  Using the Embedded Atom Method as developed by Voter and Chen in combination
with the {\it variable metric/quasi-Newton} and our own {\it Aufbau/Abbau}
methods, we have identified the three most stable isomers of Au$_N$ clusters
with $N$ up to 150. For the first time clusters with tetrahedral symmetry are
found to form the ground states of Au$_{17}$ and Au$_{34}$. The Au$_{54}$ {\it
icosahedron} without a central atom and the Au$_{146}$ {\it decahedron} are
found to be particularly stable, whereas the highly symmetric second and third
Mackay icosahedra that could have been obtained for $N$ = 55 and 147,
respectively, do not correspond to the particularly stable structures. The
three lowest-lying isomers of Au$_{55}$ and Au$_{147}$ are low-symmetrical
structures. Various structural and energetic properties are analysed, such as
stability function, occurrence of magic-sized clusters, construction of
icosahedral and {\it fcc} shells, and cluster growth.
