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ABOUT THE AUTHOR <<
J. Michael Veron is the acclaimed author
of The Greatest Player Who Never Lived
and The Greatest Course That Never Was.
His third novel, titled The Caddie,
was released in early 2004.
Mike's work earned him the title of "master
of fiction" from USA Today, and Travel and Leisure Golf
Magazine called him "The John Grisham
of Golf." In addition, after The Greatest Player, the
New York Times hailed him as "Golf's
Literary Rookie of the Year," and the Seattle Times
ranked The Greatest Player as second on its all-time list
of "Five
Wonderful Golf Books."
At one time, The Greatest Player and
The Greatest Course were the first
and third best-selling sports fiction in the country. Now,
his third book, The Caddie, is attracting
major interest as a must-read for golfers of all levels because
of the wonderful fountain of knowledge combined with a myriad
of historical anecdotes that makes the book interesting and
fun to read.
All of this is especially remarkable considering that Mike didn't
begin to write fiction until the age of 49. Born and raised
in Lake Charles, Louisiana, Mike is the older son of Earl and
Verdy Veron. His father was a self-made man who was the first
person in his family ever to attend college, beginning McNeese
State College as a freshman at the age of 32 and then completing
LSU Law School in record time. After a few years as a practicing
lawyer, Earl Veron was elected to the state bench and, in 1977,
was appointed by President Carter to the federal bench, where
he served until his death in 1990. His career as a trial judge
was so distinguished that his obituary was published in The
New York Times, as well as several other leading newspapers
in the country.
Mike attended Tulane University, where he received a bachelor's
degree in English literature as well as a law degree. After
a year of clerking for a judge on the Louisiana Supreme Court,
he then obtained a post-graduate law degree from Harvard Law
School before returning to Lake Charles in 1976. Mike has practiced
law there ever since and is now a senior partner in his law
firm, Scofield, Gerard, Veron, Singletary & Pohorelsky (www.sgvsp.com).
Mike has compiled a remarkable string of courtroom victories
in jury trials over the years while representing both plaintiffs
and defendants. For instance, he successfully defended numerous
claims against his business clients for alleged exposure to
asbestos, phosgene, benzene, and pertussis, among other things,
as well as maritime personal injury cases and product liability
cases, securing a number of "zero" defense verdicts for his
clients. In recent years, Mike began to represent plaintiffs
as well, and has obtained several jury verdicts ranging from
more than $1 million to more than $50 million on behalf of plaintiffs.
He has also won acquittals for defendants in criminal cases
before juries in federal courts both in Louisiana and Texas.
Through it all, Mike also found time to teach advanced trial
practice to seniors at LSU Law School for a number of years,
and his work there earned him a place in the LSU Law Center
Hall of Fame. He also frequently lectures on trial practice
to lawyers and judges at various conferences and meetings. In
fact, Mike's clients have included other lawyers and judges,
as well as injured plaintiffs and Fortune 500 companies seeking
his trial talents.
Before turning to fiction writing, Mike published a number of
scholarly law review articles that prompted a noted federal
appeals judge to call Mike "one of our most perceptive commentators
on the judicial process" and to praise his scholarship and historical
knowledge as "awesome." He also completed a book entitled Litigation
Handbook: A Method of Trial Practice, and used it as his course
text at LSU and in other courses on trial practice he has taught
to practicing lawyers.
Since 1986, Mike has served as a USGA Committee Member and occasional
Rules Official. He has been a regular speaker at USGA conferences
around the country, talking on such diverse subjects as legal
issues pertaining to golf as well as his golf writing. As is
evident from his books, Mike is passionate about golf and is
a regular at the Lake Charles Country Club, his home course,
where he has been both its president and its club champion.
Mike and his wife Melinda are the proud parents of five children
and three grandchildren. Together, their children range in ages
from 33 to 12 and remain a great source of joy to their parents.
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