Up and Down

Bubba Watson grew up in a small town and showed early promise as a golf prodigy. He first drew attention to the wider sporting world when he pulled off a stunning hook from deep among the trees to take the Masters. Yet the game he cherished was also taking a heavy toll, and he came close to losing himself to it.

Watson is recognized for his powerful left-handed swing and his pink driver. Along the way he has won the Masters twice, competed at the Olympics, and climbed to second place in the world rankings. Beneath those accomplishments lay a persistent belief that he was never quite good enough. Criticism from fans and commentators crept into his thinking until it dominated his mind.

In this memoir he writes about the panic attacks that disrupted his life, the death of his father, who shared his name, and the decision to adopt his children. A crisis that touched both his career and his private life eventually forced him to confront these pressures. The reckoning drew him nearer to his family and to God.

The book follows how Watson learned to overcome his anxiety and sense of inadequacy, to find his worth in God rather than in worldly standards, and to entrust his gifts, his family, and his greatest ambitions to God. It also traces his effort to become the husband, father, friend, and mentor he felt called to be. His central message is that golf is what he does, not who he is, and that life, like the game itself, moves through highs and lows as an imperfect man keeps working to become the best person he can be.