I received an arc of this title from NetGalley for an honest review—a well-written book about Golfs David Feherty and the trials and tribulations of his life.

I enjoyed reading this as a casual golf fan. I knew some of Feherty’s past from other interviews I’ve seen and his interview show. I did think the book was slightly repetitive and could have been a little shorter. If you’re a golf fan, I think you could enjoy reading it. Thanks to NetGalley and Hachette Books for the advance reader copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Thank you to the author, publisher and Net Galley for the ARC of this book.

I have been a big fan of Mr. Feinstein's books and most certainly his books on golf have been his best. His immense talent mixed with a truly unique and brilliant subject in Mr. Feherty lead to a wonderful book on the multi-talented golfer, announcer, and celebrity. The book shows that behind that very likeable exterior lies a complex story of a man dealing with some incredible demons. I highly recommend this book whether you like golf, sports or not. 5 - stars!!!

As an avid reader and sports fan I have read all of John Feinstein's books. When i saw his name as the author of Feherty i was very excited to read this book. After reading Feinstein's work I always think that this guy can get people to tell him everything!
Feherty is a well researched and insightful look into the life of a man that on the surface seems to be on top of the world. Feherty is a very funny man who has an extensive knowledge of golf and the people who play and televise the sport. Feinstein provides the details some of which are tragic behind Feherty's rise to the top of the golf commentary world.
If you are a golfer, or a sports fan you will like this book. If you are a reader and enjoy a good story you will like this book and all of Feinstein's work!

I am a big, big fan of David Feherty. I am a big, big fan of John Feinstein. And, fortunately for me, I am ever so glad to have just finished reading Feinstein’s biography named, aptly, “ Feherty.” One can tell how much Feinstein likes David Feherty both as a private person as well as the television star played by…David Feherty! The book captures Feherty’s wonderful sense-of-humor that often translates to laugh-out-loud guffaws from my sofa. The book, sadly, captures much of the pain and anguish suffered by Feherty and Feherty’s wives and children due to his lifelong issues with addiction. One will go on that awful journey that culminates with the tragic death —due to addiction — of one of Feherty’s sons.
I very much appreciate being given the chance to read “Feherty” by NetGalley and the publisher. Oddly, since I have read several John Feinstein books in the past, this book had any number of repetitive sentences and/ or paragraphs that surprised me due to being used to Feinstein’s great writing style. He and his editor need to take another run-through to clean up those repetitions. The book feels stretched out and would be more enjoyable with a bit less. Also, since Feherty told Feinstein that no area, or people, were off-limits he may have chosen to dive deeper into specifics behind the many references to the “difficult” family times they all lived through interacting with David.
I recommend this book and gladly give it 4 stars.

You might remember John Feinstein's last book. It was "Raise a Fist, Take a Knee" - a quite serious look at what he called the lack of racial progress in America in racial matters It was very well done, thanks in part to some candid interviews along the way. Naturally, Feinstein receives some of the credit for that, since he was asking the right questions to the right people.

That might have been a little draining, so Feinstein can't be criticized for moving on to a subject with a few more laughs. And who is more qualified to do that than David Feherty, at least in golf circles? He's built up a reputation as the funniest man to be connected with golf over the last few decades.

Feinstein, who has written a number of good golf books over the years, dives right in with this biography of Feherty. The catch is that while there is plenty of parts concerning fun here, it's the serious stuff that is likely to stay with you for a long time.

Feherty is about as far from a country-club kid from the suburbs as you can get. He grew up in Northern Ireland, just as the Troubles were beginning. David stayed out of trouble for the most part, but he had an other issue as well - ADD. He was clearly a bright kid but had trouble concentrating in school, which is a recipe for problems. So the young man dropped out. Feherty did have two areas in which kept his interest: music and golf. Eventually, golf was the one which won over his attention, although he can still belt out a tune with gusto when prompted.

Feherty wasn't a true natural on the course. But he was willing to work hard, and made the professional tour. In Europe, Feherty wasn't a top star - but he was good enough to play for Europe in the 1991 Ryder Cup, and he made some money. Then he crossed the pond for personal reasons, and had some success in America.

Some injuries probably brought his career to a slightly premature ending, but everyone had noticed that Feherty was funny. Stand-up comic funny. That caught the attention of the television networks, who after a short test figured out David could add a lot to a broadcast. He's been at it for about a quarter-century now. Feherty found something of a niche on television, someone who knew the game but was was willing to not take everything too seriously. Some think he's the John Madden of golf announcing, both likeable characters, but Feherty is beloved by a smaller audience.

There's no "happily ever after" ending here. The story goes on, in some ways, thanks to some demons. He suffers from depression and alcoholism. Feherty has done recreational drugs, and gone through some personal tragedies. He describes his first marriage as a train wreck, and the second one probably will be a ticket to sainthood for his patient and loving wife. Feherty takes something like 13 pills a day to keep in good enough shape to function. It sounds like every day is a battle for him, but he's dancing as fast as he can.

These days, Feherty has turned up on the broadcasts of the somewhat LIV golf tour. He admitted that like the players on the tour, he took the job for the relatively ridiculously amount of money he was offered to jump. So far the LIV has been something of a well-paid ticket to obscurity for those involved, but that's a story that remains to be told.

Feherty gave Feinstein permission to talk to just about everyone about his life, which showed a little guts under the circumstances. Not only did that include family members, but Bill Clinton even pops up for a recap of how he tried to help Feherty during difficult times. The same could be said about Tom Watson, who as Feinstein notes as a long way from Clinton politically. Maybe there's help for bipartisanship yet. You can tell that Feherty, even with his demons, has managed to keep most of his family and friends close to him because of his innate good humor. (The exception might be his first wife.)

"Feherty" feels a little on the light side, as a few asides and a little duplication fill out the pages. Even so, it continues Feinstein's long winning streak of successful and interesting books. Many will find Feherty's story surprising and interesting, and will be rooting for him to complete a successful back nine in the remaining years of his life.

Thank you NetGalley and Hachette Books for this copy of Feherty. Where do I start?

I am a big fan of golf (I watch most PGA tournaments on the weekends) and of David Feherty. I was so excited when I found this book and thought I was going to learn more about his life (more than I already knew). I used to watch his show back in the mid 2000’s and thought it was absolutely the funniest stuff I had ever seen. That’s what I wanted out of this book. That’s what I didn’t get out of this book.

Unfortunately, this book was a bunch of rambling and repetitiveness. David Feherty has overcome a lot of obstacles in his life and I was looking for something more in depth. Instead, what we are presented with is everything but. If you read this book and know nothing of Feherty’s life, then you may get out of it what you are looking for. You do learn different aspects of his life, but it only touched the surface.

I haven’t read any other biographies by John Feinstein and if it’s anything like this one I’m not sure I would pick them up. This book was a touch too long for not providing more information for the avid fan of David Feherty.

It’s really clear that Feinstein loves Feherty but this biography does not gloss over Feherty’s serious issues with addiction and the like. However, I thought the book was repetitive and really stretched out. I just don’t think there was enough there with Feherty’s life to make a full fledged biography. I love golf and I love Feherty and I like my fellow Dukie, Feinstein but this book was just a cut above average but if you love golf and Feherty you will enjoy.