The Book of St Andrews Links; containing Plan of Golf Courses
Pershore: Grant Books, 2024. 212p. Decorative cloth. Slipcase. Limited edition of 275 copies only.
Reproduced with a detailed analysis by Peter Lewis, very hard to find in its original version. Most collectors are are thus not familiar with the book, a 1984 Ellesbourgh press edition of just 200 was produced.
We recommend this title as one of the great early St Andrews golfing titles.
The publication has been carefully reset in a typeface font popular at the time of the original publication and we have retained all the peripheral material and images accompanying the first Bennett publication. The renowned and award-winning golf historian Peter Lewis, our colleague and friend, has penned rich commentary on both Andrew Bennett himself as well as each of Bennett's three editions of his book. Peter's diligent and thorough research has also uncovered eight additional Bennett golf poems from third-party sources to complement the four poems within The Book of St Andrews Links itself.
Here is the first paragraph Mr. Lewis's commentary:
"If you were planning your first ever visit to St Andrews in the summer of 1898 to play golf, there was an indispensable book to take with you or buy as soon as you arrived. This was a slim, inexpensive volume called The Book of St Andrews Links. It had been published only that May, just in time for your visit. It would tell you everything you needed to know about playing golf over the courses in St Andrews. As the first complete guide to the St Andrews golfing experience, it was a unique and special book. It remains as valuable to historians today as it was to golfers in 1898."
. Item #12567
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