Book Description
The Old Course at St. Andrews is to golfers what St. Peter's is to Catholics or the Western Wall is to Jews: hallowed ground, the course every golfer longs to play -- and master. In 1983 George Peper was playing the Old Course when he hit a slice so hideous that he never found the ball. But in looking for it, he came across a For Sale sign on a stone town house alongside the famed eighteenth hole. Two months later he and his wife, Libby, became the proud owners of 9A Gibson Place.
In 2003 Peper retired after twenty-five years as the editor in chief of Golf magazine. With the younger of their two sons off to college, the Pepers decided to sell their house in the United States and relocate temporarily to the town house in St. Andrews. And so they left for the land of golf -- and single malt scotch, haggis, bagpipes, television licenses, and accents thicker than a North Sea fog. While Libby struggled with renovating an apartment that for years had been rented to students at the local university, George began his quest to break par on the Old Course.
Their new neighbors were friendly, helpful, charmingly eccentric, and always serious about golf. In no time George was welcomed into the local golf crowd, joining the likes of Gordon Murray, the man who knows everyone; Sir Michael Bonallack, Britain's premier amateur golfer of the last century; and Wee Raymond Gatherum, a magnificent shotmaker whose diminutive stature belies his skills.
For anyone who has ever dreamed of playing the Old Course -- and what golfer hasn't? -- this book is the next best thing. And for those who have had that privilege, Two Years in St. Andrews will revive old memories and confirm Bobby Jones's tribute, "If I were to set down to play on one golf course for the remainder of my life, I should choose the Old Course at St. Andrews."
Customer Reviews:
If you love Golf you'll love this Book........2007-08-06
This has to be one of the "Gems" of Golf Travel books.
From start of finish I found this book well written, humorous, sophisticated and wonderfully self-effacing. I would like to meet George Peper; I'm sure we would get along very well. Maybe a game on the Old Course would do the trick.
This is a fabulously entertaining tale of George and his wife's move to St. Andrews from an important position in the U.S.A., namely editor of Golf Digest. The story begins with the acquisition of an apartment overlooking the hallowed turf of the 18th Green of the Old Course at St.Andrews, the home of Golf.
George has the extremely good fortune of being a member of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club and sets about using this privilege to good effect. Not only does he become a popular and successful member, he also achieves a long held ambition; playing a round on the Old Course in Par.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I have been inspired by his "two years of golf" and long to follow his example by playing the Old Course, at least once.
His fondness for the people of St. Andrews and Scotland in general comes through with a warmth and genuinely felt emotion.
I can not imagine anyone finding this book disappointing. To me it has been a wonderful windfall.
I felt as if I were there.......2007-07-29
Someday before I turn 50 (I just turned 40), I plan to visit Scotland and St. Andrew's. But I already feel as if I have been there once after reading Mr. Peper's book.
Mr. Peper really captures the spirit of the town. It's so much different from the hustle and bustle of American life and the digital age in general. He breaks the book into small mostly unrelated "chapters" which highlight part of the town, the course, family, etc.
Thanks, George! Your book was an enjoyable read cover-to-cover.
A good read if you have been to St Andrews.......2007-07-23
George Peper is no Herbert Warren Wind, but his book is an enjoyable read for those who have spent time in St Andrews.
Wonderfull writing of golf and life in its birthplace.......2007-07-19
I loved this book. It was the perfect combination of life and golf in golf's birthplace - St Andrews. The writer provided an excellent look into life in the golf club and the village of St Andrews; their people, the culture and the history. Mr Peper writes with an excellent dry witt and makes you feel as if you know him personally. I enjoy books the most when I feel like I can relate to the place and people being written about and the author was very good at doing this. While being a single digit handicap golfer and a past editor of Golf Magazine and traveling in a very select inside group of professional golfers, media personalities and celebrities, Mr. Peper never took himself too seriously as a golfer, a writer or as a person. The more I read this book, the harder it became to put down and the more I looked forward to reading it the next day. It was educational, enlightening and enjoyable.It is a book you can just lean back, put your feet up and enjoy while at any time of day or night. The only thing that bothered me about this book was wondering how the author pronounced his name, Pepper or Peeper so I contacted a writer who interviewed the author for a magazine and was told that it was Pepper and that he was as enjoyable and selfless in person as he seems in his books. I look forward to Mr Peper's next book.
Great, interesting, funny : you live un st. andrews.......2007-05-16
Thanks George Peper!!!!:
For one of the best golf books. Its as if I was actually there.
I can`t wait to go to the "OLD COURSE" and expirience the magic you narrated in your book.
The srtucture of the story (expirience)is wonderfull and adictive.
You read the first page and want to keep on reading till you can barely keep your eyes open.
If you love reading and golf this book is a must read.
Amazon.com
In 1933 Alister MacKenzie put on paper his considerable golfing knowledge. One of the game's most revered course designers--he conceived Augusta National, site of the Masters, and served the hallowed links of St. Andrews for years as consulting architect--MacKenzie synthesized his thoughts on golf's history, its equipment, its personalities, and his musings on what makes a great course and what makes a great hole, into a manuscript that lay hidden for more than 60 years. Finally available, it stands as one of the most courtly and cultivated treatises ever written on the royal and ancient game. His concepts of the psychology of design are as apt today as when he penned them, and his anecdotal spinnings on his own golfing trials should inspire anyone who's thought of picking up a club.
Book Description
Alister MacKenzie was one of golf's greatest architects. He designed his courses so that players of all skill levels could enjoy the game while still creating fantastic challenges for the most experienced players. Several of MacKenzie's courses, such as Augusta National, Cypress Point, and Pasatiempo, remain in the top 100 today. In his "lost" 1933 manuscript, published for the first time in 1995 and now finally available in paperback, MacKenzie leads you through the evolution of golf--from St. Andrews to the modern-day golf course--and shares his insight on great golf holes, the swing, technology and equipment, putting tips, the USGA, the Royal & Ancient, and more. With fascinating stories about Bobby Jones, Walter Hagen, Gene Sarazen, and many others, The Spirit of St. Andrews gives valuable lessons for all golfers as well as an intimate portrait of Alister MacKenzie, a true legend of the game.
Customer Reviews:
Musings of a great golf course architect.......2006-03-21
MacKenzie's "Spirit of St. Andrews" shows that his philosophy of golf course architecture is as relevant today as it was when this was written in the 1930s. The good doctor's writing flows with the charm of that era.
Substantial resource on golf in the 1930s.......2004-11-12
Not to be confused with a book centered on architecture, this, MacKenzie's unpublished and possibly unfinished volume on golf, is a general essay on the game and its facets.
Because MacKenzie is famous for his courses, the obvious assumption is that this would be centered on course design. Rather, it is almost a reflection on what goes in to making a good course versus a bad one, what seperates good golfers from the hacks, and a whole other range of subjects. It even features a chapter on his disection of the golf swing.
For someone looking purely for an architectural perspective, it would be better to look at his other book, Golf Architecture. This, on the other hand, is much more broad ranging. Most will only be interested in the first half, where the focus is on courses, their upkeep, and MacKenzie's personal involvement in the spread of golf. The latter, on the swing and a few random ideas on golf, will likely drag on the reader rather than offering the enlightenment we would hope for.
Legendary Architect on Sundry Golf Issues.......2001-02-20
Lost manuscript now publlished for all of us to hear the thoughts of such an influential figure in our sport's history. Bob Jones wrote of him in the preface: "all his courses that I have played have been interesting; in every instance he has placed interest and enjoyment ahead of difficulty."
Oh, that more modern designers would learn the lesson! He states that even the most emphatic golfer who says he's not interested in beauty is "subconsciously influenced by his surroundings." Easily the designer of some of golf's most influential hole scenes, this guy gives definite hints, e.g. Playing down fairways bordered by straight lines of trees is not only unartistic but makes tedious and uninteresting golf. Many green committees ruin one's handiwork by planting trees like rows of soldiers along the borders of the fairways."
Love the poem he quotes on the analysis of paralysis: The Centipede was happy quite until a toad in fun said "Pray which leg goes over which?" This put his mind in such a pitch he lay distracted in a ditch considering how to run."
Buy it and read it now.......1998-09-30
Great read and great sketches. When asked how he got such interesting, hilly, contoured greens, Dr. M once said, "Employ the biggest fool in the village and instruct him to make the greens all flat"
Scary how much of the comments written in the early part of the century apply to today's game and course design. Once section about the controversy of the day re: limiting the flight of the ball is exaclt what we are hearing nearly again 70 years later
Course Architecture and Maintenance.......1998-07-20
MacKenzie shares his timeless, and oft forgotten, philosophy on how a course should be designed - for the golfer, but not by the golfer; shaped and, when necessary reworked, by the professional architect, not by the whims of a committee; and finally, playable by all who love the game.
Customer Reviews:
Essential reading.......1999-06-26
Any player seriously intent on understanding the rules must have this reference work. It is both enlightening and entertaining. Remember, all the scenarios here are real-life occurrences - often more bizarre than anything you could make up.
To Destiny above: You don't need the Decisions to solve your question. Look in the Rules of Golf, Definitions: Stroke
Surprisingly Interesting.......1998-03-10
The Rules of Golf are not interesting. But the Decisions on the Rules are both interesting and informative. There is no better way to get an understanding of the rules than by reading this book. I know it sounds crazy but I actually found it interesting, even if if fails to address a situation which must arise frequently: Is it a double hit when the club strikes a sand-blasted shot in flight? (Keep in mind that the club doesn't initially contact the ball because of the layer of sand that intervenes when the ball is propelled out of the trap.) I actually read the 1993 Edition (not 1992 as Amazon is listing it). Maybe that question is addressed in the 1995 Edition.
Customer Reviews:
ME THINKS THIS IS A BONNY BOOK.......2007-06-21
Todd Sentell is the author of the mother of all golf satires, Toonamint of Champions
Edicts are meant to be broken ... and a novel about how golf might have began, got stopped, and begun again, was meant to be written by a real live golf course maker, writer, artist, social observer, and bon vivant. Bob Cupp, who's designed fair ways and fair greens all over the earth, has published a novel so deep in historical fact and useable information that it's enjoyable on loads of levels. In other words, do you know why we play golf with a hole? Really? You know, sausages are linked ... some crimes are linked ... but finally we get the explanation from a man who knows: Cupp's narrator tells us, in golf, what "links" really means. Cupp's narrator gives us a review of grasses ... and a review of ancient equipment. In The Edict, you get the best golf lessons. All you have to do is crack this handsome book open and start ... grinning.
The story is about a young shepherd, Caeril Patersone, who's a natural golfer and plays in matches here and there, governed by the United Golf Honours Society, against golfers who make cameo appearances under ancient names and descriptions. Cupp pays quirky tributes to memorable characters very much like Nicklaus, Hagen, Hogan, Palmer, Snead, and Jones. Caeril's handsomely crafted, too, but there's always got to be jealous character lurking around to make the story even more interesting ... and violent ... and it's the local money lender and outright grumpy fart, Mordiac Domni. In Caeril's quest to win the championship, goons get ventilated with arrows and gutted with knives ... a local bonny gal, Eta, bares it all in hopes of distracting our hero and it damn well works ... and the most unlikely creeps turn into real gentlemen. All because of this pesky sport called golf.
Look closely in The Edict ... literally: look closely ... and also enjoy something unique to any modern golf novel: Cupp's own drawings accentuate the entire book. Who is that modern golfer in ancient leggings on page vii? Could that be the great golfer from Latrobe on page 63 ... sporting a bushy beard? Could be ... sure is. And that's part of the fun of this book. The author's clever hand and mind is all over ... and in ... the pages.
The Edict is a novel ... it's fictional entertainment ... but it's a truthful book. You can feel the affection the author has for the sport and the towns and topography on which we play it ... and you can feel the affection for how he thinks golf might have started six hundred or so years ago. I say let's make a new edict up: let's make this special book the official golfer's Bible. In the King James version we're supposed to believe a dead man ... can come alive? Then let's believe a simple man ... a humble shepherd ... can play golf, a lot, and that his woman will still love him, too.
And who's to say their children became the famous ancient club makers and golf professionals we learn about in coffee table books ... those old Grey Beards whose old photographs we gaze at and wonder if they really knew what golf would become. I say let's seriously propose that idea of Cupp's, too. I won't cryit downe.
by Todd Sentell, author of the mother of all golf satires, Toonamint of Champions: How LaJuanita Mumps Got to Join Augusta National Golf Club Real Easy
delightful sports historical thriller .......2007-05-16
In the fifteenth century, golf has become the national pastime of Scotland with only raiding matching it with intensity. So popular is the sport, raiding is halted during the annual tournament at St. Andrews while betting on the players is hot.
The favorite to win the St. Andrews tourney in 1457 is shepherd Caeril Patersone. However, a noble panics when he realizes he made a stupid bet. To insure that Caeril fails to win the event, he writes off a debt in exchange for beautiful Eta to distract the favorite. If that fails, he still has his ace in the hole of appealing to King James II to ban the sport and consequently the tournament because he has proof too many soldiers hit the links instead of the archery range.
THE EDICT is a delightful sports historical thriller based on a real event that occurred in Scotland when the King outlawed golf on March 4, 1457. Readers will root for Caeril, who in spite of being the best golfer in the tournament, is a decided underdog because the fix is in. Historical readers and golf aficionados will believe that Bob Cupp is a masterful author as he makes birdies and eagles with this ace of a fifteenth century sports saga.
Harriet Klausner
Book Description
Known and revered by golfers everywhere, St. Andrews was formed by members of the Kingdom of Fife in 1754. The Royal and Ancient Golf Club stages the Open Championship annually and is responsible for the rules of golf throughout the world in conjunction with the United States Golf Association. Golf at St. Andrews, including never-before-seen photographs, is an interesting and detailed survey of the Old Course and an account of its rise as the Home of Golf.
Author Keith Mackie begins by discussing Open Championships from 1873 to 1990, giving amusing anecdotes of the lives of players from Old Tom Morris to Jack Nicklaus, who has written the foreword. Mackie then moves on to handle the subject of equipment; as golf equipment and the upkeep of courses has changed, so has the shape of the swing and the flight of the ball.
Of course, Mackie presents the famous events at St. Andrews such as the Amateur Championships, the Walker Cup International between Britain and America, and the PGA Championship. He also includes a chapter on the management of the links: the fascinating details of the maintenance of the Old Course as well as advice on how to secure a start time. With Golf at St. Andrews, your introduction to the world's most famous course will be complete.
Customer Reviews:
get ready for the old course.......2002-02-13
if you want to get the real feel, this is the book.. old and new.great course descriptions of all holes and how to play them which i will do on apr 4th. all the trivia and little known facts. amaze your friends astound your buddies. this is all you need.
No substitute for being there but close........1997-03-16
If you yearn to play there someday, this would appear to be an excellent
introduction. Each hole is described in detail and the history is clearly
recited. The book also describes the several other courses (beyond the Old Course)
that they might try to shuffle you off to. One of them (the NEW Course) is older
than all but 2 or 3 courses in this country. One of the most enjoyable
golf books I've read.
Customer Reviews:
science of golf review.......2007-05-26
Disappointed in that it didn't cover much physics of the ball, club, and ball flight, but a lot of human physical stuff.
Customer Reviews:
A great book that happens to be about golf.......2004-04-29
Winter Dreams is one of the best novels I have read that also happens to be about golf. Like most of us, Ross Lansdale, the protagonist is not a good golfer, but it nevertheless is important in his life. Golf is a thread that connects his otherwise empty and lonely life until...
I don't want to give the plot away, but I do want to explain why this book is valuable. (1) Ross is a good man who has bad things happen to him, but never ceases to be human. He struggles through several challenges in his life and always struggles on. (2)The clouds don't suddenly lift and everything become wonderful. This is good in a book; life is not a bowl of cherries, eh? (3) But the best thing about this book is that it gets at the essential sadness that is within many of us, without becoming sappy, preachy or melodramatic. (4)It is easy to care about all of the key characters in the book, even the ones who act badly. They have their own motivations which have nothing to do with wanting to cause pain. A rare quality in even good books.(5) And finally, I received several good tips which seem to be helping my struggling golf game.
In conclusion, so many books on golf come off as mystical or are written about great golfers. It is wonderful to have a book about a hacker, who gets real joy from just trying to play and for the higher honor of friendship.
Amazon.com
The history of St. Andrews may not tell the whole story of golf, but it certainly provides the early chapters--as well as significant new episodes along the way. To help commemorate the Open Championship's return to the Royal and Ancient grounds in 2000, St. Andrews fetes the game's most hallowed pasture. With sprightly text and enough pictures to weigh down a caddie, it tells the stories of the 25 British Opens--from 1873 to John Daly's improbable triumph in 1995--that have gone out from the shadow of the intimidating stone clubhouse and returned, after battling winds, bunkers, gorse, and all kinds of troubles big and small, to the beckoning arms of the legendary Home Hole. --Jeff Silverman
Book Description
This book, so high in quality that it is the official book of the St Andrews Links Trust and the Royal Ancient Open Championship Committee, has captured the courses greatness page by page.
Customer Reviews:
Great Color Photographs, Good Histories, and Modest Essays.......2001-01-25
You could visit St. Andrews for years and not see scenes like the amazing color photographs done by Iain MacFarlane Lowe. They are a treasure. The book also contains many good black and white photographs of historic golfing events at St. Andrews. The essays are about as modest as they could be and still be competent. They read like the warm-up of some network newscast background during a rain delay in the British Open. I graded the otherwise fine book down one star for this relative weakness.
This book will make a worthy momento of a trip to St. Andrews or an inspiring encouragement to travel to there.
St. Andrews was originally called "Muck ross" by the Picts, a name which meant "headland of swine." The history of the town's founding is covered here as well as the start of the course, originally 11 holes. The Royal & Ancient Golf Club was founded in 1839.
The book is organized around each of the 24 Opens contested at St. Andrews since the competitions began in 1873 through 1995, when John Daley was the winner with his incredible shot on the 17th (road) hole. There is also a section with a photograph of each of the Old Course's 18 holes. Interspaced through the book are views of famous bunkers and scenary.
The written part of the book is at its best in describing the early dominance by Tom Morris, father and son, who each won four Opens at St. Andrews.
The one fact that surprised me was that Jock Hutchinson, the first American to win the Open at St. Andrews in 1921, was born and bred there before moving to the United States. His "ribbed" iron was controversial for its ability to stop the ball on the very hard greens.
From 1921, the Open there belonged to the Americans more often than not, undoubtedly because the openness of the Old Course favors the long-hitting American game.
Each Open contains many illustrations from that time, which gives the book an authentic feeling. I felt like I was in the museum in St. Andrews again.
From a pictoral point of view, I was disappointed that the book did not capture the truly foul weather that often exists at St. Andrews, the horrible pot bunker challenges, and the gorse. You end up seeing something more like a park than St. Andrews really is to play.
The magnificent color photographs invariably favor a sunny St. Andrews under unusual lighting conditions that change the color and the character of the course into something almost magical.
After enjoying this book, do remember that if you want to play the Old Course there are handicap maximums (albeit very generous ones). You can write ahead and get a guaranteed tee time, which I heartily recommend. Any tour guide worth their price will tell you what to do while you are planning your trip. You might as well play the New Course while you are there. I don't recommend doing them both in the same day though. Caddies are often not available, and you will probably be carrying or pulling your clubs on one or the other of the two courses.
Practice hitting the low bump and run shot before you go. You'll use it a lot unless the weather is perfect (which seldom happens).
Good photos, great historical data.......2000-05-02
This is a fabulous and lavish book on the world's most fabled golf course and the great champions who have played it. The historical data is supported by a wealth of unique old photographs.
Organized with chapters for each year the British Open has been held at St. Andrews, the book takes the reader through a flowing history of the game itself. It is a celebration of the rich history of golf.
A highlight is a section of new color photos of each of the 18 holes, brilliantly capturing the feel of the course. The perils of each hole are described in the captions.
For fans of the greats of the game there is extensive coverage with photos of Bobby Jones, Palmer, Nicklaus, Player, Lema, Watson and many others. Historical accounts bring to life the greats of past generations as well.
Pictoral History of Every Brithish Open eld at St Andrews.......2000-04-13
David Joy, chapter by chapter, takes the reader through every British Open hosted by St Andrews. From Tom Kidd in 1873 to the John Daly - Constantino Rocca playoff in 1995, this is a pictoral collection like no other. While the text is lacking in depth and substance, the rich collection of pictures,sketches and memorabilia more than make up for the deficiency. There are pictures of Old Tom Morris, Young Tom Morris, the triumvirate of Vardon, Taylor and Braid, Bobby Jones, Sam Snead, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and many more. The final chapter includes a memorable picture titled "The Last Farewell" showing Arnold Palmer tipping his visor to the gallery as he pauses on Swilken Bridge. It had been anounced that this would be his final trip to the British Open. This book is a must for everyone who loves golf and its rich history.
Great photos. Poorly written. Not worth the money!.......2000-04-04
I bought this book in Edinburgh for £25. Attracted by the subject matter and the wonderful photos on offer, it looked a good buy until I actually began to read it. What a major disappointment. I can only hope that author David Joy is a better actor than he is a writer! Talk about long waffling sentences about nothing in particular!. If you do not believe me, just read through the opening paragraphs of the introduction. What a load of unrelated nonsence it really is. However, the photos were terrific but certainly not worth the £25 I paid out. If they had not have been, the book would of rated a zero on the star front!
A must buy for anyone who loves Saint Andrews & The Open.......2000-02-15
This book depicts The Open in wonderful detail with text, pictures and drawings. The color photos are stunning and make you feel you are actually on the course. I was fascinated and enjoyed the text describing each Open and the events that took place each time the The Open has been held at St. Andrews. The stories describing the history of the Old Course, the village of St. Andrews and the history of The Open are all truly memorable. The vintage photos and drawings add to the enjoyment. I cannot wait to return to St. Andrews to play the course and enjoy the atmosphere. If you enjoy The Open and it's history, particularily in conjuction with St. Andrews, this book is a MUST BUY.
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Dream Golf: The Making of Bandon Dunes
Where Golf is Great: The Finest Courses of Scotland and Ireland
A Season In Dornoch: Golf and Life in the Scottish Highlands
Tommy's Honor: The Story of Old Tom Morris and Young Tom Morris, Golf's Founding Father and Son
Blasted Heaths and Blessed Green: A Golfer's Pilgrimage to the Courses of Scotland
