The life of Joe Hafkenschiel chronicled in this book is probably typical of many members of "The Greatest Generation" who pulled themselves up by their bootstraps. The grandchild of immigrants from Holland and Ireland, his parents met and married in Youngstown, Ohio when it was a thriving steel center. His father worked as a laborer at the local steel plant and his mother instilled in him the importance of education. He managed to obtain a scholarship to Swarthmore and later attended Johns Hopkins Medical School. After serving in India in World War II, he became a researcher and Cardiologist specializing in the treatment of hypertension.
Throughout his life golf has been his passion and the second part of his narrative describes his experiences and ideas regarding the game of golf.