All Courses Great and Small - by James W Finegan (Paperback)

About the Book

With this final installment of his trilogy on golfing the British Isles, Finegan opens the way to England and Wales. Finegan is the reader's able guide through than 100 courses, from Alwoodley in Yorkshire to Aberdovey in Wales, with pointers on where to eat, where to stay, and the attractions that must be seen. Illustrations.

Book Synopsis

Every golfer dreams of making a pilgrimage to the British Isles, and it sometimes seems as though every golfer is in fact making that pilgrimage, especially when you're trying to book a tee time. The legendary courses of Scotland and Ireland are magnificent shrines, but their fame has obscured the greatness of the golf to be found all across the landscape of England and Wales.

From the heathland in the north and center to the linksland on the coasts, England and Wales present an extraordinary variety of great golf experiences. In All Courses Great and Small, James W. Finegan treats the reader to a countries-wide survey of these golfing delights -- some famous, like the Open Championship venues of Royal Birkdale, Royal Lytham & St. Annes, and Royal St. George's; some well known, like Sunningdale, Wentworth, and The Belfry; and some gems that have long been hidden in plain sight, like The Addington (in suburban London) or Southport & Ainsdale (not ten minutes from Royal Birkdale). There are as many outstanding courses in England and Wales as there are in Scotland and Ireland combined, a shocking fact that is easily explained: While Scotland has 5.2 million people and 550 golf courses, and Ireland has 3.5 million people and 400 courses, England and Wales have 50 million people and more than 2,000 courses.

Finegan provides a charming guide to the courses and the towns, the inns and the eateries to be found along the way. He highlights the best of the not quite four thousand holes in Blackburn, Lancashire; gives advice about lunch after your round at Sandwich; raises a cup of grog at Gog Magog; and tackles the playing and pronouncing problems posed by Pwllheli. He gives full due to the best-known places such as Rye, Wentworth, Hoylake, and the royals, but he also declares such lesser-known treasures as St. Enodoc, Silloth-on-Solway, Southerndown, and Pennard to be every bit as worthy of your time and attention. His books on the courses of Scotland and Ireland, Blasted Heaths and Blessed Greens and Emerald Fairways and Foam-Flecked Seas, have become invaluable companions to thousands of travelers; All Courses Great and Small is an irresistible and even more essential addition to the touring golfer's shelf and suitcase.

Review Quotes

David Fay Executive Director, USGA "All Courses Great and Small" is the long-awaited completion to the definitive trilogy on golf courses in the UK and Ireland. Thank you, Jim, for providing golf's faithful with another gem.

Michael Bamberger Author of "To the Linksland" Along with Jack Nicklaus, Shivas Irons, and Herb Wind, Jim Finegan is one of my golfing heroes, and here again, in his marvelous England and Wales book, is proof why. With "All Courses Great and Small, " following his books on Ireland and Scotland, Jim has completed a timeless trilogy about golf in the Kingdom, which any serious student of the game must have. Could there be another person, of any nationality, who loves more or knows more about these magical courses? You couldn't even imagine one.

Tom Doak Golf architect and author of "The Confidential Guide to Golf Courses" England has always been the most underrated of golfing destinations...until now. Through years of experience, Jim Finegan has identified the best unknown courses and best individual holes, and found us the best rooms in town. In fact, he's done everything but pay our greens fees and buy us a drink at the 19th hole! Follow in his footsteps, on the golf course or on the printed page, and enjoy the greatest variety of golf courses anywhere in the world.

David Fay

Executive Director, USGA

"All Courses Great and Small" is the long-awaited completion to the definitive trilogy on golf courses in the UK and Ireland. Thank you, Jim, for providing golf's faithful with another gem.

George Peper

Author of "The 500 World's Greatest Golf Holes" and "Golf in America"

Jim Finegan has done it again. With his stylish prose, discerning golfer's eye, and an unremitting joy in reporting, he has given the courses of England and Wales the kind of recognition they have long deserved.

Michael Bamberger

Author of "To the Linksland"

Along with Jack Nicklaus, Shivas Irons, and Herb Wind, Jim Finegan is one of my golfing heroes, and here again, in his marvelous England and Wales book, is proof why. With "All Courses Great and Small," following his books on Ireland and Scotland, Jim has completed a timeless trilogy about golf in the Kingdom, which any serious student of the game must have. Could there be another person, of any nationality, who loves more or knows more about these magical courses? You couldn't even imagine one.

Tom Doak

Golf architect and author of "The Confidential Guide to Golf Courses"

England has always been the most underrated of golfing destinations...until now. Through years of experience, Jim Finegan has identified the best unknown courses and best individual holes, and found us the best rooms in town. In fact, he's done everything but pay our greens fees and buy us a drink at the 19th hole! Follow in his footsteps, on the golf course or on the printed page, and enjoy the greatest variety of golf courses anywhere in the world.

George Peper Author of "The 500 World's Greatest Golf Holes" and "Golf in America" Jim Finegan has done it again. With his stylish prose, discerning golfer's eye, and an unremitting joy in reporting, he has given the courses of England and Wales the kind of recognition they have long deserved.

About the Author

James W. Finegan has made more than forty trips to the United Kingdom and Ireland since 1971, always with his golf clubs in tow. He has written extensively about the pleasures of links golf for Golf Magazine, Golf Journal, the Philadelphia Inquirer, and a variety of other publications. He lives in Villanova, Pennsylvani