Top 10 golf books for 2009 (3)

7. Golf's Dream 18s; Author: David Barrett; Publisher: Abrams
As a daydream exercise and good-looking holiday gift, Golf's Dream 18s fulfills its mission. Its author, David Barrett is well-suited to the task and the photography, primarily the work of L.C. (Larry) Lambrecht, Russell Kirk and a host of other top names, ensures that the scenic journey is superb. Its subtitle, "Fantasy courses comprised of over 300 holes from around the world" illustrates both the strengths and weaknesses of the book. On the one hand, if you're a fan of great golf holes, they're here — jabbed into chapters such as "Hard Holes," "Mountain Holes," "Historic Holes," and "Holes Anyone Can Play." On the other hand, there was really no compelling reason to group these holes by 18s. They're just great holes, period. 

8. The Downhill Lie; Author: Carl Hiaasen; Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf
OK, this one was a 2008 release, but I didn't read it until 2009. And in this a year when we can really use some good laughs, The Downhill Lie delivers a belly full. I read this on an airplane ride and nearly required oxygen because I was out of breath from cracking up. 

Subtitled, "A Hacker's Return to a Ruinous Sport," The Downhill Lie details the author's seemingly misguided reconnection with the sport of his childhood after 32 years away. His day-to-day travails are among the funniest accounts about how we struggle with golf that I've ever read. Take Hiaasen's first line in the Preface: "There are so many people to blame for this book, that it's hard to know where to begin." Over time, he touts then skewers everything from lessons to pendants to drivers. It's all hysterical. The Florida-based Hiaasen, whose best-selling novels include Skinny Dip, Lucky You and Sick Puppy, isn't going to appeal to genteel tastes. But if you love golf and you love the absurd, there's never been a better read. 

9. A Son of the Game; Author: James Dodson; Publisher: Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill
Sitting down with a James Dodson golf book is like slipping on your old pair of slippers next to a cozy hearth. If you're fond of that kind of comfort, you'll easily warm to this vibrant, poignant, humor-filled tale that explores such universal themes as going home again and connecting with your kids. If you aren't a fan of the old soft shoes, you'll likely want to head elsewhere. Dodson, who penned perhaps the greatest golf/family/sentimentality story of all in Final Rounds can definitely pour on the syrup, but this book isn't drenched with it — and it asks questions and raises issues that any reader can relate to. A bonus for golf travel fans are his descriptions of the Pinehurst/Southern Pines area, practically the holy land of U.S. golf. 

10. A Course Called Ireland; Author: Tom Coyne; Publisher: Penguin/Gotham
Imagine playing every great seaside course in Ireland, plus all of the hidden gems — not bad duty. Now envision doing it on foot — both on-course and off-. Now that's wild — and it's the premise for Tom Coyne's remarkable adventure story. Subtitled, "A Long Walk in Search of a Country, a Pint, and the Next Tee," A Course Called Ireland is blessed with vivid travel writing of the first order, where all of your senses are stimulated. Coyne covers the courses well enough, but it's the characters, roads, meals and life lessons that truly pop. I will say that the rambling descriptions can overwhelm at times, so it's best to take this one in small doses, but eventually, take it all in. It's worth the journey.

Top 10 golf books for 2009 (1)

Top 10 golf books for 2009 (2)

Copyright reserved by Ebayoyo.com