A Disorderly Compendium of Golf

On the weekend I finished reading A Disorderly Compendium of Golf by Lorne Rubenstein and Jeff Neuman. It’s an enjoyable, light and quick read. Since it truly is much like a well laid out scrap book of golf lore and quirky facts, it’s very easy to pick up for a few minutes here and there. Each little anecdote, or statistic, etc., comprises no more than a few pages.


This is what the publisher, McLelland and Stewart, had to say, as quoted from the Chapters website:

“The ideal gift for every golfer — pros and duffers alike.

The obsessive book about the obsessive game, and more fun to read than a green at Ballybunion. Written by two authors who have misspent their lives in thrall to the sport, A Disorderly Compendium of Golf digs into the odd, the fascinating, the historical, the random, the unexpected, and the curmudgeonly, and serves up hundreds of pages of lists, anecdotes, humour, surprises, and the sheer compelling minutiae of a game whose pleasure lies in the details.

It’s all here, including history (the oldest courses, top five money-winners at ten-year intervals), odd rules (did you know you may take a free drop from a fire-ant hill but not from poison ivy?), helpful tips and golf instruction (how to hit Phil Mickelson’s trademark flop shot), the lexicon (professional caddie nicknames, terms for an ugly shot, names of golf balls), gambling games, the grasses used in greens, unusual patents, Shakespearean quotes on golf, longest and shortest holes . . . and more, much more.”


Arnold Palmer is also quoted on the Chapters website:

"Golf is full of quirky bits and pieces along with stories and information. There’s something on every page of this entertaining book to interest and amuse every golfer. Not surprising with Lorne Rubenstein involved — one of the best."


In many ways, this book is much like the game itself. You never know what the next page will bring. It might be an historical lesson, a new tip, a rules explanation, or a tale about one of golf’s greats, or not so greats.

There are several features that run throughout the book, including The Golfer’s Life List which notes things that all golfers should try at least once in their lifetime, such as sneaking onto a golf course at night. Another feature is Footnotes to History, recalling the stories of players that came “tantalizingly close to winning a major.”

You’ll also learn how to properly rake a sand trap, which is good news for all those that play behind you.