What to Watch & Read Before Your Golf Trip

How to Pass the Time Between Now and Your Departure

Thanks to a variety of golf travel books, videos, blogs, and podcasts, the modern traveler has never had more pre-departure content at their disposal.

For golfers stuck “between now & then” – the excruciatingly slow time from booking your trip until departure – this wealth of content can be a godsend.

But with so much golf travel content available, say nothing of social media and coverage on television, how do you sift through it all?

Whether you’re counting down to a trip, or merely daydreaming at the office, here are some of the best golf travel books, videos, and other content to help you pass the time.

Golf and the Good Life Podcast

If you'll forgive a little shameless self-promotion, our Golf and the Good Life podcast is an excellent way to pass the time between now and your departure.

Co-hosts Connor Evers, PGA and D.J. Jones cover every corner of GB&I, both on and off the golf course.

Tune-in below or wherever you get your podcasts.

A Course Called Scotland
A Course Called Ireland

111 courses in 57 days. That was the eye-popping itinerary author Tom Coyne set for himself in Scotland in his quest to discover the secret to golf.

This adventure came on the heels of a prior chronicle from Ireland, where Coyne spent 16-weeks walking the entirety of its coastline and playing every seaside course along the way.

Both books are thoroughly enjoyable, and he visits many familiar stops for the H&B Forces. In A Course Called Scotland and A Course Called Ireland, the tales of his golfing exploits are sometimes humorous and often relatable.

But it’s the stories of the people he encounters along the way which will ring true for anyone fortunate to have played the game across the pond.

The Links Diary

Founded in 2020, The Links Diary is, as they put it on their website, “the perfect golfer’s companion.” We think the description is fitting.

The pages turn like those of a magazine. Yet the quality of its design begs for a home among the books on your coffee table.

It’s the quality of what’s found inside, however, that makes The Links Diary a must-read before your trip. The stories and photos of Scotland’s great golf courses, houses of hospitality, and the characters found in both are, in a word, exceptional.

The same is true for the variety of content available on their website and YouTube channel.

Cookie Jar Golf

Also founded in 2020, Cookie Jar Golf delivers a range of great content from golf across the pond. On their podcast, they’ve covered a variety of topics of interest for golf travelers. Their recent conversation with the historian for Royal County Down is a perfect example.

It’s the library of outstanding films, however, that draws us back to their website again and again.

The features range from iconic venues like The Old Course and Prestwick, to cult classics like North Berwick and Cruden Bay, to courses just off the beaten path for most American golfers like Kilspindie and Cullen.

If you’re counting down to a golf trip across the pond–or simply daydreaming about one–the films by Cookie Jar Golf are an incredible preview.

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A Season in Dornoch

In A Season in Dornoch, author Lorne Rubenstein rents a flat above the bookstore in this once far flung village and sets off for a summer of discovery in The Highlands of Scotland.

Along the way, he connects with Dornoch, its people, and the game he loves.

Although two decades have passed since it was published, every word of A Season in Dornoch still rings true from beginning to end.

As the back cover synopsis puts it… “Part travelogue, part portraiture, part good old-fashioned tale of matches played and friendships made, it takes us on an unforgettable journey to a marvelous, moody, mystical place.”

If you’re heading to The Highlands, it’s a must read.

Update: In honor of the 25th anniversary of its publishing, a new edition of A Season in Dornoch is now available here.

No Laying Up - Tourist Sauce Ireland

In season 4 of their Tourist Sauce series, the gang from No Laying Up – Soly, Tron, Big Randy, DJ Pie, and Neil (aka Icarito) – head to the Emerald Isle with author Tom Coyne.

The banter among this motley crew is entertaining. The aerial footage is inspiring. And, as you’d expect in Ireland, the characters they meet along the way are a delight.

Fair warning: this is not your father’s visit to Ireland. And a few of their “hot takes” leave us scratching our head. But when it’s over, you may find yourself binge watching all 7 seasons of Tourist Sauce.

The Finegan Trio

In his books Blasted Heaths & Blessed Greens, Emerald Fairways & Foam-Flecked Seas, and All Courses Great & Small, the late James Finegan gives a thoroughly detailed account of the links of Scotland, Ireland, and England.

In all three journeys, Finegan shares the holes, shots, and clubs which make golf across the pond so incredibly special.

The words flow off the page like the holes through the dunes, and paint a vivid picture of golf in its purest form.

If you’re looking for a leg up on your partners in an upcoming trip, Finegan’s detailed visit to nearly every notable links is sure to fit the bill.

The Confidential Guide to Golf Courses - Volume 1

Nearly 3 decades ago, before Tom Doak was a household name in the design business, he wrote what soon became a manifesto of sorts for architecture buffs: The Confidential Guide to Golf Courses.

Fast forward to the modern day, and Doak has reimagined The Confidential Guide into a five volume set alongside co-authors Ran Morrissett, Masa Nishijima, and Darius Oliver. Volume 1 is dedicated to the British Isles, and is filled with plenty of the brutally honest critiques and passionate insight that made the original a classic.

It’s also guaranteed to make your “must play” list across the pond exponentially longer.