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With golf's popularity swelling, it seems that a steady stream of golf books keeps rolling year after year.
Books involving caddies, a barrier-breaking player and one of golf's legendary businessmen have crossed my desk this year. I haven't had the chance to finish some of them, but I can promise you that any golfers will enjoy reading all of them.
Here's a look at some of golf's latest releases just in time for some summer poolside or beach reading:
The Unconquerable Game: My Life in Golf to Business by Ely Callaway
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From fired corporate whistle blower to wine maker and eventually golf equipment revolutionary, Ely (1919-2001) founded Callaway Golf Company out of his garage in Palm Desert, Calif., in 1982 and nurtured it to became the world’s largest golf equipment manufacturer and the first to go public on the New York Stock Exchange. But you don't have to read about Ely's life. He can tell you himself. This project - spearheaded by Callaway's son, Nicholas - features an audio book with an AI-version of Ely's voice reading to the listener. This innovative process was made possible through a collaboration between AI voice engineers, linguistics experts, voice actor Vincent Marcus and actor/comedian Fred Newman to authentically recreate Ely’s distinct Southwest Georgia accent and storytelling cadence. The audio book and 362-page hardcover book was published by Callaway Arts & Entertainment. Price: $32-$40
Playing Dirty: Rediscovering Golf's Soul in Scotland in an Age of Sportswashing and Civil War
We all know that professional golf is broken in its current state with LIV Golf and the PGA Tour fighting for talent and splitting fans into factions. Author Joe Beall travels to Scotland to see if the soul of the sport remains intact on a deeper level. Scottish golf is as pure as the game gets, where children and adults walk the fairways in unison. With a hyper focus on the towns and courses and people that make Scotland special, Beall examines golf’s roots hoping to find an answer to where the sport is headed. Price: $34.99
The Shot: Watson, Nicklaus, Pebble Beach, and the Chip that Changed Everything
The 1982 U.S. Open was full of drama and intrigue from some of the game's biggest stars. Tom Watson beat legend Jack Nicklaus with a shot of a lifetime. By hosting its second U.S. Open, Pebble Beach became one of the most beloved golf courses on the planet. Author Chris Millard takes readers through every storyline, including all of the twists and turns of this magical moment in golf history. Price: $34.99
Caddying on the Color Line: How Black Caddies Defined and Redefined Golf in the South
In this new book, author Craig J. Gill reveals how Southern Black caddies—young and old—navigated a world of racial tension, professionalized a job once seen as unskilled, became expert golfers in their own right and helped to pave the way for the rise of Tiger Woods. Along the way, the history of Black caddies reveals the unexpected reasons for the rise of the golf cart and helps explain why there are fewer Black golfers on professional tours today than in the 1960s. The thousands of Southern Black men who caddied may not have lived extraordinary lives, but their daily struggles and triumphs abounded with resilience, pride, skill and dignity. Price: $34.99
Walking with Greatness: My Caddie Life on the Tour with Fred, Fuzzy, Vijay, Tiger and more
Cayce Kerr shares his story from life inside and outside the ropes with some of golf's most famous names. He worked with more than two dozen major champions and looped for 30 consecutive Masters from 1987 to 2016. The Triumph Book was co-authored by Andrew Both. Price: $24-$30
A.W. Tillinghast books
It's a big year for A.W. Tillinghast. One of golf's most famous architects will see some of his best work modernized with the restoration of Baltusrol's Upper Course, not to mention that Bethpage Black will host golf's biggest event, the Ryder Cup Matches. We will tell the story of the Gil Hanse's restoration of the Upper Course after we see it in June. Hanse also restored the Lower Course in 2021. Club Historian Stuart Wolffe is the head of The Tillinghast Association, which sells a nice collection of books authored by Tillinghast on the association's website in you're interested in learning more about an architect GolfPass ranks as the second-most influential in the history of major championships. The books include the Reminiscences Of The Links and Gleanings From The Wayside: My Recollections As a Golf Architect. Also pictured is Tillinghast's Baltusrol: A National Landmark and Championship Tradition.
The Playing Lesson: A Duffer's Year Among the Pros
Michael Bamberger, a well-known golf writer for Sports Illustrated and GOLF Magazine, spent a year doing everything but his traditional journalism. He went inside the ropes of professional golf to do it all - playing, caddying, competing, volunteering and interviewing - to learn more about the game he's loved for five decades. He got the kind of instruction we can only dream of: driver tips from Jake Knapp, putting lessons from Brad Faxon and wedge advice from Gary Player. The book, by Avid Reader Press, Simon & Schuster, goes on sale June 3. Price: $30
Calvin Peete: Golf's Forgotten Star
First-time Author Gordon Hobson, a retired lawyer from Columbus, Ohio, celebrates the legacy of Peete, who joined the PGA Tour in 1976 when Black golfers were virtually nonexistent. Pete won 12 times and played on two U.S. Ryder Cup teams, but those accomplishments seem lost today. The biography was published by Rowman & Littlefield in 2024. Price: $32
Up Top: The Story of Landmand
Adam Lawrence, who has served as editor of the global magazine ‘Golf Course Architecture’ since its foundation in 2005, has published his first book, ‘Up Top: The Story of Landmand’, which details the back story of one of golf's most successful modern public designs. Landmand, created by King-Collins Design in remote Nebraska, regularly sells out a season in advance because its tee times are in such demand. Price: $70
The Ambassador: Alexander Findlay and Pioneer Golf in America
This is the first extensive study of Alexander Findlay’s life and his contributions to golf. Findlay was the best golfer in New England, one of the best in the U.S. and one of the most prolific and important golf course architects in the early years of American golf, yet gets little fame. He played exhibition matches and tournaments in front of hundreds of thousands, helped establish over 100 separate golf clubs, was the first man who hit a golf ball on film, met with the Pope about establishing a golf course in the Vatican and even built golf holes in the shadows of the pyramids in Egypt. William J. Casto's new book, set to be released this fall, is the story of a man who lived an extraordinary life—a humble salesman who, in his time, came to meet and know Queen Victoria, Chief Sitting Bull, Buffalo Bill Cody, Harry Vardon and every other great golfer of the age, six U.S. presidents and all the Gilded Age titans of industry. Price: $34.99 for pre-orders
