Customer Reviews

The Confidential Guide to Golf Courses

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3 star:		(1)
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There will be plenty of readers who will disagree or even take offense at some of Tom Doak's course ratings and observations (for example, he does NOT give Augusta National a perfect score of 10), but that's all the more reason to peruse this wonderful guide.

There are essentially three sections to this book. In the first part, Doak serves up his "Gourmet's Choice," which includes the best work from golf's best architects - Ross's Pinehurst No. 2, Perry Maxwell's Prarie Dunes, C.B. MacDonald's National Golf Links, and nature's own St.Andrew's (Doak, being a course designer of note himself, includes his own High Pointe in this section).

The second part is a regional/world wide breakdown of courses that Doak has either played or visited. What becomes apparent in this section is that 1) Doak favors courses that are both challenging to the expert player and playable for the average guy, 2) he's not above critical observation of his peers, and 3) has an affection for older courses that employed a minimalist approach (i.e.; limited land-moving, no waste areas, etc.).

Finally, "The Gazeteer" offers a number of quirky, humorous lists of hazzards, best and worst holes, courses to be avoided at all costs, and courses that one's spouse would enjoy.

Again, some may accuse Doak of arrogance and self-promotion, but there is no denying the love he displays for his craft, or the passion of his convictions. As with most books dealing with golf architecture, this one contains a lot of great photography. Plus it's interesting to note that Doak has been hired on as a consultant to do restorations on a number of courses that he panned in this book, including two Seth Raynor designs (Blue Mound, in Milwaukee WI, and Yeomans Hall, in the Charleston, SC area) that had been either "over beautified" or neglected through the years.

I sent a note about this book two years ago and I'm sending another because I like it more and more. I've taken some golf trips recently and have used the Confidential Guide to point me in the right direction. Through this book, I've "discovered" some superb courses that I would not have found. And, to boot, said courses are quite often completely unhyped, friendly and unsnobby. If you get the chance to travel quite a bit and you like to find those hidden gems, then this is a great place to start.

This guide helps the serious golf enthusiast select courses to play that are not necessarily the most "famous". I have played most of his recommended courses in the UK and I find his assessment very accurate.

You have to love Tom Doak for his honesty. He's not afraid to take aim at the big names in the business and tell us what he really thinks about the hundreds of golf courses he's played. I'm told the original version is much more scathing and I wish he'd published that version. It would have made the book even better. While the book is expensively produced, many of Doak's photos are too dark: perhaps there was something wrong with the production of my copy. For afficionados of golf course architecture, this book is a must-have, even though it will dent your golf budget.

Tom Doak's book is a total delight. it is a shame it is not better known as any golf connoisseur would cherish its judgements and insights. i have played only a small fraction of the courses he reviews - in the UK and South Africa - but i would generally support his judgements. He is spot on about Dornoch which is a magnificent golf course, and still not that well known. He is too kind to Ballybunnion No 2 which i recollect as a course verging on the laughable - admittedly in tough conditions. it is a shame that he has not played some of the fine courses in spain and portgual - sounds like he needs a collaborator to expand the coverage and get out a second edition! the book is most welcome for its judgements - as he rightly points out, most descriptions of golf courses are just puffery which don't really help the unitiated know whether to play them or not. you also feel that he is unlocking a treasure chest - that a whole lifetime of excitement lies ahead just getting to a fraction of the fine courses he mentions. i agree with the correspondent who says the pictures are too dark. in my edition there is another rather embarrassing error - the text for Durban country club is repeated in total for garden city - perhaps this will make it a valuable collectors item. these are but small quibbles - what would really make my day would be to hear that a second updated edition is in the pipeline, though one would not want a book of this nature to come out too often. well done mr doak!

If you like the field of play as much as you like the game, Tom Doak's seminal work on the great courses of the world is essential.

Once you've browsed through, read cover-to-cover, and pored over the pictures, "Confidential Guide" is a book that you will refer back to every time you travel for golf.

I don't know which is more impressive... that Doak has visited all of these by a young age, or the way his lifetime of impressions from world travel is summarized for the reader.

I have read numerous golf books--fictional accounts of magic links along with just about every instructional book on the market--and this book tops them all. Tom Doak gives an honest appraisal of nearly every golf course that he has ever played or visited. No more gushing praise of Augusta National (although he ranks it very highly). Rather, he provides insight into what truly makes a golf course unique. I enjoyed reading it cover-to-cover and it even helped my game a bit

This book is one of my favorite books relating to golf. Tom Doak's analysis of courses is dead on, unlike what one other reader erroneously mentioned. If you don't like the courses considered great by Tom Doak, you don't like real golf. I have played his recommended courses whenever possible, and have always been thrilled that I did so. Buy this book, and read it!

Tom Doak is an architect who reviews golf courses honestly. He is often critical of others,revealing weaknesses and flaws that ordinary golfers might not observe. A number of hidden gems are discovered and his gourmets choices are not your usual top 30 golf courses. You may not agree with all of his comments but he seems to be fair and not swayed by large budget golf courses and hype

Tom Doak is smart, and has NO respect for overrated courses. (Some people and posh clubs will be offended) His style is sharp, straightforward, but very true. My only remark: why doesn't this man have 9 lives to play ALL the golf courses of the world? That way, he might not have to apologize for not having played some of the worlds best, but lesser known golf coures (Royal Zoute for instance).