Your 5 Favourite Architecture Books

[Padraig Dooley]

I would imagine this thread has been done before, but I went looking and couldn't find it.

My five are

The Spirit of St. Andrews - MacKenzie
Aspects of Golf Course Architecture - Hawtree
The Anatomy of a Golf Course - Doak
The Life and Work of Dr. Alister MacKenzie - Doak
Golf Architecture a Worldwide Perspective - Daley
 

[Phil McDade]

The World Atlas of Golf, for starters.

I've also enjoyed Daniel Wexler's books on lost and missing courses.

Although not strictly about architecture, I'd toss in James Finegan's three books on courses in Great Britian and Ireland. Finegan is a fan of unconventional architecture, and fun golf, and is willing to stick his neck out with some contrarian views (not a big fan of Carnoustie, nor the Sacred Nine at Royal Worlington and New Market.)

The Strokesaver Guide to the Classic Courses of Great Britain and Ireland (Nick Edmund) is valuable for its insights into specific details of courses, e.g., just how big TOC greens are, and how little room there is between the Principal's Nose bunkers and OB on TOC's 16th..

[James Edwards]

Padraig,

Welcome to the site...

Could you give us a little explanation of why you prefer these books...? It would be intresting to hear your thoughts, your inspirations.

[Eric Franzen]

Geoff Shackelfords "Grounds for golf" is a really good introduction to GCA.

As everyone else here would agree, it also doesn't hurt to check out his other books - with a special mention of "Alister MacKenzie's Cypress Point Club".

[Ryan Farrow]

Grounds for golf & Anatomy of a golf course are my two favorites so far

I also read lines of charm and I am about to start a a great picture book, the golden age of design.

I'm stuck on Shackelford books, but thats life.

[Padraig Dooley]

I have a nice library, but I am just looking for some quirky books with different viewpoints.

I think the books I have mentioned by Doak, Daley are great for descibing variety an golf courses. A concept that many people recognise but can't explain well.

[Tom_Doak]

My six would be:

The World Atlas of Golf - various authors
The Spirit of St. Andrews - Dr. MacKenzie
Golf Architecture in America - George Thomas
The Links - Robert Hunter
The Architectural Side of Golf - Wethered & Simpson
The Golf Courses of the British Isles - Bernard Darwin

The first and last articulate better than anything what makes the great courses special.  Thomas's includes the most original thoughts about golf hole strategy.  And the other three are just full of ideas about what makes golf interesting.  

None of the modern books I've read, including my own, really compare to these, in my opinion.  The closest would be Paul Daley's latest, Favourite Holes by Design, which is probably the best single book for showing how differently architects think from one to another.

[Jeff_Mingay]

Tom,

I always mention Golf Courses of the British Isles when asked about architecture books. It's too often left off the list of architectural "must-reads". There's a lot to learn from Darwin in that book. For sure.

Anatomy... and the World Atlas... are the best modern-day intros. to golf architecture.

[Ryan Farrow]

Sounds like another trip to Amazon.com

Nothing says summer like mowing greens at 5 am and spending my few hours I have at home reading and sleeping.  

[Bill Gayne]

1. The Confidential Guide is the one I reference the most.
2. George Bahto's book on CBM.
3. Bob Larrance's book on Travis.
4. The strokesaver book of Great Britain and Ireland.
5. The Spirit of St. Andrews

[Bill_McBride]

"The Spirit of St. Andrews" by MacKenzie, incorporating as it does that little gem, "Golf Architecture."

"Golf Courses of the British Isles" by Bernard Darwin.  Amazing how real life it is today, plus introducing the verb, "to foozle," and noun, "foozler."

"Evangelist of Golf," by George Bahto, and C.B. MacDonald's "Scotland's Gift, Golf," which are companion volumes.

"Alister MacKenzie's Cypress Point," by Geoff Shackleford, if for nothing else but MacKenzie and his Packard on the pristine fairways.  The black and white photos are marvelous.

Doak's "Anatomy of a Golf Course," which taught me golf course construction's details more than any other text.  "Driving the Green" by John Strawn was my first golf architecture book and is a close second in many ways.

My latest addition, and very informative and interesting, is Forrest Richardson and Mark Fine's book on hazards.  Good stuff.

Is there another sport with the wealth of literature of golf?  I love to pull out the Herbert Warren Wind and the Darwin and a recently acquired copy of Henry Longhurst's biography.  And P.G. Wodehouse, what more can you say?

[peter_p]

I've just started reading Goodwin's book about the making of Bandon Dunes (they haven't even heard of the site yet) and it could be included in the list. I've noticed new GCA threads I presumed started by fellow readers. Better than my expectations.

[Sean_A]

I don't include Confidential Guide, World Atlas or Darwin as archie books.  If I did, I think Steel's book is the best of the lot.  He does a very simple thing which brings the discussion of the course to life.  Provides a course outline.  A simple notion that is often overlooked.  

1. The Golf Course   Cornish & Whitten   The closest thing I have to a bible.

2. Spirit of ...   Dr Mac   I love the black & white aspect of the book.  It helps sort out a tangle even if you change your mind later.

3. The Hotchkin Course   Richard Latham   Easily the best study of the evolution of a great course that I have read.  

4. Grounds For Golf   Shack   A great look into the many different aspects of design without blinding the reader with science.

5. Dr. Mac   Doak etc.   I have yet to play a "great" Mac course, but of the ones I have played there are always a few holes which most clubs would be happy to claim.  This book is a great introduction to Mac and his work.

Ciao

Sean

[Andrew Thomson]

I quite like a quirky little book I acquired recently called "courses without Par in Australia"

Some of the courses it features would have been best left out, but it also features a 'different' perspective of some of our great courses too.

[Kevin Pallier]

I need to hit Amazon again soon - with my birthday coming up as I clearly need to add to my collection

1. Golf Architecture - Mackenzie
2. The Golf Courses of the British Isles - Darwin
3. World Atlas of Golf - Various
4. Classic Golf Courses of GB & I - Edmund
5. Classic Golf Links - Steel

I think something from Doak or Hawtree should suffice nicely

BTW - I would hope Ran publishes a book on his collective views one day (despite this great site) ?

[Michael Whitaker]

www.BookCloseouts.com has three of the books mentioned here:

World Atlas of Golf (Rowlinson) $14.99
Bernard Darwin On Golf $5.99
Emerald Fairways & Fam-Flecked Seas (Finegan) $3.99

[George Pazin]

Ryan, don't order the World Atlas yet! I have at least 4 copies, so I'll give you one of mine.

The architecture book I re-read most often is Geoff's book on Cypress Point. The photos and the snippets from Mackenzie and Hunter are just special, nothing more need be said.

The Steel book is also inspiring.

There are very few poor books on architecture.

Just remembered my other fav, which might just supplant the Cypress book: Paul Daley's compilation of architect's favorite golf holes.

You can never go wrong with any of Paul or Geoff's books, or Tom's, or Brad's, or George B's, or Daniel Wexler's, or....

[Ryan Farrow]

George I am glad to hear the Cypress Point book was a good read. I had it ordered but it was delayed at Amazon so I cancelled. Anyways, we do need to meet up for a round in the future. I am heading back to school around August 15th or so and can only golf on the weekends.

[BCrosby]

All good choices. Let me add another.

Patric Dickinson's A Round of Courses (1953?) may be the best unknown book in the literature. It is hard to find these days, but should not be missed. Eighteen essys on eighteen UK courses written as well as anything ever written on the game. Darwin, Wind or anyone else.

A Round of Courses was Dickinson's only book on golf. A shame.

Bob

 

[Tom_Doak]

Bob:

Dickinson's is indeed a great book, I almost included it in my five.  I found it in the Stamford Public Library when I was 12 or 13 and looking for books on the subject of golf courses ... wonderfully written and engaging and his little diagrams of key holes are hysterical as well.

I found a paperback copy in Ireland a few years back, published in 1990 by A. & C. Black Ltd.

The foreword is by none other than Bernard Darwin, who writes among other compliments:

'Though one knows (the courses) all well, yet the author has found so many new things to say of them that I feel rather like the man who admired Shakespeare:  "Things come into his head that would never come into mine."'

It's no wonder Mr. Dickinson retired as a writer after a compliment like that!

[BCrosby]

Or how about this by Dickinson on Hoylake:

"No, once on this ... links, there is no means of avoiding prosecuting counsel's questions.  It is a golfing cross-examination which will reveal and work upon every flaw in your golfing technique.  It is at Hoylake that all golfing dentists should be forced to take their holidays.  Hoylake probes relentlessly, finds the soft spot, and reaches for the drill."

Bob

[Sean_A]

Or how about this by Dickinson on Hoylake:

"No, once on this ... links, there is no means of avoiding prosecuting counsel's questions.  It is a golfing cross-examination which will reveal and work upon every flaw in your golfing technique.  It is at Hoylake that all golfing dentists should be forced to take their holidays.  Hoylake probes relentlessly, finds the soft spot, and reaches for the drill."

Bob

Bob

The line you quoted is one of the great pieces in golf literature.  It very accurately describes Hoylake!

Ciao

Sean

[BCrosby]

More Dickinson on Hoylake:

"Hoylake shares with bicycling the strange fact that whichever way you turn, the wind is plumb against, or at any rate unhelpful, across, or only behind when it is downhill, and you don't, anyway (e.g. the 13th) want it to be."

[peter_p]

Alibris has multiple copies of the Dickinson book. Most are 1990 paperbacks, but there are two copies of the 1951 original.

http://www.alibris.com/search/search.cfm?qwork=5818868&wauth=Patric%20dickinson&ptit=A%20Round%20of%20Golf%20Courses%3A%20A%20Selection%20of%20the%20Best%20Eighteen&pauth=Dickinson%2C%20Patric&pisbn=&pqty=19&pqtynew=0&pbest=2%2E97&matches=19&qsort=p&cm_re=wor