A Course Called Scotland

Searching the Home of Golf for the Secret to Its Game

By: Tom Coyne

Narrated by: Jacques Roy

From Tom Coyne - the author of the New York Times best-selling A Course Called Ireland, hailed as “a joy from start to finish” by The Wall Street Journal - comes the heartfelt and humorous celebration of his quest to play golf on every links course in Scotland, the birthplace of the game he loves.

For much of his adult life, best-selling author Tom Coyne has been chasing a golf ball around the globe. When he was in college, studying abroad in London, he entered the lottery for a prized tee time in Scotland, grabbing his clubs and jumping the train to St. Andrews as his friends partied in Amsterdam; later, he golfed the entirety of Ireland’s coastline, chased pros through the mini-tours, and attended grueling Qualifying Schools in Australia, Canada, and Latin America. Yet, as he watched the greats compete, he felt something was missing. Then one day a friend suggested he attempt to play every links course in Scotland, and qualify for the greatest championship in golf.

The result is A Course Called Scotland, a hilarious golf and travel adventure throughout the birthplace of the sport and home to some of the oldest and most beloved courses in the world, including St. Andrews, Turnberry, Dornoch, Prestwick, Troon, and Carnoustie. With his signature blend of storytelling, humor, history, and insight, Coyne weaves together his journey to more than 100 legendary links courses in Scotland with compelling threads of golf history and witty insights into the contemporary home of golf. As he journeys Scotland in search of the game’s secrets, he discovers new and old friends, rediscovers the peace and power of the sport, and, most importantly, reaffirms the ultimate connection between the game and the soul. It is a rollicking love letter to Scotland and golf as no one has attempted it before.

©2018 Tom Coyne. All rights reserved. (P)2018 Simon & Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved.

Just Went to Scotland

Complete view of Scottish and UK golf. Great guide will open your eyes to why golf is different and my opinion better in Scotland. The course’s Americans don’t know about will be life changing for a golfer.

The bonds of golf

Really enjoyed the book and it rivals Paper Tiger. Enjoyed listening about the different courses and the time spent with guests. The story of Robert was very surprising. I did read other reviews which spoke about the Scottish accent and i had no issues.

Fantastic listen

I loved every minute of this book and will definitely listen to it again soon

Amazing story, great detail about Scotland Golf

This book does an amazing job intertwining the authors story, his golf experience and the imagery of the towns visited. I could envision everything the author was sharing and it makes me desperate to visit and play golf in Scotland.

Scotland Gold For Golfers

I’ve been looking into a trip to Scotland for some time now. There is an unlimited amount of information available on the top courses, the popular courses, but this helped find the gems, the overlooked courses. It is a great piece to use for finding those off the beaten and under the radar places!

Never quit

So much to appreciate, so vivid a style … truly enjoyable. The search for the meaning of life through golf

Great listen!

Makes the miles fly by. Liked it so must I brought the hard cover as well!
Thanks

Sign me up for the next trip!

This was a very enjoyable and educational trip around Scotland. As an avid golfer that had no desire to cross the pond with my clubs, it made me a convert. I am making plans. As soon as the COVID-19 ban is lifted, I'm there. Regarding the book, Tom Coyne wrote a very relatable book that was funny, educational, and heartwarming. I found myself looking for every opportunity to pick it up and read on. Now that I'm done, I will have to sign up for his blog and read more of his works.

A lot of courses in Scotland!!

This book has been described as part golf travel guide and part journal of a golf addict. That's pretty accurate. I added it to my list because of an upcoming trip to Scotland. It did provide brief overviews of a lot of the areas, but he played so many courses that a lot of the stuff jumbled in my brain after a while. I think if you had certain places or courses in mind so you perked up during those parts it would stick with you more or he was describing areas you had already visited. The title and description were slightly misleading as he played 107 links courses in the UK. Most of them were in Scotland, but all of them were not. In the United States you will hear some people use the terms "links" and "golf course" interchangeable. But, a links course is a specific kind of course. A kind that we have very few of in the United States. It's basically a course in the coastal sand dunes adjoining the ocean or sea. Being an island nation that is also golf crazy, Scotland is THE place for links courses. Coyne is a writer and a college professor. He is also a really good golfer. He decided to play 107 links courses in a two month break from his job. This meant playing an average of almost 2 courses a day. It also meant that because of travel on some days he played 3 courses in a day to make up for days that he had more travel time. That's a lot of golf. It's also a lot of walking. In Scotland, golf carts are not the norm as they are here. He did not use one on any of the rounds. So that's an average of around 6 miles walked for each of those rounds. He says in the book he lost 37 pounds on the trip! His trip was planned around playing all 107 courses on his list with the final round being a British Open qualifier. I enjoyed the book, but couldn't help but thinking how self centered he was to do all this while leaving a wife and two children behind seemingly not checking in very often. However, since the book has become a best seller maybe that was part of the family decision on this. The reader was well suited for the material. I enjoyed it and it has really gotten me in the mood for my upcoming trip.

As good of not better than Tom's previous books.

very well written makes you want to go play golf. actually very suspenseful as well in waiting to figure out how it ends. the only disappointing part was you could tell Tom hates Trump. he did it one of his other books as well. politics need to be left out