Dawg! Looking amazing so far and I am thrilled to get an interpretation of the Olympic Club since I have played it. Just a quick caution with the elevation changes. Did you raise the whole plot so you have enough height on hole 1 and around clubhouse to account for the "stair-case" layout down to the low-point? This is a course where I think you need to get the macro right on the plot first.
And the biggest reason why I have referred it as my "Nightmare" ... especially having started this plot from the ground up ... a Double edge sword!
But on the bright side ... I knew how high I need to approximately raise the hieght for the first hole at the highest point of the fairway ... I feel I got that much accomplished. I am not happy with not having an Ocean view ... I quick flipped it to the links theme ... No WAY can I use that theme ...
As for the Terrain, this is the biggest challenge I have to get it even acceptable close. It is also the biggest reason I had to have the hole layout really close before I start molding the terrain to fit the layout. Also why I still haven't completed one hole.
I have the first two holes basically laid out, with fairways and their bunkers. But, now I am mad, because I now have to go and redo the smoothness of the fairway on the 1st hole ... long downhill shot after a slight uphill tee shot.
I am not going to hold my breathe in being able to pull this off like I want. Seems like I may have bitten of more than I can chew, with the tools I have currently to work with, and the time I will need to invest into it...
For all this effort, I am sure it will fall short and my hours will not be worth this in the end. I have now over 30 hours into it and really nothing I am proud to show off yet ... I am not really happy with anything ... the trees - the auto-gen trees are not going to do it for me ... so, I will wind up planting most of them ... the downfall ... lots more objects and time to place them ... thus meaning longer load time for console users ...
I haven't thrown in the towel yet ... but, I have realized, I will not be able to achieve 100% percent realism, I'll be happy if I can get 60% of the look and feel of the real course ... and then, there is the issue of ... will it be "hard" enough ... are the fairways going to be the downfall?, due to the counter-sloping angles?
#2 will be the first nightmare ... uphill, sloping right-to-left like 20-25 degrees ... if I make the fairways too firm ... ball bounces too high and rolls off into the rough.
Rough itself becomes an issue, the first cut of US Open rough, is close to the use of heavy rough, in game ... typical short rough is 3.5 inches. Deep rough is 6 inches ... so, Do I want to really have light rough bordering every fairway?
Greens? firm setting and speedy greens ... on greens of the Olympic club? and try to do those greens in "TGC" ... it will not be fair. so I will have to make a lot of compromises.
Thus, this really is becoming a challenging Nightmare ... I would have better just made a course from scratch. But then, I never shied away from a challenge ... thus the "Nightmare" continues to haunt ...
What is worse, I have another person that is looking forward to this course, and has played a qualifier there as well ... thus putting more pressure on me to get this place close. Too Bad I don't like playing the "World Golf Tour", as they have a nice rendition of the "Olympic Club" ... and it too has made my life difficult, because I cannot achieve the same look and feel in "TGC".
