Exactly how and where the Royal and Ancient Game began is as lost as a tee shot drowned in the muck at the bottom of Rae's Creek. But conversely, so much of golf's rich history has been carefully preserved. Born as the companion volume to the PBS documentary, the elegantly illustrated Story of Golf begins at the beginning, conjecturing on where the game's seed was first planted; then it moves briskly to golf's 1744 codification in Scotland, which is where the fun really starts. From there, the game is a stage for one colorful character and plot twist after another, and pretty much all find their way into Story's pages, from the Tom Morrises (Old and Young) straight down the middle to Tiger Woods. Naturally, there are stops along the way to consider the importation of the game into the United States and its more recent globalization; its rich amateur tradition and transition to the professional game; the LPGA and Senior tours; the impact of racism and sexism; the evolution of course design, equipment, and rule changes; and unforgettable moments from tee to green like Francis Ouimet's improbable 1913 U.S. Open victory, Bobby Jones's Grand Slam, Gene Sarazen's double eagle, Arnold Palmer's miraculous 1960 charge up Cherry Hills, and the overall achievement of Jack Nicklaus. Thoroughly researched and entertainingly presented, about the only thing missing is a positive ID on the first Scotsman ever to break a brassie over his knee out of sheer golfing frustration. --Jeff Silverman