Rating: 
Summary: "...the definitive pictorial history..."
Review: "By using rare old photographs and modern original landscape paintings of historically famous golf holes, Shackelford has compiled the definitive pictorial history of what many proclaim as the Golden Age of golf course design. An amazing 84 of the 100 courses ranked in Golfweek's Top 100 American courses opened before 1960 were constructed between 1910 and 1937. Here we have profiles and histories of the finest architects in the world who were practicing during this period. The group includes C.B. Macdonald, Alister MacKenzie, Donald Ross, A.W. Tillinghast, George Thomas and Robert Hunter. Fantastic sepia reproductions of Merion, Riviera, Pinehurst, Cypress Point and The Country Club give us a clear understanding of how these great courses were created and what they looked like during their primal play. Quotes by all the boys are placed throughout the pictures to add to the mood of the era. For history buffs and design aficionados, this book is worth the money. The paintings used to divide up the schools of design are particularly beautiful and add a nice touch to this well designed book." -Schwing Magazine
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Summary: Golden Days
Review: "Mackenzie. Ross. Travis. Macdonald. Crump. If those names mean something to you - and evoke images of great old courses - then you'll enjoy The Golden Age of Golf Design by GOLF Magazine Contributor Geoff Shackelford. Besides short bios and anecdotes about the architects who created an art form in the first half of the century, the real treat is rarely seen photographs of Pebble Beach, Shinnecock Hills, Pine Valley, Augusta National, Cypress Point, and other classic courses in their infancy. Maps, architects' renderings, and paintings by landscape artist Mike Miller round out this loving look at the game's early days." Rating: 4 1/2 stars out of 5
Rating: 
Summary: A Perfect Overview
Review: A must have for anybody interested in golf course architecture. As great as Pebble Beach is today, you'll wonder why it was ever changed after seeing the old photos of it following Chandler Egan's work in 1929! Buy this beautiful book and you won't be disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: Golden Age of Golf
Review: A must have for anybody interested in golf course architecture. As great as Pebble Beach is today, you'll wonder why it was ever changed after seeing the old photos of it following Chandler Egan's work in 1929! Buy this beautiful book and you won't be disappointed.
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Summary: A Must for Golf Traditionalists..As well as for Golf Junkies
Review: A wonderful collection of photographs and biographies. All of these courses are classics that I can only dream of one day seeing, much less playing. The vintage photos of the courses provide a glimpse of the majesty of each course and Geoff Shckleford's musings and collection of quotes fill in the rest. Shackleford brought each of the great architects to life. What a great book. I'd love to see a follow up on courses in the West(including Hawaii).
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Summary: the best architecture book I've ever seen
Review: Geoff Shackelford, who has published many golf architecture books has totally outdone himself with this work. It includes the greatest courses, spectacular old photographs--Pine Valley, Cypress, Merion, Oakmont and the architects who built them--this book is stunning and should be the new cornerstone of anyone interested in course architecture or anyone interested in seeing great holes and what they should look like--a gem.
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Summary: Geoffrey Cornish, Author and Golf Architect:
Review: Geoff Shackelford...brings to life many forgotten holes, courses, and great architects; his work is sure to become a classic in golf literature.Mike Miller, former Director of Golf at Riviera CC and painter of golf landscapes has contributed his paintings of holes created during the Golden Age while vintage photographs scanned by high tech techniques are amazingly clear. The text is informative and a model for integrity. The Golden Age I feel will rank among the most significant literature on course design. Its beauty also makes it a great gift to all interested in golf and its playing fields. -Geoffrey Cornish, noted architect and co-author of The Architects of Golf and Golf Course Design
Rating:
Summary: A Classic Book
Review: The price scared me a bit but when I saw the book I realized it was well worth it. Gorgeous in every sense of the word. The ten or so paintings add so much to the book, but not enough to take away from the real heart of the book, the photos of the classic courses. The text is just long enough to give you information without being boring. I can't even think of a famous course that is missing, maybe Olympic Club? But there probably isn't much to see of it anyway.
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Summary: Los Angeles Times
Review: The theme throughout this book is "They sure don't make them like they used to." The author might have a point there. Geoff Shackelford, who has written extensively on golf course architecture and occasionally for The Times, clearly has a reverence for courses built in the United States from 1910 to 1937 . . . and for the architects who designed them. Shackelford points out that any groupings of top courses in this country are dominated by layouts from this golden age, a time when match play, strategy and ingenuity were factored into a layout's design more than simply length. "The landmark courses from the golden age were special then and timeless now because of their ability to test the mental as well as the physical component of the golfer's game, a concept better known as strategy," he writes. Consider a few of the golden age courses: Pine Valley in New Jersey, widely regarded as the best in the U.S. and the only course designed by George Arthur Crump; Pebble Beach, Cypress Point, Augusta National, Pinehurst No. 2, Shinnecock Hills, Los Angeles Country Club, Riviera. . . . Shackelford's mini-profiles of the architects of that age and those who influenced them offer wonderful tidbits: that Old Tom Morris' design fee was one pound; that George Thomas, designer of Riviera, never charged a fee; that Alister MacKenzie, designer of Augusta and Cypress Point, developed theories on camouflage that saved thousands of lives in warfare. The courses and the architects share top billing in this book, with hundreds of photographs of the layouts as they appeared more than half a century ago, courses whose conditions have been refined, but whose integrity has withstood the changes of the game. Oil paintings of several of the courses help bring them to life. -Mike James, Los Angeles Times
Rating:
Summary: A Perfect Overview
Review: This book is just a perfect overview of the old architects and their design work. I disagree with the reviewer who said certain sections were mailed in. At least to me, each architect was well covered and it did not seem anyone received special attention unless they deserved it, and the Donald Ross chapter was one of my favorites. It includes an incredible picture of the great Seminole course. There is not a single picture in the book I did not want to study closely, and it seemed that every architect included was there for a reason -- their work was sensational golf course architecture that we just don't see these days.
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