I Golfed Across Mongolia: How an Improbable Adventure Helped Me Rediscover the Spirit of Golf (and Life) | 
 enlarge | Author: Andre Tolme
Publisher: Da Capo Press
Category: Book
List Price: $25.00
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Rating:  4 reviews
Sales Rank: 975693
Format: Illustrated
Media: Hardcover
Edition: illustrated edition
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 256
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.9
Dimensions (in): 8.4 x 5.6 x 1.1
ISBN: 1560258225
Dewey Decimal Number: 796.352095173
EAN: 9781560258223
ASIN: 1560258225
Publication Date: May 8, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
What golfer hasn't daydreamed about quitting his job, tossing his clubs in the trunk, and just taking off? Granted, most of us don't dream about taking off for Mongolia, but then again, Andre Tolme — the New York Times's Golfer of the Year — isn't like most of us. This is a book of gonzo golf writing that spans continents and cultures. It starts in 2004 when Tolme, a thirty-five-year-old civil engineer from New Hampshire and all-around ordinary guy, quits his job and travels to Mongolia with a 3-iron, a backpack full of golf balls, and a dream of golfing his way from one end of the country to the other. At 2,322,000 yards — more than 1,200 miles — the home course of Genghis Khan would be the longest ever played, and par would clock in at a daunting 11,880. In I Golfed Across Mongolia, Tolme skillfully blends adventure and golf writing to create a wholly unique book that will delight all those united around one universal passion: golf.
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| Customer Reviews:
 One-of-A-Kind Adventure Story October 1, 2007
Mr. Tome's writing is witty, cogent and flowing, and he carries his reader lightly through an adventure that was anything but carefree and whimsical. "I Golfed Across Mongolia" offers insight into humanity's innate curiosity with all things alien, as well as our resourcefulness in the face of remarkable adversity. It would take a man of Mr. Tome's individualistic ilk to swat a golf ball across Mongolia (with a three-iron, no less!!) and a storyteller of his nimbleness to entertainingly recount the tale.
 Its more about Mongolia than Golf June 8, 2007
Although an admirable task, it came across as a way for the author to make some money by writing a book.
Even the author himself wasn't sure what the purpose/goal was for his trip, as he stated at the very end of the book.
Conclusion, there is nothing much about the spirit of golf, it was more about "awareness" of Mongolia.
Weird but Good August 27, 2006
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This book starts awkwardly but smooths out by the second chapter. Then it rolls along until the end as mostly just a long, cool story about the crazy thing this guy did. It ends well because he keeps the obligatory "how-this-thing-chaged-my-life" bit short.
The funniest stories are:
- how he learns to drink tuna oil
- how he gets caught in the middle of a cross-country horse race
- how he hangs out with Mongolian election officials as they carry their ballot box around on the back of a motorcycle making "voting housecalls".
- how he learns to drink fermented horse milk
- how he tries to explain to Mongolians what he's doing (his caddy gets it wrong and tells people he's playing baseball across Mongolia.)
I'd disagree with the editorial review: The golf is a framework on which the travel hangs. Clearly, the author did it as stunt to get sponsors to subsidize his travel bug assuming they'd figure it was cool and different. With this book published, that should be easier for him in the future.
More people should do weird stuff like this. Definately worth a read.
actually, a good balance between golf & mongolia June 24, 2006
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
there's more mongolia than golf in this book. when you're only using one club size, the topics are more about mongolia.
most bookstores are filing this in the sports/golf section, but i find it might fit better in the travel/mongolia section.
- to someone looking for a golf book ... don't expect much technical talk, but you will understand his struggles on this adventurous course.
- to someone not wanting a golf book ... you won't get turned off. the golf chat is simple and, indirectly, you may learn a bit.
- to someone looking for a book on mongolia ... this is it. he covers a lot of topics on mongolia ... the culture, sports, politics, economy, history, enviroment, agriculture, daily life, etc., in an unconventional way.
- to someone not wanting a book on mongolia ... sorry...but it's an easy read, and it might spark an interest in a unique corner of the world you probably never thought of much.
- for those who have played golf at least once and been to mongolia..... highly recommended.
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