Lure of the Links: Great Golf Stories : An Anthology

by David Owen (Editor), Joan Bingham

"For most of us," writes Owen in his introduction to Lure of the Links, "golf improves in retrospect." So does much of the best writing on the game, and there's plenty of good writing packed into this sweeping collection, which includes short stories by John Updike, profiles by Al Laney and Herbert Warren Wind, reportage by Dan Jenkins and Thomas Boswell, and a pair of essays by the incomparable Bernard Darwin. Golf may be the most elusive of all games to play well, but the angst and camaraderie it engenders has a way of conspiring to produce a sporting literature as grand as the vistas of Pebble Beach and as challenging as the Road Hole at St. Andrews.

Genres: Nonfiction

384 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 1997

Reviews

[Blake Atwood · Rating 3 out of 5]

This collection is a great introduction to a number of notable names when it comes to writing about golf, e.g., Bernard Darwin (Charles's grandson), Herbert Warren Wind, Dan Jenkins, Harvey Penick, etc. Each story or essay is short and accessible. The book is a good addition to a golfer's library, especially if they'd like a sampling of many golf writers before diving in to an author's full catalog of work.

[Frodo · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed the collection of stories, including some fiction, from the world of golf, especially those from the early years in Scotland and those of mid-to-late 20th century players, from Bobby Jones to Ben Hogan through Nancy Lopez and Arnold Palmer.