Spirit of St. Andrews »

Alister MacKenzie was born in England. He practiced medicine and served as a civil surgeon in the Boer War, beginning his career in golf-course design shortly after returning home. He died in 1934.

There’s no question that Dr. Alister MacKenzie was one of the best golf course architects in the history of the game. Augusta National, Royal Melbourne, Cypress Point—among many other famous layouts—are proof of that fact.

In the mid-1990s, MacKenzie’s lost golf manuscript, written a year before his death in 1933, was found and finally published as The Spirit of St. Andrews.

Even all these years later, MacKenzie’s thoughts on such topics as the golf swing, rules, great courses and holes, and golfers are interesting and intuitive.

The Wall Street Journal

"A Dead Sea scroll for golfers."-- The Wall Street Journal

Foreword…Robert Tyre Jones, Jr.

Introduction.

1. The Evolution of Golf.

2. General Principles.

3. Economy in Golf Course Construction.

4. Ideal Holes and Golf Courses.

5. Greenkeeping.

6. In the ’70 at 60.

7. Some Thoughts on Golf.