Bury Me in a Pot Bunker [Paperback]

Pete Dye (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 1999

"While there are critics who believe my courses are too difficult," writes Pete Dye, "the ardent golfer would play Mount Everest if somebody put a flagstick on top. . . . Unless a few golf professionals are bellyaching about my course design, I wonder whether I've done enough to challenge them." To the millions of golfers who have played his world-famous courses, Pete Dye is either a creative genius or a demonic tormentor. To play well on Pete's courses, or on any of those influenced by his ideas, you have to know Pete. Bury Me in a Pot Bunker is his own story of how he revolutionized his favorite game by designing courses that both delight and bedevil golfers. Peter and his talented wife, Alice, convert dull ground and swamps into beautiful by deadly course filled with Scotland-style mounds, deep pot bunkers, railroad ties, and tiny "target-golf" greens. Bury Me in a Pot Bunker tells the intimate story of how Pete Dye designed his celebrated courses and includes entertaining anecdotes about some of the greatest golfers in the world. It also captures Pete's essence as a humble, give-the-credit-to-someone-else gentleman whose sense of humor and optimism are legendary. Some of Pete's famous courses include Harbour Town Golf Links, Crooked Stick, The Stadium Course at TPC, The Ocean Course at Kiawah, Teeth of the Dog, Oak Tree, The Stadium Course at PGA West, and Whistling Straits. What the experts say about Pete Dye: He created some of the world's top courses [and] had a profound impact on late-twentieth-century course architecture." -- Geoffrey S. Cornish and Ronald E. Whitten The Architects of Golf "This is Star Wars golf. This place was designed by Darth Vadar." -- Ben Crenshaw on the Stadium Course at TCP Pete Dye is one of the world's leading golf course designers. For over thirty years his courses have challenged ardent amateurs and PGA Tour professionals alike. A long-running American Express campaign dubbed him "The Man Golfers Love to Hate." Pete's wife and partner, Alice, is one of the greatest amateurs in the history of golf. They reside in Delray Beach, Florida.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

A golfer whose obsession with the game was not matched by his talent, Dye became a course architect, aided by his wife, who has the trophies to prove she was the family's better golfer. Over a 30-year period, the Dyes have designed some 70 courses, all planned to be "straightforward and honest while still being difficult as hell." Aided by freelancer Shaw, Dye tells of the influences that shaped his philosophy of design, particularly the courses of Donald Ross and the best links in Scotland, especially Old St. Andrews. He then analyzes more than a dozen of his own courses, from the Dominican Republic to California, with a number in the Midwest, explaining his layout of many of the holes. Golfers who think of every designer as a fiend incarnate will find the book revealing. Illustrations.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Of all the golf designers in the 20th century, Dye may be the most creative. Certainly, he is one of the most sadistic, as he is often portrayed by duffers as a "wicked designer from hell." In this exhilarating account of his career, Dye tells how at the tender age of 15 he was assigned as greenskeeper of the Urbana Country Club in Illinois. He later describes how he located the land and raised the necessary funds for the development of the famed course at La Quinta and Blackwolf Run, both located in the remote wilds of southern Wisconsin. There is much to admire in this highly readable book, including the noteworthy foreword by Greg Norman. For libraries with golf book collections.
Jim Paxman, Tennessee State Univ., Nashville
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill; 1 edition (March 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0809226812
• ISBN-13: 978-0809226818
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,275,001 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pete Dye is a natural wonder., September 6, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Bury Me in a Pot Bunker (Paperback)

The whole Pete Dye story is here. Now I understand how Dye created the famous island green 17th at the Stadium Course at TPC and why Pete and his wife Alice were so heaviliy influenced by Scottish golf course design. This is a terrific book, with photos of all of his great courses.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Pete Dye isn't out to get you., January 25, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Bury Me in a Pot Bunker (Paperback)

Some think Pete Dye's golf courses are tricky or too hard. The courses Pete designs are built to be fair but punnishing for the right reasons. Played right, Pete's courses offer memorable rounds to the golfer. Now, it's not Pete who designs the course but a strong team of Pete, his wife Alice and his sons Perry and P.B. (architects in their own right) as well as the site managers and crews that are hired to do the building.

You'll learn that Pete designs courses on a sheet of paper and this is where his skills lie - understanding the land offered for the course and knowing how the wind and terrain will match in creating a great experience. Courses like PGA West, TPC Stadium (Sawgrass), The Pete Dye Club, Harbour Town and many others are discussed. One chapter per course.

Pete talks to you in this book. It's not an interview but it is presented as if Pete is telling you his life's story.

For a golfer looking for lessons, these are a different kind of lesson - from the eyes of a designer (and historically gifted golfer too). You will play better golf after you read this.

When you play a Pete Dye course, you'll remember Pete's words and how Alice was a main contributor to the design you're playing.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Pot Bunker, March 31, 2009

By 

J. W. Boyes (Cleveland Ohio USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Bury Me in a Pot Bunker (Paperback)

Found this to be a very interesting biographical glimpse into the work of Pete and Alice Dye. It has 18 chapters, described as holes. A few of the chapters cover more than one course but basically, a history of the owner, how the Dyes came to design the course and some interesting facts about the construction of the course are the main thrust of the book. Just a note, this is not a picture book. It might have been made better by either some pictures or illustrations of the things described in the text.