Sports Books 2005: Golf is addictive. It gets into the very fibres of your being. It also instils a false sense of ability in mere mortals - many of us believe we are better than we actually are.
Which is why, more often than not, when the talk at the 19th hole - aka the bar - turns to your favourite golf hole on whatever course you've just played, the inclination is to nominate what was actually the toughest hole.
It's a sort of inflated vanity.
Chris Millard, in his book Golf's 100 Toughest Holes (Abrams, £24.95), has attempted to do the impossible. By his reckoning, there are approximately half a million golf holes on earth and he has attempted to condense the toughest 100 of them into a grandly produced, glossy, coffee-table book.
It's a noble feat. But does it work? By its nature, personal choice means not everyone will agree; and so it is in this case. In fairness to Millard, he picked the brains of many highly respected golf writers from various parts of the world in attempting to come up with the definitive toughest 100 golf holes.
His criteria for determining their eligibility included several factors: length, wind, number and placement of hazards, pin placement, green contour, green speed and "the weight of history". The end product is a book that includes golf holes - all accompanied by wonderful photographs - which, without a doubt, is biased towards American courses.
Of the 100 selected holes, 69 are in the US. In the main, though, Millard has stuck to the criteria he set himself, with one possible exception. The inclusion of the 192-yard, par three at Camp Bonifas in the demilitarised zone between North and South Korea (the only hole on the "course") is gimmicky.
The book includes just two holes in Ireland, the 11th on the old course at Ballybunion and the 14th, otherwise known as Calamity, at Royal Portrush. Both are fine holes; but are they tougher than the ninth at Royal County Down, or the seventh at The European, or the 13th at Druids Glen?
Still, the volume is superbly produced and, of course, there are holes included that broach no argument. The 17th, the Road Hole, at St Andrews, and the 17th at Sawgrass, among them.
Another book that seeks to be selective is Chris Santella's Fifty Places to Play Golf Before You Die (Stewart Tabori & Chang, £15.95). In choosing 50 courses, Santella recommends four in Ireland - The European (which features on the front cover), Ballyliffin (even if the inside leaf has somehow changed its geography and describes how its "rumpled fairways wander along the North Sea" rather than the north Atlantic, Royal County Down and Rosapenna - which, to be sure, puts them in rather illustrious company, as the likes of Pebble Beach, Royal Melbourne, Pinehurst and TPC at Sawgrass are others selected.
Surprisingly, the Palmer Course at The K Club is not included in Santella's selection.
However, Dermot Gilleece's Ryder Cup 2006: How Ireland Landed Golf's Biggest Showpiece (Red Rock Press, €26.99) has many fitting tributes to the course that will stage the match between Europe and the US. This coffee-table book has insightful interviews and behind-the-scenes stories with many of the key players involved in bringing the tournament to Ireland.
As you'd expect from an author of Gilleece's standing, the book is assiduously researched and written and is set to become the book of record on how this great tournament came to Irish shores.
The bonus is that the quality of photographs that adorn its pages matches the quality of the words; and, not surprisingly, it pays adequate tribute to the role of Irish players - all 17 of them - who have played in the Ryder Cup down the years.
One of those is Darren Clarke, who has participated in three Ryder Cups, and anyone who would like an insight into the mind of this most naturally talented of golfers can do so in, Golf - The Mind Factor (Hodder & Stoughton, €28.50), written by Clarke in conjunction with his sports psychologist, Dr Karl Morris.
The intriguing aspect of this book is that Clarke is something of a transformed character. There was a time when black clouds surrounded him as he struggled to comprehend why fate could be so cruel. This collaboration between player and coach seeks (successfully) to pass on what Clarke has learned from his years on the professional circuit and how the ordinary player can also learn from those experiences.
Finally, another impressive publication timed for the Christmas market is The European Tour Yearbook 2006 (European Tour Publications, £25). This is a reflection on the 2005 season, with stories behind each and every victory on tour this past year along with superb photographs.
