If you need an inspired room gift or tournament prize for your next golf event, try a book. Here are some that are sure to intrigue duffers and pros alike.

Fifty Places to Play Golf Before You Die: Golf Experts Share the World's Greatest Destinations

By Chris Santella

This full-color book shows photographs of the world's greatest golf venues. Interviews with 50 golf experts about their favorite courses give readers an intimate account of some of the best courses around the world. A brief history of each course is included, as well as tips for planning a trip.

The New Yorker Book of Golf Cartoons

By Robert Mankoff

Regardless of whether you are a serious golfer or a serious hacker, everyone knows that a bit of golf humor can put you in the right frame of mind to tackle the next company golf outing. This book brings together the best golf cartoons published in The New Yorker to showcase the humor and torment of the game.

eXtreme Golf: The World's Most Unusual, Fantastic and Bizarre Courses

By Duncan Lennard

Taking readers on a journey to the world's most geographically extreme, climatically challenging, dangerous, and uniquely designed courses, this book features more than 200 photographs and descriptions that capture the spirit of “extreme golf.”

The Wicked Game: Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, and the Business of Modern Golf

By Howard Sounes

This book tells the 40-year history of men's professional golf and gives readers a glimpse into the lives of three of the most recognizable names in the game.

Zagat — America's Top Golf Courses 2007/2008

By Zagat Survey, LLC

The publisher of the popular restaurant guides launched a golf course edition a few years back, using its signature format in which consumers rate their experiences. The 2007/2008 guide reports on 1,075 courses in the U.S., Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands, summarizing the comments of 6,250 golfers. If your attendees are frequent travelers who want to find a decent place to play wherever they land, this book is the perfect pillow gift. The company will also customize the cover for your company outing.

Sites

Top Spots

The most convenient way to mix golf and meetings is to pick a property for your event that has a course on-site. Golf Magazine's annual listing of the country's best golf resorts was released in March. While 75 properties were honored, the following made it into a new “premier” category.

• The American Club, Kohler, Wis.
• Sea Island Resort, Sea Island, Ga.
• Bandon Dunes Golf Resort, Bandon, Ore.
• The Greenbrier, White Sulphur Springs, W.Va.
• Pebble Beach Resorts, Pebble Beach, Calif.
• Pinehurst Resort, Pinehurst, N.C.
• The Broadmoor, Colorado Springs, Colo.
• The Boulders, Carefree, Ariz.
• Kiawah Island Golf Resort, Kiawah Island, S.C.
• Four Seasons Resort Lana'i at Manele Bay, Lanai, Hawaii

Calender

May 18-20

Association of Corporate Travel Executives
Washington, D.C.
www.acte.org

June 11-12

HSMAI Affordable Meetings West
Long Beach, Calif.
www.affordablemeetings.com

June 18-20

Financial & Insurance Conference Planners
Education Forum
Orlando, Fla.
www.ficpnet.com