US Open Contest Entry - Puget Sound Championship Course

[Deleted]

Along with a name change, I will update the thread with a hole slew of hole 7 photos, starting from the tee box and slowly moving forward. The hole is pretty much done, and I am very pleased with the results.

I hope blind shots are allowed in this contest, because this hole has one, off the approach shot.


















after reading CSU's entry, I will now try harder than ever on this course. Simply because I don't want to play a major tournament that does not reward good shots, shots in the center of the fairway not staying on the fairway, bowl shaped greens where a missed putt will roll off, and other tricks. If I do not win, as I expect not to, I hope somebody other than him wins. As I do play TGC Tours, I want to play good courses.

[Deleted]

Looks like some real nice courses are going to come from this contest, then there will be mine,,,, maybe. :-) Great job so far.

[edi_vedder]

I guess I'll bring my sand toys with me on that course! 

Nicely done though, looking great!

[Deleted]

small update to include 8th hole:

The real chambers bay course, has a long par 5 for the 8th hole and a long downhill par 3 for the ninth hole, due to terrain issues, I have to swap these two holes for each other, meaning my 8th hole will be a long downhill par 3 and my ninth a long par 5 leading to the clubhouse.

The layout of the real hole 9 at chambers bay:


and i will just copy and paste its description, as I can't say it any better:

Hole 9 (Olympus) – The teeing ground on this long par 3 is perched nearly 100 feet above the green. The oversized green slopes from left to right, providing assistance to players hoping to avoid the menacing bunker short and right of the putting surface. The contours on and around the green provide ample opportunity to get close to the hole. An alternate, lower tee has been installed to provide variety in setup for the U.S. Open.

OLYMPUS: The name Olympus is appropriate since the ninth tee is the highest point on the course, and pays tribute to Mount Olympus, the tallest and most prominent of the Olympic Mountains that are visible across the Puget Sound.

of course, I am not doing a recreation here, just an inspired version, so there are elements i will keep, and elements i will ignore.
what I am keeping is the elevation difference. my furthest tee will sit just shy of 100 feet above the center of the green, while my closer tee's will be much lower.

creating such a high tee box brings aesthetic issues, and makes it really hard to get a natural look, so this may take quite a bit of work, but with an hour to spare, I at least got the hole off the ground, pun intended.



That is all I will be revealing about this hole for now, but you may get a better feel for what I am going for in my overhead shots for the entire 8 holes that i have laid out:
(from all angles)









This course is starting to feel like a superb effort, and if i can finish the rest with as much energy as the front half, I think this will be a course for the ages. Hope you think so too.

[Elk22]

Puget looks great. Cant wait to play it.

[Deleted]

onto hole 8 reveal:

as I said earlier, the real hole 9 at chambers bay is a long 230 yard downhill par 3, with a near 100 foot drop, and on my course this will be hole numero 8 due to terrain issues (land plot size vs remaining holes)

so, here is what I have for hole 8:


the highest tee box, 99 feet above the pin, will not look as clean as the rest of my tee boxes, in order to have a view at the green from this height, you have to be hitting very close to the edge, and that presents limits from the GNCD, i may get docked for the look of this tee box edge, but I feel its worth the rest of the hole from looks to playability.

moving closer to the green complex






on this hole, if you miss short, you dont want to miss short left or short right, if you do, chances of par are very slim, unless of course you are very experienced from those types of lies and shots.

the front of the green has a large false front, this is also the idea landing zone for some of the pin locations this hole will have, as this false front, if used correctly, helps stop your ball so it rolls into the center of the green or the center left/right if you used fade/draw.

if you go pin seeking here, chances are you will roll off the back, remember, a ball coming from 100 feet above has different physics as it would coming from level ground, its initial bounce is big, make note of that when playing this hole.

[Deleted]

onto hole 9:

the real hole 8 at chambers bay is a massive par 5 coming in at around 600 yards, the fairway is hi-low sloping from left to right down the center of it.

I have swapped holes 8 and 9 in my inspired version, so hole 9 will be my take on this massive par 5, with such a lengthy hole, i have plenty of screens for it, but before I get there, lets talk about what I have created first:

This may be one of the more strategic holes on this course, you have plenty of options coming off the tee box, but there really is no wrong club to hit unless you just dont hit it far enough to make it there to the fairway. But do be sure to land on this very generous fairway, dont miss long, left or right. There is only one bunker to dodge off the box, and it only comes into play if you try to cut a corner.

if you played this hole the best route (which i am not sharing just yet) you will have a clean shot to hit dead strait towards the green, but no chance of making it there, as my version is pushing 630 yards, so even if you get a chance to hit your 3 wood on your 2nd shot, it will be a layup, the question is, do you want the easier (to execute) and lower right fairway, or do you want the cleaner, more forgiving and higher left side fairway? to get the the higher side, you will need a perfect tee shot and some draw on your 2nd shot, if you execute both of your first two shots perfectly, you will be left with the shortest possible approach shot to the green, if you dont, you may find yourself pumping out a 3 wood trying to get to the green on your approach 3rd shot.

There are very few bunkers throughout this hole to dodge, until you get to the green complex, but those bunkers really only come into play if you were hitting a wood into the green.

The green is tucked right up against some water on the left side (will have a retaining wall there), but the right front has a small strip of fairway coming into it.
The back side of the green on the left, center, and right are all guarded by high bunkers, so if you do end up in these, you will be hitting down at the pin, which is tougher on you if you go long, because there is water past the green from this angle.

onto the photos:

from the tee box


from above reversed


beginning of the fairway


the split of the fairway


the end of the right side fairway


the end of the left side fairway ( i see i have some rough blending left here at the edge )


both the left and the right fairway from reverse view


the beautiful green complex




i am really liking this 9th hole, and I feel it really puts a staple on the front nine, if you walk away with a birdie here, you gained a stroke on the field.

[Deleted]

moving on to hole 18, as i want to make sure i get it back in towards the clubhouse, I will be working my holes like this (18, then 10, then 17, then 11, etc) until they meet in the middle.

Hole 18 at the real chambers bay is a medium length par 5, i really aint keeping much of the elements to this hole except for that.

This is the last par 5 on the course, which gives the course 4 of them, 3 on the front, 1 on the back, par will be 71, so as of now, the front 9 is par 37, with 2 par 3's, 3 par 5's, and 4 par 4's.
this means the back nine will feature 3 par 3's, 5 par 4's, and 1 par 5 for a par of 34.

thats 5 par 3's on this course, 4 par 5's, and 9 par 4's to get us to that par 71. this also means the back nine will be much harder in teams of scoring under par, as no par 3 on this entire course will be an easy flick and putt, and with only 1 par 5 (an easy birdie if managed properly), leaving you with 4 par 4's to get some scoring done on, no easy task if you take into consideration of the previous par 4's.

hole 18 green complex, will reveal the rest of the hole once its closer to completion.









this green is two tiered, high side on the left, low side on the right. the green runs long and narrow. the green is guarded by two bunkers, one long bunker to the left on the high side of the green, and one front right on the low side.
if the hole is played right, you should have less than 100 yards into the green with your 3rd shot, you will need to be very accurate with that shot, and make sure you select the proper type of shot, if the pin is on the high side, you dont want to leave yourself short right.

[IlludiumQ36]

That front nine was a beast. It was strange playing a taste course with med-slow greens. I was playing wayyyy too much break on some of those putts.

[mcbogga]

Had a bogey-free -1 on the front. Looking really good so far and the Firm/Med-slow is not a bad combination. Not so sure about firm/fast, but firm/Medium with back to front slope on the greens might be the key. Does not really give me a US Open feel, but that is personal opinion.

Game is really screaming for more firmness settings though!

[reebdoog]

I like it. Not quite love it yet. Feels like it's missing something but I can't put my finger on it.

It's ok though. I'm sure when it's published it'll be rockstar! Keep going bub!

[Elk22]

I really liked it. I was even thru 9, wasnt putting well. I really enjoyed it thou. It was really dull in the background, but im sure with the finishing touches this will be another great course to add to your list. The T shot on 10 was a B thou man. LOL

[Deleted]

I will be testing out bumping up the green speed, but if it makes holding the greens much more difficult then ill have to switch it back.

here is what the course is missing:

• retaining walls on most of the water holes and in some of my ideas in other places
  
• brick walls throughout, along some of the edges, in the tee box areas, etc
• bridges where needed (a tastey style you havnt seen yet)
  
• non theme planting (flowers and such items that are global objects, not limited to any theme)
  
• dummy tees (will not get these until told to put them out or if i lose, after the contest is over)
  
• more background noise (stuff to look at from a distance) this will come after the full 18 is done
  
• and a f'ing blimp, yes golf channel has to get the overheads somehow right?

the goal for me is to make a course where the elite will be shooting in a range of -3 to -6 for a full 18
the good players around par or below
and who cares what everyone else shoots right? lol (joke)

other notes: 

• there will be no light rough around the fairways and greens, only a select few bunkers will have a light rough border
• there will be no walking paths, i feel this would not look right, the only way its happening is if hb adds real cart paths before the submission deadline.
• no decisions are being made to increase the end user rating, everything i do is help my chances in the contest, and nothing more or less.
• once this course is submitted, I will release a tamer members version with softer but faster greens, it will also play shorter on most holes, and likely will include cart paths.
  

[IlludiumQ36]

I think the green speed as it is now is fine. The firmness is protecting every pin.

[reebdoog]

I thought the speed could be higher. Firmness seems to be about right though. Any higher and a couple of the holes would be REALLY tough to hold.. Most of them are big enough to allow the ball to be run up to the hole though.

I'm putting in light rough but it's a VERY thin ring around the fairway. I did extend it around a couple of bunkers so far...but only a couple. I'd leave it out entirely...but it seems to add to the look just a little bit and I think that's important even though it's not the determining factor. Also...around some bunkers it will allow the ball to roll into the sand instead of hanging up in the rough which can be used strategically.

So far on mine I think it's a touch too easy in spots. I'm going to have to toughen it up in places.
Not sure about you taste but I am planning to have a couple of holes here and there that are a little easier or at least CAN be easier. I want those simply to cause a little extra drama. You know, the idea of "If I don't birdie this one I'm dropping a shot to the field!!!" kinda butt clenching. heh.

I really love the idea of this one and can't wait to see it with all it's finishing touches. I didn't finish the 10th hole to record a score but I believe I was -4 or -5 at the end of 9 on my second playthrough.