Matchless

'Finally – a book that truly captures the inspiring and uniquely gifted women from a largely forgotten golfing age. A wonderful read from start to finish' – Iona Stephen, Sky Sports presenter, commentator and host

From the moment women began hosting championships of their own in 1893, one of golf's burning questions became whether any woman would ever approach the mythical ideal of playing perfect golf. It took three decades of striving – at a time when Suffragettes were stubbornly fighting for women's rights – before Joyce Wethered and Glenna Collett delivered an unequivocal answer to that question.

From their first meeting at Troon in 1925, through a decade highlighted by their breathtaking match at St Andrews, the Englishwoman and the American brought out in one another golf so sublime that rare was the player, man or woman, who could perform as brilliantly.

The rivalry between Wethered and Collett generated such widespread interest and respect that it paved the way for the birth of a women's professional tour. Matchless tells the story of these two incomparable golfers – women who personified the ambitions of their age.



Stephen Proctor has served as a senior editor at The Baltimore Sun, The San Francisco Chronicle and The Houston Chronicle. He is an avid golfer and has spent the past decade studying the history of the royal and ancient game. He is the author of Monarch of the Green (Shortlisted for The Telegraph Sports Book Awards 2020 Biography of the Year) and The Long Golden Afternoon (shortlisted for the Sunday Times 2023 Sports Book Awards for Best Sports Writing, and the USGA Herbert Warren Wind Book Award) and lives in Malabar, Florida.



'Finally — a book that truly captures the inspiring and uniquely gifted women from a largely forgotten golfing age. A wonderful read from start to finish'



'a generational "life and times" of women's golf. What we have here is not mere game narrative of major championships, but sportswriting embedded in a larger cultural contest'



'Brings the wonderful characters of the early days of women's golf to life in a way that makes you want to travel back in time to Turnberry in 1921 to watch the redoubtable Cecil Leitch take on the dashing young American Alexa Stirling. A must read for all golfers and history lovers'



'Matchless brings to life the fierce rivalry and enduring legacy of two titans of women's golf whose brilliance helped shape the game's golden age . . . Essential reading for anyone who cherishes the history of golf'



'Another peerless gem from the best writer of our times. The lives of these golfing luminaries and the excitement they could instil is vividly captured. A triumph from start to finish!'



'The story of trailblazers and disrupters on both sides of the Atlantic. Women's golf, amateur and professional, would be in a far different place without their courage, passion and prowess'



'An eye-opening treatment of the world's greatest women golfers, of their early struggles for equal treatment and of the truly matchless golf they played. Impressive, humbling and a joy to read'