From Sports Illustrated writer Rick Reilly comes this spoof of all things golf and country club. Missing Links is the story of four middle-class buddies who live outside Boston and play golf together at Ponkaquoque Municipal Course and Deli, not so fondly known as Ponky. An eighteen-hole garbage dump with hazards that include a concrete river surrounded by a chain-link fence and the pillars of the elevated train track that runs through the course, it is reputed to be the worst golf course in America. Just adjacent to the municipal course lies the Mayflower Country Club, the most exclusive private course in all of Boston. The rollicking plot includes a bet to see who will be first to sneak in a round at the Mayflower, as well as the narrator’s attempts to reach some sort of reasonable understanding with his overbearing father.
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"I really thought I wouldn't like an entire book of Rick Reilly, as his columns sometimes drive me crazy because he tries to hard, but this book was really good! Maybe you have to be a golfer to appreciate, but I am so I read it in about 8 hours! I'm going to read some more of his stuff soon. " — Eric (4 out of 5 stars)
"I really thought I wouldn't like an entire book of Rick Reilly, as his columns sometimes drive me crazy because he tries to hard, but this book was really good! Maybe you have to be a golfer to appreciate, but I am so I read it in about 8 hours! I'm going to read some more of his stuff soon. "
“You don’t need to know your bogeys from your birdies to find at least three laughs per page in this novel.”
“Part Damon Runyon, part Raymond Chandler, and part Caddyshack…I was hooked for the full 18.”
“Snappy prose, believable characters, and the funniest take on blue-collar hacking and gambling since Dan Jenkins’ The Glory Game at Goat Hill…it’s social satire and pure irreverence that keep this story in the groove.”
“A great piece of fiction.”
“If you’re obsessed with the ‘green game,’ and it's raining or snowing, or we’re under nuclear attack so you can’t get out on the course, Missing Links should give you a temporary fix.”
“Easily the wittiest golf novel yet—the Bull Durham of the genre, and the closest thing to Caddyshack on paper we’re likely to get…A loving, knowledgeable, laugh-out-loud portrait of the Hardest Sport There Is, as practiced by the blue-collar rakes who compose golf’s most devoted fans.”
“Don’t get started reading this book. It will take three burly men to pull you away from it.”
" Good light-hearted read. Most golfers should enjoy this. It is very humerous with an overall moral and ethical theme. "
" It's no classic, but it's an entertaining page-turner (if you're into golf fiction). "
" I love Rick Reilly's articles - but this was just too much sophomoric humor in a weak plot to warrant finishing. "
" Another quick read that will have you laughing out loud every couple pages, and falling off the couch every couple chapters. if you've ever played on a team, competed with friends, and enjoy heckling, you will get a kick out of this book. "
" one of the best golf books written "
" if you know any males who read and have any interest in golf, they will eat this up. I'm not sure if it still in print. I liked it for the Boston-based characters but my husband thinks it is one of the best fiction books he's read. The author is the former last-page columnist for SI, Rick Reilly, and he is quite funny. "
" I really thought I wouldn't like an entire book of Rick Reilly, as his columns sometimes drive me crazy because he tries to hard, but this book was really good! Maybe you have to be a golfer to appreciate, but I am so I read it in about 8 hours! I'm going to read some more of his stuff soon. "
" To be fair, I never finished the book. I was reading it as a possible book for summer reading, and it is just too risque. I found the characters too annoying (although a little funny) to finish since I no longer had a purpose. I do know several people who really liked the book, however, so maybe I'll pick it up again sometime. "
" Tough for an author to make me laugh out loud-- he did. Caddyshack meets clever. "
" I liked it. It's pretty adult with the language and sexual allusions... definitely not a Glenbard summer read. Well-written and lol funny at times. Reilly is a writer with a knack for wit and sass. "
" One of the three best golf books I've ever read. Hysterical and human at the same time. "
" I LOVE this book, it is laugh out loud funny. "
" The caddyshack of golf reads. Every line is hilarious. It demonstrates the vivid differences and similarities between between the public golfer and the country club golfer "
" very funny, golf related w/ romance "
" I originally thought that after the first 20 minutes I was going to regret that I purchased this book, boy was a I wrong. I ended up loving it! I will say that there may be a few too many plots working simulataneously but the characters make it all the more worth while. A definite fun listen. "
" Very funny with some great golf one-liners...it makes you appreaciate the time on the course with your buddies and the antics that go on.... "
" Absolutely the funniest sports book, maybe funniest book, of All time. "
" literally my favorite book of all time! share this with any golfer you know, they will thank you... i've given away many, many copies of this and the feedback is always the same :) "
" If you are a golfer you need to read this epic tale of three hackers' 40-some-odd-thousand dollar bet on who can manage to play a full round on Boston's most exclusive and off-limits course, The Mayflower Country Club, first. Rick Reilly is absolutely hysterical. "
" not a great book, and I can't really defend why i enjoyed it so much, but there you go "
" Absolutely hilarious. I have given this book as a gift countless times. Highly recommended. "
" One of the funniest books I've ever read. "
" Hilarious book- it helps to have a golfer on hand to explain some of the golf scenes. "
" Never a better story about golf. "
" Very very funny. Witty. Good characters, mystery, romance, drama, and lots of golf. I think you have to golf to appreciate it, but if you do, it's excellent! "
" fun read, nothing special, don't read it if you don't know something about golf "
" A great story based on the the good ole boys on the golf course. This book shows how ALL types of people love the game of golf and are sometimes willing to do anything just to play a round or two. "
" Very fun and a quick read. I would describe it as Caddyshack meets The Hangover. Looking forward to seeing the film adaptation with Steve Carell. "
" great book for me......... being a golf-geek and one who enjoys a wager or three from time to time! i have never finished a book quicker. it's an engaging and easy read. now getting started on the follow-up. "
" The beginning of a golf novel series, and I enjoyed the humor. The storyline between the main character and his love interest fits well with the funny relationships the main character has with his buddies. I enjoyed it a lot "
" One of my favorite books - makes Caddyshack look tame - should be a movie "
" This book is hilarious. If you are a golfer it is a must read. Private club versus country club. "
" If you are looking for a fun-filled romp through the world of blue collar golf replete with creative gambling and horrific hacking then give this book a try. It's good for a laugh every other page. "
" This almost made me like golf. Heavy in golf jargon but amusing -- I even made Bill listen to some parts out loud. "
" A fun and quick read by SI and ESPN's off-beat story writer. Fun thing is that Ponky is actually a course, and Mr. Reilly talks about it with a loyal nostalgia only reserved for those lovable misfits in our life. How's that for a description Mr. Reilly! "
" This is why I play the game... "
Rick Reilly, screenwriter and author, worked for years for Sports Illustrated and ESPN. In addition to being voted the NSMA National Sportswriter of the Year eleven times, he has also been recognized with the Damon Runyon Award for Outstanding Contributions to Journalism. USA Today called him, “the closest thing sportswriting ever had to a rock star.”
Bronson Pinchot, Audible’s Narrator of the Year for 2010, has won Publishers Weekly Listen-Up Awards, AudioFile Earphones Awards, Audible’s Book of the Year Award, and Audie Awards for several audiobooks, including Matterhorn, Wise Blood, Occupied City, and The Learners. A magna cum laude graduate of Yale, he is an Emmy- and People’s Choice-nominated veteran of movies, television, and Broadway and West End shows. His performance of Malvolio in Twelfth Night was named the highlight of the entire two-year Kennedy Center Shakespeare Festival by the Washington Post. He attended the acting programs at Shakespeare & Company and Circle-in-the-Square, logged in well over 200 episodes of television, starred or costarred in a bouquet of films, plays, musicals, and Shakespeare on Broadway and in London, and developed a passion for Greek revival architecture.
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