deven Green, Erinn Hayes, Dena Hysell. Fromimdb.com: When rock star Kent Ramsey kills himself, his friends, family membersand bandmates gather together to deal with issues old and new ... and play afew rounds of golf.

* The Greatest Game Ever Played (2005)… Shia LaBeouf, StephenDillane, Peter Firth. The true story of the 1913 U.S. Open, where 20-year-oldamateur Francis Ouimet defeated reigning champion Harry Vardon. Very well doneand beautifully photographed. Says the World Golf Hall of Fame: "Ouimet'sstunning triumph captured the imagination of sports fan across the globe,sweeping away the notion that golf was a stuffy game for the old andrich." Ouimet was the first to win both the U.S. Open and U.S. Amateurbut he never turned pro.

Who’s Your Caddy? (2007)…