Customer Reviews

St. Andrews & The Open Championship: The Official History

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This is a fabulous and lavish book on the world's most fabled golf course and the great champions who have played it. The historical data is supported by a wealth of unique old photographs.

Organized with chapters for each year the British Open has been held at St. Andrews, the book takes the reader through a flowing history of the game itself. It is a celebration of the rich history of golf.

A highlight is a section of new color photos of each of the 18 holes, brilliantly capturing the feel of the course. The perils of each hole are described in the captions.

For fans of the greats of the game there is extensive coverage with photos of Bobby Jones, Palmer, Nicklaus, Player, Lema, Watson and many others. Historical accounts bring to life the greats of past generations as well.

David Joy, chapter by chapter, takes the reader through every British Open hosted by St Andrews. From Tom Kidd in 1873 to the John Daly - Constantino Rocca playoff in 1995, this is a pictoral collection like no other. While the text is lacking in depth and substance, the rich collection of pictures,sketches and memorabilia more than make up for the deficiency. There are pictures of Old Tom Morris, Young Tom Morris, the triumvirate of Vardon, Taylor and Braid, Bobby Jones, Sam Snead, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and many more. The final chapter includes a memorable picture titled "The Last Farewell" showing Arnold Palmer tipping his visor to the gallery as he pauses on Swilken Bridge. It had been anounced that this would be his final trip to the British Open. This book is a must for everyone who loves golf and its rich history.

You could visit St. Andrews for years and not see scenes like the amazing color photographs done by Iain MacFarlane Lowe. They are a treasure. The book also contains many good black and white photographs of historic golfing events at St. Andrews. The essays are about as modest as they could be and still be competent. They read like the warm-up of some network newscast background during a rain delay in the British Open. I graded the otherwise fine book down one star for this relative weakness.

This book will make a worthy momento of a trip to St. Andrews or an inspiring encouragement to travel to there.

St. Andrews was originally called "Muck ross" by the Picts, a name which meant "headland of swine." The history of the town's founding is covered here as well as the start of the course, originally 11 holes. The Royal & Ancient Golf Club was founded in 1839.

The book is organized around each of the 24 Opens contested at St. Andrews since the competitions began in 1873 through 1995, when John Daley was the winner with his incredible shot on the 17th (road) hole. There is also a section with a photograph of each of the Old Course's 18 holes. Interspaced through the book are views of famous bunkers and scenary.

The written part of the book is at its best in describing the early dominance by Tom Morris, father and son, who each won four Opens at St. Andrews.

The one fact that surprised me was that Jock Hutchinson, the first American to win the Open at St. Andrews in 1921, was born and bred there before moving to the United States. His "ribbed" iron was controversial for its ability to stop the ball on the very hard greens.

From 1921, the Open there belonged to the Americans more often than not, undoubtedly because the openness of the Old Course favors the long-hitting American game.

Each Open contains many illustrations from that time, which gives the book an authentic feeling. I felt like I was in the museum in St. Andrews again.

From a pictoral point of view, I was disappointed that the book did not capture the truly foul weather that often exists at St. Andrews, the horrible pot bunker challenges, and the gorse. You end up seeing something more like a park than St. Andrews really is to play.

The magnificent color photographs invariably favor a sunny St. Andrews under unusual lighting conditions that change the color and the character of the course into something almost magical.

After enjoying this book, do remember that if you want to play the Old Course there are handicap maximums (albeit very generous ones). You can write ahead and get a guaranteed tee time, which I heartily recommend. Any tour guide worth their price will tell you what to do while you are planning your trip. You might as well play the New Course while you are there. I don't recommend doing them both in the same day though. Caddies are often not available, and you will probably be carrying or pulling your clubs on one or the other of the two courses.

Practice hitting the low bump and run shot before you go. You'll use it a lot unless the weather is perfect (which seldom happens).

This book depicts The Open in wonderful detail with text, pictures and drawings. The color photos are stunning and make you feel you are actually on the course. I was fascinated and enjoyed the text describing each Open and the events that took place each time the The Open has been held at St. Andrews. The stories describing the history of the Old Course, the village of St. Andrews and the history of The Open are all truly memorable. The vintage photos and drawings add to the enjoyment. I cannot wait to return to St. Andrews to play the course and enjoy the atmosphere. If you enjoy The Open and it's history, particularily in conjuction with St. Andrews, this book is a MUST BUY.

I bought this book in Edinburgh for £25. Attracted by the subject matter and the wonderful photos on offer, it looked a good buy until I actually began to read it. What a major disappointment. I can only hope that author David Joy is a better actor than he is a writer! Talk about long waffling sentences about nothing in particular!. If you do not believe me, just read through the opening paragraphs of the introduction. What a load of unrelated nonsence it really is. However, the photos were terrific but certainly not worth the £25 I paid out. If they had not have been, the book would of rated a zero on the star front!

I ordered a used book conditioned as "good", however it came out with wet spots and fungus over the cover page...

St. Andrews & the Open Championship by David Joy is the official history of the British Open when played at St. Andrews. The book is a coffee table book packed with outstanding photographs. The narrative begins with the years before the first championship played in 1873 and ends with the 1995 Open. Each championship played at St. Andrews is covered in detail giving a summary of the play, the weather, the golfers, and the significant shots. Anyone interested in the British Open or just in St. Andrews will enjoy this book. The photographs alone make the book worth having.