A Course Called Ireland: A Long Walk in Search of a Country, a Pint, and the Next Tee (Hardcover)

~ (Author)
Key Phrases: baby bear, beach bar, first tee box, Course Called Ireland, Old Head, Papa Bear (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this cheerily self-deprecating work, Coyne—an Irish-American Philadelphian who never knew much about his roots and avoided exercise—describes how he undertook a wildly ambitious plan to spend four months playing over 40 golf courses in Ireland and getting to them by walking. Coyne's tiredness quickly translates into hiker's euphoria; however, he has a tougher time facing the Irish breakfast every B&B owner serves him (sausages, rashers, beans, soda bread—an afternoon of wincing regret). Having already written a couple of books on golf (e.g., Paper Tiger), Coyne knows his way around a course, but more importantly, he also knows better than to bore readers with monotonous accounts of hole after hole. His style is more that of the travelogue, as he's bowled over by one astoundingly beautiful and windswept course after the next. By the time Coyne gets to Ulster, it's clear that golf is by far the least interesting thing for him, as the author packs his humorous narrative with historical tales and travel anecdotes about the small towns he passes through and the many pubs he stops in along the way. (Feb.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Take the standard golf memoir, in which a dewy-eyed golfer rhapsodizes his way around the great links courses of Ireland or Scotland, and meld it with the extreme travel book, in which a slightly crazed soul attempts some form of outlandish trek, often involving sports (I Golfed across Mongolia, 2006), and you have something like this peculiar but thoroughly enjoyable account of one man’s attempt to turn the whole of Ireland into a golf course. Coyne, author of Paper Tiger (2006), about his failed attempt to qualify for the PGA Tour, decided he needed to take the ultimate golf trip before settling into the responsibilities of parenthood. Like John Garrity in Ancestral Links (2009), Coyne chose to visit Ireland, the land of his ancestors, but unlike Garrity and numerous others, he eschewed the usual creature comforts of traveling golfers. No, Coyne made the entire coast of Ireland his golf links, walking all the way from course to course around the circumference of the country. An outlandish premise, to be sure, and the resulting account hurts the reader’s feet almost as much as it did Coyne’s. The numbers say it all: 963 holes played over four months at 635 over par, with 129 lost balls. Naturally, there are anecdotes aplenty to spice the on- and off-course frustrations (encounters with livestock and disbelieving locals dominate). Unlike other golf memoirs rife with accounts of idyllic shots hit in the gloaming, this one is not liable to inspire much envy in homebound hackers. Except, perhaps, for the pubs: Coyne visits nearly as many watering holes as he does water holes, and his play-by-play of pub life is every bit as entertaining as his recollections of purely hit five irons.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Gotham; 1 edition (February 19, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1592404243
• ISBN-13: 978-1592404247
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #5,816 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #1 in	Books > Travel > Europe > Ireland
  #1 in	Books > Sports > Golf > Courses
  #22 in	Books > Travel > Reference & Tips > Essays & Travelogues

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Stunning Effort That Appeals to Golfers and Non-Golfers Alike, February 23, 2009

By	Brian Fantana (San Diego) - See all my reviews

Tom Coyne has not added to the landfill of ho-hum Irish travel and golf books. Rather, he has penned 300 pages of interesting, and often hilaroius, insights gleaned from walking more than 1,000 miles in the land of his great-grandparents with golf clubs strapped to his back.

While golfers will find plenty to love in Coyne's four-month quest to play every one of the Emerald Isle's links courses, the rest will laugh at his run-ins with mountain goats, Irish sausage and the British Army while gaining a better understanding for a people who have drawn the short straw throughout much of history.

Whether he's negotiating a sideways rain with a 6 iron in his hands beside the Irish Sea or sitting at a dinner table with distant cousins he has never met, Coyne relays all the redeeming and regretful aspects of his journey with disarming honesty and great feeling.
"A Course Called Ireland" is a pleasure to read and I recommend it highly.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Delightful Trip for Golfers and Non-Golfers Alike, March 26, 2009

By	M. Regan (Arlington, VA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

With his third published effort, Tom Coyne continues to grow as an observer and storyteller, this time taking his audience for an enjoyable - and insightful - walking tour of the entire perimeter of Ireland.

Though the cohesive theme is golf, this is not a typical "golf book", as evidenced by my wife's enjoyment of the book, despite her complete disinterest in golf. Tom Coyne spends an appropriate amount of time on the golf courses to appeal to the golf-interested reader, but also shares his "tales from the road" in such a way that even the non-golfing reader is thoroughly entertained.

Walking the entire route produces a thoroughly rewarding experience, and the author does an excellent job of immersing his reader in the Irish experience at every stop along the journey. Even when describing some of the challenges of the road - wild dogs, narrow bridges, military exercises, and the poorly chosen "Bog Road" - this book feels more like a rewarding walk down a finishing fairway, putter in hand.

This is a fast-moving read, littered with numerous "chuckle-out-loud" moments. It's a must for anyone traveling to Ireland - golf or not - and a should-read for just about anyone else regardless.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Greatest Round of Golf Ever?, March 16, 2009

By	J. Hill - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Having bought Tom Coyne's second book, "Paper Tiger" on a trip to the United States I was excited to hear that his third book was taking him across the Atlantic. After a long wait for it to be published, I was not disappointed when it finally arrived on my doorstep.

By choosing to walk from point to point, Tom takes himself and his readers to parts of Ireland that are rarely mentioned in other books about this great country. Whether it's in Florida or Ireland, Tom tells his tale in a way that makes you feel that you are right there along side him. One cringes with the emergence of each new blister, and one rejoices with him at the emergence of sunshine from behind the rain clouds. Golf is the central theme to this book, but like his others it does not dominate. The book is as much about relationships with family, friends and the discovery of one's personal heritage.

Tom does this with distinct style, weaving observation, history, anecdotes and pure comedy together in a narrative that is as beautiful as its setting.

Congratulations Mr. Coyne on another great novel, I eagerly await your next great adventure.