Russ, that would be great, much appreciated. Always good to have fresh eyes.
Duncan and David, SoSA sadly lacks an index, so it can be difficult to find and re-find things. I seem to find new and interesting things out of the book each time I go into it. Here's one, with Mackenzie talking about his golf game in the chapter "In the Seventies at Sixty", p221.
"I am convinced that the theories I have put down are entirely sound. Yesterday, after writing them, I went out to play golf with them firmly planted in my mind. Time after time I outdrove, much to their astonishment, two young fellows who in the past had left me far behind. Notwithstanding a broken bone in my wrist, and in consequence a wasted left arm, I was driving with deadly accuracy and frequency well over two hundred and thirty yards, and my approach play was equally good, despite the fact I was only playing with four clubs."
Now that information about MacKenzie's wrist and his "wasted left arm" was not something that had registered on me previously, and I don't recall it having been brought to light by anyone previously in books or any discussion about Mackenzie. But its not a timeline entry, he wrote the book from around 1931-33, and we don't know when he suffered the wrist injury, recent or old. An interesting fact nevertheless.
So I'm glad Duncan that you have ordered a copy, you'll enjoy it.
I have to take issue Duncan with your statement "after 1901" as Mackenzie does not specifically say "after 1901" in his book.Tony Muldoon also assumed this after 1901 date in his post too. The 'after' part seems to have been added by you and Tony. On page 19 he wrote:
"My own interest in golf course architecture originated in an unusual way. During the years of 1899 to 1901 I was serving in the South African war" he then goes on to talk about the Boers and their natural fortifications, and that "on my return from South Africa I wrote two or three pages in the suggestion book of the Leeds Golf Club" to point out how the course could be changed.
Mackenzie in fact returned from South Africa early in 1901, in early April. By June he was recorded as playing in a medal competition at Leeds GC. So he got back into golf quite quickly it would seem upon his return. My thinking then is that he wrote in the Leeds GC his thoughts on the course in 1901 not so long after returning, especially as it seems he had these ideas generated by what he saw in South Africa going around his head. He says he wrote them "on returning" and not a few years after returning.
I know why you are saying "after 1901" David and Duncan as it suits your hypothesis, but Mackenzie did not say "after 1901" and the known facts support that he was back in Leeds relatively early in 1901, was playing golf again at Leeds GC and was beginning to formulate his ideas on golf courses using the Boer fortifications as his inspiration.
David, Mackenzie wrote that he "first commenced to play golf in Scotland when I was about eighteen years of age", and by the sound of it he may have had more than just one game. You say that this doesn't support the notion that "he grew up playing in Scotland during family holidays" But I never said that David, the speculative entry in the chronology in fact says "it is likely that he first played golf in Scotland when there on family holidays." Which in fact has been proven correct. I did not say that he 'grew up' playing golf in Scotland, rather I said he first played, as these would seem to be two different things, growing up playing golf would seem to imply that it was a much more regular activity which I never suggested.
And if MacKenzie was playing golf in Scotland when he was around 17, 18, 19 years of age, do you imagine he was in Scotland for any other purpose than family holidays? In those years he was finishing his schooling at Wakefield and being admitted into Cambridge.