Why do golfers yell “fore”? Is it ever acceptable for a man to use a purple golf ball? If my boss invites me to play golf, should I let him win? Since 2002, readers of Golf Digest have submitted their most puzzling and perplexing golf questions to the Golf Guru, a.k.a. John Barton, whose monthly column answers these imponderables with authority and good humor. This illustrated golfer’s miscellany compiles more than 250 of his most compelling Q&As, tackling everything from history and physics to fashion, etiquette, and beyond. Why do golf courses have 18 holes? How much is a membership at Augusta National? Is golf really an acronym for “Gentlemen Only, Ladies Forbidden”? Whatever the question, the Golf Guru has the answer!

While to some chasing a small white ball across a vast field of grass may seem pointless, the game of golf has, for centuries, drawn everyone from the poor working class to the upper crust of society. There is something enchanting about the experience of golf that sets it apart from other sports. In this collection of 18 short stories, The Guru of Golf celebrates perhaps one of the most widely popular of athletic pursuits. Thomas Moore shows us how golf can be a perfect metaphor for life itself—endlessly mysterious, joyful, and captivating, yet at times unbearable. From the tee to the green, he intertwines modern and classical tales that illustrate the challenges players face—on and off the course. A game rife with strict rules on etiquette and both physically and mentally taxing, golf tests the body, mind, and spirit. Humorous and insightful, The Guru of Golf captures the range of emotions associated with its players’ ardent determination; searches for meaning behind quiet, solitary moments; and reveals the struggles that try our patience, as well as the victories that make the game—and life—worthwhile.

Lower your handicap and revamp your swing as you become your own best golf instructor. Conventional methodologies, which emphasize ball-striking dictated mostly by bio-mechanics and kinesiology, have failed to enhance the competencies of worn, weary, and wishful golfers. To diagnose and correct your dysfunctional swing, you must understand how your mind, brain, muscles, and club function. Your Inner Golf Guru—a new way of solving a very old problem—applies the domains of cognitive neuroscience and systems thinking to teaching and learning the game. These unlikely and overlooked domains govern your development far more than you can ever imagine. Dr. James Ragonnet offers a crash course in the following: Sharpening your thinking Rewiring your brain Developing expert movement patterns Practicing deliberately Improving rapidly Individualizing your learning Competing under pressure And that’s just the tip of the iceberg Since there’s no prescribed or ready path for all golfers, you must become a Golf Academy of one. You must think and learn on your own terms. Before you sacrifice any more time, energy, and money on dated, conventional, and narrow golf methodologies, buy and read the innovative and scientific approach in Your Inner Golf Guru—a practical guide that will change your game.

A PGA pro’s trip to teach golf in Bhutan becomes a journey of self-discovery on which he learns an ancient meditation practice. PGA of Canada pro Ed Hanczaryk blends golf and the art of meditation in this travelogue based on his true story of a five-month golf-teaching assignment in the hidden Kingdom of Bhutan. One day he taught a monk how to improve his game, and the next day, the monk taught him to tame his unruly mind . . . A personal story of “zen and the art of the golf swing” for readers of Joseph Parent’s Zen Golf.

Sure to delight every links enthusiast, this compendium of golf facts, trivia, anecdotes, and anniversaries presents a fascinating history and celebration of the game in a highly browsable day-by-day format. Classic games, birthdays of golf greats, the history and evolution of golf rules, equipment, and courses are all included, with an emphasis on golf's "Olympian heroes." Each entry contains a brief essay on an event or person associated with that day, such as: January 1, 1932: The United States Golf Association standardizes the golf ball. April 8, 2001: Tiger Woods wins the Masters, thus winning all four major "Grand Slam" championship tournaments in one calendar year. More than just a book of facts and dates, The Golf Book of Days is an affectionate look at "this most elegant of games." This fact-packed volume deserves a place on every golfer's bookshelf.