Grass Routes

I am occasionally asked why I wrote Golf in the Wild.  I will mumble something about putting Allendale Golf Club on the map and the desire to promote golf in wild, spectacular places; to encourage the golfer to take the road less travelled.  I forget one of the primary inspirations – the desire to write the type of golf book I wanted to read.  There are “how to” guides aplenty and biographies about individuals who have spent their entire lives hitting golf balls, fill the sports section at Waterstones – I am beyond hope with the former and little interested in the latter.  Andrew Greig’s Preferred Lies was a personal turning point – he demonstrated how writing about golf can be much enhanced by digression. The book opened a door to the possible.

As any amateur writer will attest, we do not publish for monetary gain, the reward is in the creation and sharing. Golf in the Wild has made connections with a group of like-minded strangers, many of whom have since become firm friends and golfing buddies.  A chance, social media encounter earlier this year, led me to Richard Pennell, author of the recently published Grass Routes.  We have shared fairways and thoughts at Warkworth and Hayling Island and on each occasion there was the sense of kindred spirits.  There is a significant age difference and our histories are poles apart and yet, we have arrived at very similar places, drawn like-minded conclusions.  To quote Richard: Golf. It’s like life, only more so.  To quote Golf in the Wild: We play the game as we play life and we cannot help ourselves.  Similarly, Richard runs out of examples where golf isn’t Masochistic, and I suddenly realise, as if struck – at long last – by a bolt of common sense, that golf is inherently so.  This echoes my own thoughts while navigating the course around the chapel at Lochcarron: Playing golf on Sunday in parts of Scotland is still considered a sinful pastime, but this doctrine is fundamentally flawed, assuming that golf is somehow a pleasurable activity rather than a parallel and complementary religion. We suffer for our sins at pulpit and pin.

Take my word for it – read Grass Routes, it is a delight.  Like John Betjeman’s Seaside Golf and a well-judged final approach to the 18th on a warm summer’s evening, resting “two paces from the pin” – it is pitch perfect.

 

A Major Milestone

Today, I shipped my last copy of Golf in the Wild #1 to SW11, London.  The book was duly signed and marked as 1000/1000.  I am not aware of any copies in store although there may be some available at Traigh Golf Club.  The only option now is to read on Kindle while I consider the possibility of a reprint.  Second hand copies are also normally available on Amazon.

The Wild Golf Podcast

This image was taken on the beach by my dad – probably Bournemouth, with the family box Brownie.  Like my memories from the time, it is aptly out of focus.  I remember the feel of the jersey bib shorts, the bucket which was soft rubber and a vague sense of my mother’s touch.  It is probably 1954.

The relationship was not always close, especially in my teenage years.  Prone to be judgemental, I wonder what my mother would have made of my elevation to ‘celebrity’, the star of a podcast.  He/she has got too big for his/her own boots; it is sure to end in tears; he/she likes the sound of his/her own voice.  Well, actually mum, I am not sure I do – there is too much the hint of nowhere man and middle England.  It betrays a sense of not really belonging anywhere and it doesn’t go down well in all quarters.  All that apart, I am also not sure she would have entirely seen the funny side of publicising our strained relationship.  I am sad she is no longer around to pass judgement – we are not amused, or just maybe, we are.

A big day …

It has been a long journey, but the sequel has now been printed and 1000 copies delivered to my door this morning!

To be accurate, they were delivered on a pallet at the bottom of the drive as the wagon couldn’t get any closer.  That was 42 boxes I had to shift, fortunately before it started raining.

Many thanks to those who have pre-ordered – I will get them in the post or hand deliver over the next week.

… a big day – 1000 copies of the sequel delivered

Publication Date …

Apologies to those who have placed advance orders, but it looks like the sequel will not be available before Christmas.  The second page proofs are with me for final approval and the cover is being worked on, but to quote my publisher … I may well be able to get to print before Christmas but as for getting the book to you I do not know, last day for guaranteed delivery of books was 19th November, so to be honest, no it won’t be possible.  Hopefully, this should mean availability very early in the New Year.

Update …

… just a quick update to reassure, particularly those that have placed advance orders, progress is being made.  The editing process is complete and now the format and layout of individual pages is being finalised.  A draft cover design has been produced but this needs to be agreed with the publisher, Choir Press.  I am optimistic that the books will be printed by late November and I will endeavour to post out pre-orders in advance of Christmas.  Many thanks for your continuing patience – I trust it will be worth the wait.

2021 Golf in the Wild Open

The 2021 Golf in the Wild Seniors Open at Allendale Golf Club is scheduled for Thursday 16th September.  The competition is an individual stableford, open to gents and ladies aged 55 and over.  It will be played off the white tees such that gents can experience the par-5 6th.  Tee times can be booked online through BRS – click here.  Gents maximum handicap is 28 and ladies 36.

Catering will be available from 08:30 – bacon rolls in the morning and light snacks throughout the day.  Subject to the number of entries, prize money will be a minimum of £100 for first place, £50 second and £25 third.  There will also be a £30 prize and additional trophy for the best gross.  This splendid trophy has been kindly donated by Tony Brown from Scarborough North – named the Spartylea Trophy, it reflects his affection for the area and golf in the wild at Allendale.

I had hoped to have the sequel, Golf in the Wild – Going Home, available to coincide with the event however, publication is now scheduled for end October.  The new book will be priced at £11.99 and but can be pre-ordered on the day at £10 – they will be signed and posted out f.o.c immediately following publication, together with any requested dedication.

Here’s hoping for the same excellent weather we had in 2020!

 

Golf in the Wild and Kindle

The first print run of 1000 books has nearly sold out and so I have reached a decision point – reprint or make available online.  I have always much preferred print media to e-books and it was this that motivated the high production standards for Golf in the Wild.  It was the unknown book I wanted golfers to find on the shelf at Waterstones which would immediately inspire them to rush to the check-out.  Not that Waterstones was ever persuaded to stock the book but, therein lies another story.

The sequel, Golf in the Wild – Going Home, is due for publication in September 2021.  At the same time I will reprint the first book.  With a gap in availability of several months, this seemed an opportune time to experiment with Kindle.  After several frustrating hours with Kindle Create, I eventually decided to upload as a Print Replica which, in plain English, means that the content appears exactly as it does in the printed book format.  Retention of the original formatting and imagery means it is a large download – more megabytes for your buck.  The Kindle price is £3.49 in the UK, with equivalent pricing in other worldwide territories – Kindle Unlimited members get to read if for free.

Golf in the Wild – Going Home

The lock-down has had some positives for me – with no golf and unable to ride motorcycles, I have been confined to the keyboard such that the sequel has made significant progress.  Once south of Edinburgh, I have been forced to make up my mind about the route home to Allendale.  A continuing fixation with abandoned railways meant that defunct railway lines more or less determined where I should go next – Lauder, Melrose and Newcastleton has been the result.  I have played Lauder and Melrose on many occasions but Newcastleton will remain a mystery until the Scottish lock-down eases.  In the meantime, this design for a new business card gives some indication of the likely cover design:

001-Business Card-Rear-1-LOW RES for website

Promo video

A short promotional video is now available on Youtube:

Created with Adobe Spark, it is also available for use on Twitter and Instagram.