WILL Tiger sink his claws into Royal Lytham at this year's Open Championship? Or will the wind help the famous course to bite a chunk out of the golfing phenomenon's reputation?

While golfers are waiting to find out they can enjoy the Globetrotter Golfer's Guide to England and Wales. This comprehensive guide, written by former BBC Radio 3 producer Mark Rowlinson, brings together 150 of the most challenging of the 2,000 golf courses that England and Wales have to offer.

The opening chapter provides practical travel details and plenty of useful tips for the itinerant golfer. England and Wales are then divided into seven regions in which the courses are described in detail, complete with superb colour photographs.

Regional introductions to each section describe the key characteristics of each area, and regional directories set out essential information on where to stay, eat and visit. In total there are 130 photographs, eight area maps and 15 course plans -- all in full colour. It's an indispensable glove compartment companion for all holiday golfers.

Two pages are devoted to Royal Lytham and a page to the history of the Open. Opinions might vary about which is Lytham's hardest hole. But says Mark Rowlinson: "Most players would instinctively give that accolade to the 15th, with its troublesome drive to a rising, angled fairway and the approach hard to judge for length. 'God, it's a hard hole' was Jack Nicklaus's opinion when he played it in the 1974 Open."

After winning Lytham's first Open Championship in 1924, Bobby Jones said: "I had to fight every hole of the way. There was never an easy round for me over that sunny, wind-swept course."

Tiger beware! -- DKW.

Globetrotter Golfer's Guide to England and Wales by Mark Rowlinson, published by New Holland Publishers (UK) Ltd, softback, 176 pages, price £13.99.