The Unconquerable Game

ELY REEVES CALLAWAY JR. (1919-2001) was an American entrepreneur, winemaker and intner, and golf club manufacturer, who founded the Callaway Golf Company in 1982. He had three successful careers: first in the textile industry, then in winemaking, and finally in golf equipment. Ely Callaway was born in 1919 and raised in LaGrange, Georgia. Even as he explored business ventures in New York, and later in California, he maintained his distinctive Southern charm and persona.

NICHOLAS CALLAWAY is an internationally renowned publisher, app developer, television producer, brand creator, art gallerist, writer, photographer, and teacher with more than 40 years spent at the leading edge of contemporary media and design. He is the Founder & CEO of Callaway Arts & Entertainment, a content-driven, intellectual property creation and production company across all media platforms, with headquarters in New York City. CA & E specializes in print-based and eBooks, computer-animated television series, mobile and tablet applications, and trend-forward, design-driven lifestyle brands and immersive experiences. Nicholas Callaway is the son of Ely Callaway.

In the tradition of golf classics such as Harvey Penick's Little Red Book: Lessons And Teachings From A Lifetime In Golf, Michael Murphy's Golf in the Kingdom and Ben Hogan's Five Lessons: The Modern Fundamentals of Golf, The Unconquerable Game is a unique combination of knowledge and insight about golf, written with timeless elegance, wisdom, and humor from one of America's foremost 20th century entrepreneurs.

Among the 40 million active golfers in the world today, Callaway is recognized by touring pros and amateurs alike for having created the most compatible golf equipment ever made. Indeed, Callaway's revolutionary approach to research and manufacturing changed the game, and how people approached it, for the largest subset of players in history. However, not many know that the company was founded by one man, Ely Callaway (1919-2001), who, at the age of 65-after enjoying successful careers in textiles and wine-began it as a garage start-up in southern California.

Within ten years, Ely (Ee-lee) built the Callaway Golf Company into the largest golf club company in the world and one of the sport's most prestigious brands. Golf was Ely's passion project: he had spent 50 years playing the game as an amateur; following the example of his hero and first cousin, Grand Slam winner Bobby Jones; analyzing the golf industry; and reflecting on the true meaning of the game.

The success of the Callaway Golf Company was a direct result of its charismatic leader, who made a deep impression on everyone he met. Ely was beloved by millions around the world, from golfers to presidents, pop stars, to corporate titans, and most importantly, the weekend players who often struggled with their game. In the last years of his life, Ely wrote a book about the secrets of his success. He wanted to share his outlook on life with others, and why he kept at "the unconquerable game" for as long as he did. Ely died in 2001 however, before he was able to publish the book.

Now, a generation later, the "lost book" of Ely Callaway is finally edited and compiled by his son, Nicholas Callaway. Here for the first time are Ely's stories from his lifetime in the game of golf, the people he met along the way, as well as vignettes from his career in business. Ely was a man who loved his work and sport and life, and the wisdom embedded in these pages offers promising life lessons for all.