Customer Reviews

The Anatomy of a Golf Course: The Art of Golf Architecture

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Of all of the books that attempt to teach the lay person about golf course Architecture, this one is the most useful. Thomas, Mackenzie and Hunter are all classics, but this one is updated to modern times and is a must read for anyone who thinks he or she loves the game of golf.

Also check out Tom's other book The Confidential Guide To Golf Courses.

I recently purchased this book, and since doing so, I have seen my scores go down. As a recent college grad, I had a lot of time to play golf this summer, and this book, with Doak's insights into how courses are not only set up to penalize the player, but to help them, can assist you into understanding certain aspects of the wonderful game that we refer to as golf. The diagrams and drawings make it easy to understand what is being described in the pages, and he also does a good job by making the book readable for those with little to/no knowledge of the game of golf. If you enjoy golf, and you want to both understand the courses you play on and lower your scores, than this is the book for you.

Architect Tom Doak expertly lays out the fundamentals of golf architecture for the layman. Any serious golfer should try to develop an understanding of the science and art of course design and construction. This book is not a substitute for reading the classics, but it is a great place to start -- a good first book. Doak, like all great architects, has his own opinions and is not afraid to share them, but at the same time does not unfairly denigrate the work of others with whom he might disagree. Many of Doak's important points are illustrated in clear, excellent drawings.

Very well written book discussing the layout of the golf course. Must read for anyone thinking of designing a golf corse. Also very helpful in shaving strokes of your own score.

Golfers often focus on the how-to of the golf swing and the various golf shots so much that they forget their opponent: the golf course. This book is about more than golf course design. The descriptions of famous golf holes and of the hurdles golf course designers face in making a course great inspire new appreciation for what it takes to play well. Each time I read this book my enthusiasm is reborn and I find myself anxious to get out to play again.

I am a real estate developer. Two years ago, one of my project called for a championship 18-hole golf course. My financial partner is a die-hard golf lover who flies around the globe with his bag of clubs. To get a cram class in golf course architecture, I picked up Tom Doak's book in a local architectural bookstore. I admit I don't like to read thick books full of pictures and bullshits. Tom's book is concise and down to the points. The book price was great. I don't mind to pay a designer $500,000 to design a course, but I do care books are overpriced. Most of the readers are young people who have the right in the world to learn a new trade. Tom's book is enjoyable by everyone. To him I gave the credit that his course must also be enjoyable by everyone. To hire a good golf course designer is understandably costly and worth every cents of it. Although my partner's business was hindered by Asian financial crisis. We will still come back and do the project. You can bet your dollar on whom I will call first!

Quite simply the best-written, most useful book on the often confusing world of golf course architecture. Just as with any art, taste is certainly subjective. This book looks objectively at criteria used to appreciate this very exciting aspect of golf. An appreciation of golf course architecture is essential to understanding why certain golf courses appear mundane and even dull or uninspired to the uninitiated eye and yet are revered by connoisseurs. Tom has a very good style of written education that is rooted in his strong opinionation on the subject. He truly believes in himself and what he writes. This book can enrich the appreciation of golf for almost any player.

It's a pity that he doesn't have the ability to update his out-of-print Confidential Guide to Golf courses. Paired with this book one understands an erudite point of view based upon the well-researched and extremely deeply-rooted opinions of perhaps the world's most able golf course architect. Just as in the anatomical sciences of living beings, the golf course is a living being and one can study it. Today, Doak and his team are not afraid to take chances and think outside the box or at least deep into the archives, unlike virtually all other "top architects" of today to create golf courses that are fun to play for nearly all golfers - the ideal of his idol Alister Mackenzie.

Tutored by Pete Dye, he is the pick of the Dye litter and can write well to boot. He gives any golfer literate in the English language a heads-up on this exciting aspect of golf appreciation which escapes perhaps 90% of the American golf public. I was way deep into golf architecture before I got either of Tom's books, but they remain the two I recommend above all others because this book is so concise and the companion volume is so outrageous. Unfortunately you have to dig up a (very expensive used) copy of Confidential Guide if you are unfamiliar with the Doak scale because it isn't in here (10 point scale). Before Doak, everything above a 6 is a "10" to most people. (Basically it's a logarithmic scale in which 3 is average, 5 is "average good" and everything above a "7" is well worth going out of your way to see.) Everyone has favorite golf courses and understanding the theories of architecture and strategies will give a deeper, more meaningful appreciation.

At least this book can teach you what to look for. Your golf-stricken loved one will thank you for it again and again if he or she has not yet read it. Most people I know have read it multiple times after the first read in a single session.

This book is often obvious in its analysis of golf course architecture principles, but the author's encyclopedic knowledge of golf courses around the world is dazzling. Reading it will make you want to plan a golf vacation right away! Also, the pictures are very enjoyable

Tom Doak has written a wonderful book on the how's and whys of golf course architecture.

His pleasant writing style means the book is easy to read and full of plenty of useful information to both the player and designer.

The book does not offer a lot of information into the specifics of construction, instead focusing on all the details of how to consider routing of holes, placement of hazards, trees etc.

Tom reviews, in historical context, many of the world's great holes and uses them as examples of how they achieved their design goals and what made the holes great.

Tom does not forget to use this forum as a way to educate potential developers about the important job the golf course architect.

I recommend this book whole-heartedly.

There are quite a few books out there that discuss course design. I actually read two other books first about course design and then came across the book "Dream Golf" that described the building of the Bandon Dune courses...

I followed up "Dream Golf" with Doak's book. Tom is a bit of a blunt speaker and, I believe, that has gotten him in a bit of hot water with his fellow designers.

But....he's truthful about his views and doesn't seem to mind being strightforward in his analysis of course design and where it's heading....

This was a good book....