For the Love of The Game of Golf

Before there was Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, or Arnold Palmer, there was Bobby Jones. The enigmatic golfer is the subject of Rowdy Herrington's Bobby Jones: Stroke of Genius, starring James Caviezel. While not without shortcomings, Stroke of Genius is a highly enjoyable film that transcends the actual sport and instead launches into a fascinating narrative of the man who is arguably the game's greatest player.

As a depiction of an athlete's emotional challenges, the film follows Jones' life from childhood, when his father gives him the freedom to pursue his passion for golf. Yet, ironically, that very freedom ultimately makes Jones miserable as he grapples with fame, fights off temptations to turn professional, and obsesses over winning.

Fresh off his role as Jesus in The Passion of the Christ, Caviezel seems to have developed a knack for portraying characters suffering from pain and anguish. In the film, Jones struggles with the external pressures of living up to astronomical expectations. Initially, he is quick-tempered, but later he internalizes the stress and has nervous breakdowns. He also develops a spinal cord disorder called syringomyelia, an affliction he copes with while becoming the only player ever to win all four major golf championships in one calendar year.

But Stroke of Genius has its cinematic flaws. Although there is plenty of golf action, remarkably little of it is dramatic. The film starts off with a retired Jones returning to St. Andrews and immediately receiving a rousing ovation from the Scottish locals. James Horner's score--seemingly borrowed from Braveheart--echoes feverishly in the background, but we never completely understand what made Jones such an adored public figure throughout a career that he cut short at age 28.

Still, this biopic has much to salvage, from Jeremy Northam's colorful portrayal of Jones' archrival, Walter Hagen, to the breathtaking beauty of one treasured golf course after another. In the end, it is the story of Jones himself that makes Stroke of Genius compelling.