To the Linksland (30th Anniversary Edition)

A 30th anniversary edition of Michael Bamberger’s widely beloved golf classic recounting his honeymoon adventures as a caddie in Europe—including a new introduction by Golf in the Kingdom author Michael Murphy, a new afterword, and never-before-seen photographs. Thirty years (and counting!) after publication, To the Linksland still enthralls readers who pick it up for the first time or who return to this timeless book for the sheer pleasure of it. In 1991, Michael Bamberger, a newspaper sportswriter, gave up his apartment, took a leave-of-absence from his job and his life, and, joined by his newlywed wife, set off to explore the wide world of golf. Bamberger’s first step in this madcap golfing adventure was to become a caddie on the European golf tour. On it, and up close and personal, the author encountered the game’s most dynamic players, including golf’s greatest artist, Seve Ballesteros. Crisscrossing the Continent with his bride, Bamberger caddied for a true original, Peter Teravainen, a Yale-educated golfer with a workingman’s spirit, capable of making brilliant, on-the-spot observations about the game. (“Good shots must come in groups of two.”) Over the course of one unforgettable year, Bamberger caddied in the national championships of Portugal, France, Spain, Italy, Belgium, Ireland, and, finally, Scotland, golf’s ancestral home. Once there, Bamberger fell under the spell of one of golf’s great teachers and thinkers, Mr. John Stark. To the Linksland is the captivating memoir of Bamberger’s golfing pilgrimage. From an all-night caddie bus on the back roads of southern Europe to Stark’s secret six-hole course in the Scottish Highlands, Bamberger takes you on a journey into the heart of golf. To the Linksland is a lyrical tale of discovery. It is a classic. This thirtieth-anniversary edition is bookended with a new introduction by Michael Murphy and a new afterword by Bamberger. In between them are a trove of new photographs. Triumphantly back in print, To the Linksland is a “great book for your golfing soul” (Golf Monthly).