Never let it be said that the golf publishing industry is environmentally insensitive.

For example, they firmly believe in recycling, on at least two levels. Allow me to explain.

Golf Magazine, now affiliated with Sports Illustrated, has for many years run an extremely popular section of specialized "Private Lessons" for their golfing readership. That’s not particularly unusual, but printing those pages on brown-tinted recycled paper certainly is—especially when compared to the usual glossy paper used for the rest of that publication.

These golf lessons are aimed at different segments of the playing audience—low handicappers, seniors, high handicappers, power hitters, and short-hitting "straight" hitters. The tailored-to-talents approach is one reason why these pieces are so popular, but there are other factors.

The illustrations are uniformly helpful, especially for visual learners. In addition, the text for each piece is usually short, sweet, and blessedly non-technical. While none of these lessons are a complete substitute for a good session with your local golf teaching professional, they are often very useful for those looking for a basic understanding or a quick reminder.

Golf Magazine’s second level of recycling is now on sale, with the publication of a revised and updated edition of a book of these Private Lessons (Abrams Golf; $29.95 SRP).

The paperback edition compiles over two hundred of these pieces, culled from the last twenty years of the magazine’s series. Unlike the magazine versions, the segments do not carry an identifying label for the primary intended beneficiary of each lesson. On the other hand, from the text it’s usually pretty easy to figure that out; and for some, the lessons should be valuable for all skill levels.

This new edition should be a good seller, as the golf season begins across the northern half of the country. Golfers can skim through the pages, stop on a topic that interests them, and quickly enjoy a handy playing tip.

Review date: March 19, 2010