Not sure how I missed this one. Saw
PithyDoctorG playing it on stream and thought he was playtesting his newest one, which is a good compliment. Now I gotta go check out other courses you've made.
1 - Love the look off the first tee, textures are spot on, doesn't appear to be any trees in sight on the interior of the course, which is different and enjoyable. Green has a spine running through the middle that blends in with the surroundings and doesn't feel forced yet dictates a lot of the strategy of the hole.
2 - I like how the green sits between the two bunkers and you can play the slope down to the left pins. I can tell it's routed to get me to a high point of the property, so I'm hoping you take advantage of that.
3 - Oh yeah, exactly what I wanted to see, pretty much the entire course, confirmed no trees in the interior. I think the pines along the property edge need some thicker underbrush or buried oaks behind them to give the impression that it's thicker woods around it and not just a line of trees that you can see through to the emptiness behind. The hole is no slouch either, I like the way to bunker comes up to the greenside, really intimidating off the tee.
4 - I like the elevation change within holes so far, I think this is the first time it may have felt contrived a little bit. There's all these great dunes and bunkers to the left and right, yet the fairway itself is a pretty flat and gradual uphill. Gimme some of the ruggedness of the plot brought into the playing surface more. Love the movement of the green complex though.
5 - Love the look of this one off the tee, lighting is great, treeline down the right tells me exactly where I'm at on the plot, and the strategy of the hole itself is good too.
6 - I don't hate this one and I don't love it. I can't put my finger on it, I'm playing pin 1 so I have a little 9 box landing area to hit to, but I think it has more to do with the front tees kind of blocking the view and the path down to the green that feels a little off. I love this little low part of the property down behind that hole 3 tee box, especially if your second shot is from an angle going towards it.
7 - Love this hole. I like how the further left you go into the blind landing zone, the better the green opens up. Phenomenal tee shot, backdrop behind it is icing on the cake. I don't like the bump in the middle of the green, feels forced and the green is small enough that just some left to right camber from the slope down toward the bunker would be enough I think. Still a great hole though.
8 - Similar strategy to this hole. I like how the fairways come together and the dune splits this green from the one on the other side of it.
9 - I could tell from hole 3 that this clubhouse was going to be a treat, and wow. I'm a sucker for a customer clubhouse anyways but this one is above and beyond. I think the rocks creating the distinct first and second level from way far away looks really good, and the bridge roof is a nice creative touch. Good par 5 too, I like the very uphill second shot carry over the bunker to reach the green.
10 - Another really really good green complex on this one, and another good long par 4. I'm hoping we get a driveable one at some point in the round.
11 - Is that supposed to be a highway along the coast? I like the way this green sits down below the fairway and forces the shot over the bunker into the green no matter where you land your tee shot.
12 - Starting to bring some undulation into the fairway more on this hole finally. I like the downhill approach that you can barely reach the green (in the wind I had) when the pin is sitting in the back. Really makes you think about whether or not going for it is worth it. I think it would've been really cool to have the left greenside bunker sit up higher to really force a choice of going at the green or laying up left of the bunker, and then you could also use that slope from behind the bunker as a kicker slope that deflects 2nd shot approaches coming in as an added feature to consider before hitting. Really strong hole though, I think the par 5's so far have been bigger standouts than the par 3's which is really hard to do.
13 - Ooh, I might've spoken too soon. I love a good uphill par 3 and this one is definitely a good example. Hitting over all the waste bunker makes it even better and the path going up to it works really well for framing purposes.
14 - Another hole where you play left to open up a narrow green protected with a front right hazard. I think this one could've used a centerline bunker or some serious fairway undulation to force some more thought off the tee. Although I did just bomb it left and end up on a red slope lol.
15 - What was that I was saying about playing left to open up the green? Haha. This one felt a little different as the green wasn't as thin, but just flipping one of the I think four that I've counted so far would go a long way to giving a little more variety. I love how this green complex moves though.
16 - Good use of a centerline bunker, good fairway undulation, nice view of the clubhouse on the approach, and another really good green complex. Played a little short with my 12mph tailwind, but really put a cap on a strong group of par 5's. Really good hole.
17 - Whoa, menacing tee shot on pin one with that gigantic kicker mound to the right of the pin. I'm guessing this is the main part where the quarry comes into play and makes itself evident. I liked this one, got kicked 86' away all the way down to the front tier and had to 3 putt it, but I liked it.
18 - A worthy finisher with a good green complex.
I loved the texture choice of this one, I think you nailed it. It definitely stands out as unique, some Chambers Bay vibes for sure. The par 5's were the highlight for me, along with the routing itself. I respect the coastal course that doesn't rely on any coastal holes in order to stand out, I wish more courses in game did that. Clubhouse was ridiculous obviously, one of the best I've seen, even if the rocks may have been a little repetitive when you get up close. Just a really fun course to play. I think a few holes could be improved, and I think your fairways got more interesting as the round went on, but definitely a course that catches some eyes. I'll be checking out others you've made after playing this one for sure.