Post by courseguru on May 29, 2020 13:34:40 GMT -5
Alright. I've put a bit of time into this one and it's pretty close to where I want it as far as the layout goes. The planting is another issue and I'm not sure I'll ever get around to it if I'm being honest. I'm a golf course architecture nerd, but I'm somewhat new on the designer as I've only worked on two courses. I know what makes a good golf hole. Endless hours of planting just isn't my idea of fun. Some of the looks you guys come up with are awesome, and don't get me wrong, the feel and ambiance of a course is important. I just like making compelling holes a lot more. If you love the "look" of a course more than the intricacies of the ground, you might not be into this one. It's the kind of course I'll play over and over though. I grew up in the mountains and have always wanted a U.S. Open worthy track at altitude, so the two courses I’ve worked on have been sort of an attempt at that. It's difficult. You'll probably get eaten up the first time you play. It takes some course knowledge to figure out the best way to play it and that depends on the wind and pin locations that day. Every shot makes you think and calculate. There are legitimate options on pretty much every tee and sometimes three or four. Shaping the ball makes the course easier. You can make an "other" on pretty much any hole. With that said, check it out. Let me know if you think of ideas for tweaks and be as knit picky as you want (layout, visuals, planting, slopes, etc.). I'll give a description of the holes here to make it a bit easier on your first run. And yes, this is on TGC2 as I didn’t play this game for a while and decided to just wait for 2k21. Oh, and if someone wants to tell me how to post images on these threads I'll throw some pictures up.
Course name - Maricopa CC test1
Course name - Maricopa CC test1
Hole 1 - You can challenge the right bunker or even carry it to shorten the hole up a bit or play safer to the left. Radan second shot (other than pin 1) that requires you to be precise to have your ball end long and left of the pin for an uphill putt.
Hole 2 - Left is dead. Pay attention to the slopes around the pin. You can use the backboard for the right two pins. The left pins take some precision to get your ball under the hole.
Hole 3 - This hole is actually reachable with any wind behind or from the left. You have to challenge the end of the fairway though, and that brings in a big number if you miss O.B. right. Any other wind and this ones brutal as you have to lay up left and likely have a long iron third down the hill over the lake.
Hole 4 - Out of the shoot the tee looks like its aiming you in the water and calls for you to turn a draw back into the fairway. Every pin on this green makes you think. It's hard to earn an uphill putt here. You might be able to use some slopes though. Long is dead.
Hole 5 - Maybe my favorite hole and the start of a pretty gettable stretch (Other than 7). With the right wind you can get pretty close to the green, but it's a lot of risk to just earn a pitch shot. A long iron to the left fairway is the most common play but leaves you a hanging lie and getting to the lefts pins is awkward. The right fairway leaves you a longer shot, but a flat lie and a better angle to the left pins and gives you better access to the backstops.
Hole 6 - Drivable par 4, but you have to land it on a dime on the front section. The fairway along the lake slopes hard towards it and requires you to land it on the left half to leave you a hanging lie. The strip left of the fairway bunker leaves a longer shot, but a flat lie and it's easier to hit.
Hole 7 – Long uphill par 4. You have to hit the fairway to have a chance or you’re laying up to try and get up and down for par.
Hole 8 – You can lay off driver here and and play this hole strait and it’s still reachable or bomb it left to shorten the hole up. The runup area is easier to access from the right though. Any approach landing left of the green from about 80 yards in will funnel to a pretty gettable low area. Missing right of the green can leave some impossible up and downs.
Hole 9 – The Short. The front pin is pretty simple but getting close to he three top level pins is pretty tough. A 15-20-footer uphill is usually a pretty good shot.
Hole 10 – You might not believe it at this point, but I made this plot for the most part before I laid or “found” these holes. Downhill tee shot with options. Left is easy to hit, flat and barely below the green. The farther you challenge the tee shot to the right, the more the fairway reverse doglegs. Obviously, you’re teeing off into the abyss of the lake as well. I placed this green in a sort of pinched in punchbowl that makes this hole vary quite a bit based on the pin.
Hole 11 – Maybe the hardest hole on the course. O.B. left. You’re called to challenge the left side to shorten the hole to a manageable length though. Then you’re left with a long iron with the ball above your feet that will pull your second towards the cliff. Flare your tee shot “safely” to the right of the ridge running through this fairway and this hole gets long.
Hole 12 – A tough downhill par three kind of shaped after the old no.12 at the Wynn. There’s not much to say here. You have to hit your number. Pay attention to where the slope is on each pin.
Hole 13 – This is a patented Coore/Crenshaw template hole. The whole left side is dead, but the closer you get to it off the tee, the easier your second shot is as the green is well elevated and sloping heavily from right to left. If your tee shot falls on the right half of the fairway, you’re laying up no matter what your yardage is. The angle is just too difficult with a hanging lie. The second shot likely calls for a high cut. You can access the front pin with a runup shot through the gap even.
Hole 14 – Long downhill par 4 with a blind second shot. You can have anywhere from an 8 iron to a 3-wood for your second here as there is a long run up area you can use. You have to get creative to get at every pin on this green.
Hole 15 – A green reminiscent of 4 at spyglass. This is likely the easiest hole on the course. A very drivable par 4 with a cape design. The holes defense is the O.B. left and very undulating green with multiple fall offs. The right fairway offers a good line into the back pin as you’re never getting anything back there off the tee for an eagle look.
Hole 16 – The more you challenge the left bunker off of the tee, the flatter lie you’re gonna get. Extremely uphill second shot with a ball above your feet and a cliff to the left. The question is just how safe out to the right do you want to play. Every pin is tough to get at but be careful with the front pin as the false front runs 60 yards back down the fairway.
Hole 17 – Brutal long par three similar to 8 at Oakmont. Everything slopes from front right to back left which makes this hole play much shorter than the yardage as you’re going to be playing a links style runup shot to every pin. You have to be precise in calculating the spot where you want the ball to land though.
Hole 18 – Kind of similar to 3 in the sense that this plays as either a long three shotter or a drivable par 5 depending on the wind. You can reach the upper fairway with some help from the wind. If not, you’re laying up left. You want to be on the left half of the left fairway as well to give yourself room to hit a 2 or 3 wood layup. Laying up left is shorter but leaves a downhill shot with an awkward angle to most of the pins on this big barranca green. The right fairway leaves a longer but possibly easier approach.
Hole 4 - Out of the shoot the tee looks like its aiming you in the water and calls for you to turn a draw back into the fairway. Every pin on this green makes you think. It's hard to earn an uphill putt here. You might be able to use some slopes though. Long is dead.
Hole 5 - Maybe my favorite hole and the start of a pretty gettable stretch (Other than 7). With the right wind you can get pretty close to the green, but it's a lot of risk to just earn a pitch shot. A long iron to the left fairway is the most common play but leaves you a hanging lie and getting to the lefts pins is awkward. The right fairway leaves you a longer shot, but a flat lie and a better angle to the left pins and gives you better access to the backstops.
Hole 6 - Drivable par 4, but you have to land it on a dime on the front section. The fairway along the lake slopes hard towards it and requires you to land it on the left half to leave you a hanging lie. The strip left of the fairway bunker leaves a longer shot, but a flat lie and it's easier to hit.
Hole 7 – Long uphill par 4. You have to hit the fairway to have a chance or you’re laying up to try and get up and down for par.
Hole 8 – You can lay off driver here and and play this hole strait and it’s still reachable or bomb it left to shorten the hole up. The runup area is easier to access from the right though. Any approach landing left of the green from about 80 yards in will funnel to a pretty gettable low area. Missing right of the green can leave some impossible up and downs.
Hole 9 – The Short. The front pin is pretty simple but getting close to he three top level pins is pretty tough. A 15-20-footer uphill is usually a pretty good shot.
Hole 10 – You might not believe it at this point, but I made this plot for the most part before I laid or “found” these holes. Downhill tee shot with options. Left is easy to hit, flat and barely below the green. The farther you challenge the tee shot to the right, the more the fairway reverse doglegs. Obviously, you’re teeing off into the abyss of the lake as well. I placed this green in a sort of pinched in punchbowl that makes this hole vary quite a bit based on the pin.
Hole 11 – Maybe the hardest hole on the course. O.B. left. You’re called to challenge the left side to shorten the hole to a manageable length though. Then you’re left with a long iron with the ball above your feet that will pull your second towards the cliff. Flare your tee shot “safely” to the right of the ridge running through this fairway and this hole gets long.
Hole 12 – A tough downhill par three kind of shaped after the old no.12 at the Wynn. There’s not much to say here. You have to hit your number. Pay attention to where the slope is on each pin.
Hole 13 – This is a patented Coore/Crenshaw template hole. The whole left side is dead, but the closer you get to it off the tee, the easier your second shot is as the green is well elevated and sloping heavily from right to left. If your tee shot falls on the right half of the fairway, you’re laying up no matter what your yardage is. The angle is just too difficult with a hanging lie. The second shot likely calls for a high cut. You can access the front pin with a runup shot through the gap even.
Hole 14 – Long downhill par 4 with a blind second shot. You can have anywhere from an 8 iron to a 3-wood for your second here as there is a long run up area you can use. You have to get creative to get at every pin on this green.
Hole 15 – A green reminiscent of 4 at spyglass. This is likely the easiest hole on the course. A very drivable par 4 with a cape design. The holes defense is the O.B. left and very undulating green with multiple fall offs. The right fairway offers a good line into the back pin as you’re never getting anything back there off the tee for an eagle look.
Hole 16 – The more you challenge the left bunker off of the tee, the flatter lie you’re gonna get. Extremely uphill second shot with a ball above your feet and a cliff to the left. The question is just how safe out to the right do you want to play. Every pin is tough to get at but be careful with the front pin as the false front runs 60 yards back down the fairway.
Hole 17 – Brutal long par three similar to 8 at Oakmont. Everything slopes from front right to back left which makes this hole play much shorter than the yardage as you’re going to be playing a links style runup shot to every pin. You have to be precise in calculating the spot where you want the ball to land though.
Hole 18 – Kind of similar to 3 in the sense that this plays as either a long three shotter or a drivable par 5 depending on the wind. You can reach the upper fairway with some help from the wind. If not, you’re laying up left. You want to be on the left half of the left fairway as well to give yourself room to hit a 2 or 3 wood layup. Laying up left is shorter but leaves a downhill shot with an awkward angle to most of the pins on this big barranca green. The right fairway leaves a longer but possibly easier approach.