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Post by catcherman22 on Jan 16, 2021 21:18:28 GMT -5
Welcome to week 18 at El Dorado by gcsinsane. This was an entrant in the Dream Team Contest, and almost hosted the Promo event, so figured I'd put it in the same week. Lots of elevation changes, some really gorgeous looks, and some risk reward greet you this week. Three tee sets this week. First two rounds are on the white tees, round 3 is on black, and round 4 is on red. Green speeds are a constant 144 (Moderate) the whole week. Things are very firm as the week starts and then soften there way to moderate by the end of the week. High winds in round 1 and moderate winds in round 3... we'll see what the wind lottery rolls with the default wind speeds in rounds 2 and 4. Good luck and play well!
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Post by trfoisy on Jan 17, 2021 10:02:08 GMT -5
-12 after 2 rounds in H. Glad I’m going to make the cut to play 2 more competitive rounds, because this course is amazing! I’ve played lots of courses, and this is in my top 3, maybe my favorite.
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ffrog
Amateur Golfer
Posts: 247
TGCT Name: Dave Richards
Tour: Challenge Circuit
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Post by ffrog on Jan 17, 2021 12:02:23 GMT -5
Only played the front 9 so far, and already had 2 par 4s where I couldn't get pin high with a driver and 3 wood. Starting to realise that my 275yd driver just isn't long enough for the tours - does everyone use a driver longer than that?
Edit: should have waited until I finished the round, then I could have mentioned the par 5 that took a driver and two 3-woods... not looking forward to round 3 on the black tees! I do kinda like the course tho
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Post by williamwes626 on Jan 17, 2021 12:03:01 GMT -5
I missed this course when I was playing some of the Dream Team courses so it was cool to see it - it's definitely impressive. I played two practice rounds and I'm leaving some notes in case anyone didn't get to see the course or wants an outline.
EL DORADO
Architect Brian Culbertson (GCSinsane): Alas! the fabled site of El Dorado has been found. To the discover's astonishment instead of treasure they found a championship golf course! Introducing my entry in the dream team comp El Dorado. Big shoutout to my teammates, this course would be a fraction of what it is without their expert guidance and tips #teamblueforlife.Enjoy!
Par 72
Red: 7249 yards White: 7485 yards Black: 7673 yards (longest of the CC season)
After an easier affair at Pointe West, we’re off to a rockier course playing significantly tougher. I always wondered what an El Dorado golf course would look like. Lots of elevation, rocks and tall grass. Approach shots usually are the vital shot on most holes, elevation changes are typical, and numerous holes are doglegs that ask for shot shaping. The fairway cambers leave us slanted much of the time as well -so those are 2 things that we didn’t have to worry about in Florida, but do at El Dorado.
There’s lots of areas where tall grass, rocks and trees can throw us off our game so recovery shots can cast evil spells on us if we’re in these danger zones. The black tee yardage is the longest we’ve faced this season. Luckily or thanks to Catcherman, the greens are at moderate or they'd wreak havoc.
1. 4-507. A long par-4 downhill sharp dogleg left starts us off. There’s an option to a cut a drive through the trees, but there’s a cavernous bunker awaiting once you clear them. Other tee options are a driver drawn around the trees along the fairway, or a straight 3-wood. The latter choices allow for the better angle into a green lightly split into three sections vertically. The #4 pin is toughest at the back edge of the green and danger just behind.
2. 3-175. A tightly narrow uphill par-3 with a 30 foot drop off right- this section is the last place to leave a tee shot. Anything that catches the green will stay as the sides are pinched in towards each other.
3. 4-400. There’s plenty of room for a 3-wood down another sharp dogleg left leaving a 100-yard approach, but this time, there’s no real estate for driver. Like the first hole, off the tee, you could cut through the trees with a driver to shorten the approach as this par-4 also drops 30-40 feet in elevation. The green slopes heavily from right to left.
4. 5-611. A possible 3-shot par-5 elevates before descending down 60 feet. A drive to the left side of the fairway presents the full green to us on approach. The green slopes multiple ways but it’s a birdie opportunity and possibly reachable in the right conditions.
5. 4-450. Elevator going up! Another hole with a tight sightline bordered by trees, this severely uphill (100 feet above tee box level) dogleg right is a solid test of for a fade. Be sure to club up on the approach to a green that sits almost 50 feet above the fairway landing area. The green slopes from back left to front right
6. 5-597. Rip that tee shot – we have a ton of area to land in the fairway. Hitting this too far right though leaves an approach hindered by trees on the right. The worst miss is short of the green left where rocks and tall grass will make recoveries to a mostly flat green challenging. With 2 good shots, an eagle is possible.
7. 4-491. #2 handicap. Okay I'm scared. Stay left again on this wide fairway since the rocky cliff right obscures the green for the approach. The difficulty is in the long iron approach which will hit a green sloping back right to front left. The Sunday/#4 pin is extra naughty.
8. 4-471. Like the previous hole and others on the course, the fairway’s camber is significantly slanted so approaches will have to be slightly adjusted often.
9. 3-189. An uphill par-3, the green slopes back right to front left towards the huge bunker fronting the green. A draw matches the green shape and slope best. Try to get as near to the hole as you can to avoid nightmarish lag putts. I had an 82-footer in a practice round that had to climb past 2 tiers and sloped like 30 feet to the left.
10. 4-304. A drivable dogleg right par-4 that doesn’t necessarily need a fade. If you ride the slope down to the green, you may have an eagle chance or use extra loft to drop it lightly onto the putting surface. The multi-tiered green also slopes right. The worst miss is short right, where there’s a deep dropoff with rocks and tall grass.
11. 5-613. A beautifully picturesque hole – I’m enjoying the views from up here on the tee box. The fairway dips and is wide enough to let ‘er rip, but then a choice comes into play once in the fairway. Do you want to take a chance hitting a wood or long iron over the rocks up 25 feet above or layup and turn it into a 3-shot hole? If the tee shot misses, there’s no chance to reach the green in two.
12. 3-484. #1 handicap and a mighty evil beast. There are 2 sections to shoot for off the tee – with a south wind at your back, you can hit the fairway section past the rocks. A 3-wood is the safe play but leaves a long shot uphill 50-60 feet so perhaps driver is best. The green is very shallow sloping left to right.
13. 4-449. #3 handicap The beast’s partner – another beast who’s not as mean but still gets a temper. A right angle dogleg right can cause discomfort to our woods and driver, the hole plays severely uphill as well. A faded driver works best but even a straight tee shot will bounce off the cliff back onto the fairway. The green slopes left to right. Miss the approach right and you’re off the cliff edge and possibly facing a 30-40 foot uphill recovery.
14. 5-684. Whoa that was rocky! I need a breather but I may have to swallow my pride again with this extensive 3-shot par-5 that curves around a short tree’d up cliff. The fairway camber slopes right away from the inside of a long dogleg left. The fairway narrows cutting off 3-woods and drivers off the deck – there’s no way to play this in two. Approaches will vary widely but all will be uphill. Don’t get down if you bogey this one, it’s a highly stressful par-5.
15. 3-239. Another lengthy hole this time a par-3. The highly scenic tee shot gives a great view of the mountains beyond as the tee shot goes sky high dropping down to a green that slopes left to right. Watch that steep false front.
16. 4-480. Keep right or we’ll have a blind approach behind a tree on this long par-4. The approach isn’t long but it’s uphill we should choose our clubs wisely. There’s a slight false front on the green so don’t go too short. If you need to use the bathroom, ask the couple that lives in that little house right of the green-they’re friendly.
17. 3-180. One of the flatter holes on the course, make sure you don’t leave yourself a downhill putt on this green that is split in half by a severe slope running down the middle.
18. 4-349. A very tempting hole to want to hit the green off the tee, the punishment is way more severe than the earlier drivable par-4 so we’re making a big bet here if we want the payoff of an eagle putt. Once you’re done get a bite to eat that cute little clubhouse – they have good food.
Have a great week everybody and good luck here and in the promotional event.
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Post by axelvonfersen on Jan 18, 2021 2:07:17 GMT -5
Only played the front 9 so far, and already had 2 par 4s where I couldn't get pin high with a driver and 3 wood. Starting to realise that my 275yd driver just isn't long enough for the tours - does everyone use a driver longer than that? Edit: should have waited until I finished the round, then I could have mentioned the par 5 that took a driver and two 3-woods... not looking forward to round 3 on the black tees! I do kinda like the course tho I've had the same experience during the practice rounds since I'm not good enough to play the longest clubs and I'm not too keen on playing Red Fast. I've simply decided to settle on having to play the last splash shot, and try to get it close for a one-putt.
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Post by axelvonfersen on Jan 18, 2021 4:42:15 GMT -5
Holy hell, waddaround. Just shot the best round of my TGC career so far, a bogey-free -7. Scrambling was fantastic, got a few long bombs to drop on the greens and finished with a chip-in on 18th. Gotta be pleased with that, seeing how this course has beaten me up in practice.
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Cpt_Insano_57
Caddy
Posts: 28
TGCT Name: Cpt_Insano_57
Tour: Challenge Circuit
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Post by Cpt_Insano_57 on Jan 18, 2021 9:00:32 GMT -5
Only played the front 9 so far, and already had 2 par 4s where I couldn't get pin high with a driver and 3 wood. Starting to realise that my 275yd driver just isn't long enough for the tours - does everyone use a driver longer than that? Edit: should have waited until I finished the round, then I could have mentioned the par 5 that took a driver and two 3-woods... not looking forward to round 3 on the black tees! I do kinda like the course tho I've had the same experience during the practice rounds since I'm not good enough to play the longest clubs and I'm not too keen on playing Red Fast. I've simply decided to settle on having to play the last splash shot, and try to get it close for a one-putt. I was having a similar issue with using the max forgiveness Driver cause my swing is questionable at best still. I recently moved up a little in the driver section to get some more yardage but I didn't go all the way to the top Distance ones. I am using one of the Mizuno's from the season pass but its one of the middle ones I think but any way there is also a Taylormade and Callaway that are the same attribute wise. I can't remember which one exactly but I can post it later once I am back at home cause I know there a few different ones stat wise. Anyway I have noticed a decent increase in the yardage but not a crazy increase in the amount of shots missed off the tee as before I was around 60-70% FIR and It hasn't really changed since changing drivers. So I think giving some of those middle area drivers a try might be worth it. Anyway on to RD #1. I really enjoyed this course and shot my best round yet on TGC settings with a -1 though it probably should have been a -3 or better but I got a little excited when I was going into the home stretch at -3 and bogeyed 2 of the last 4 holes. I was steadily at around +4 to +7 per round the last few events so a -3 was a huge jump and I got nervous lol. But excited to see if I can keep it up in RD #2.
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Post by SteelVike on Jan 18, 2021 9:39:14 GMT -5
-9/-3/-5/-10
-27 total
Just kind of ho-hummed my way around the course with no worries because of the promo event this week. Still pretty pleased with my performance.
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Post by JosiaDB on Jan 18, 2021 9:44:53 GMT -5
What an interesting course!! I like it.
Lots of choices to make, it seemed. The one that really got me was #14. It took me 5 just to get TO the green! lol.
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Post by Giraffe72 on Jan 18, 2021 13:55:51 GMT -5
Another thumbs up on the course selection from me, and an extra mark for it being from an Xbox designer. Nice variety in hole lengths and some really fun holes. A pair of 66's should see me safely in to playing the weekend in CC-D. I've played GCS's ghost a few times, he's a man of many talents! Even when this game drives me mental (a fairly regular occurrence..) it's courses like this one that bring me back. Very good
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Post by axelvonfersen on Jan 18, 2021 13:58:06 GMT -5
I've come to realize that wether or not I'll like the course I'm playing solely depends on the scores I shoot.
+4 two days ago during practice planted it solely in "Nuke this place" territory, while my R1 scores put it safely in the "Flippin' awesome" range.
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Post by eastnortheast on Jan 18, 2021 14:32:17 GMT -5
Beautiful (and tough) course. For me, no "gimme" holes. Every hole I really had to concentrate Walked out after round #1 with a +1 as a CC-J player. Had two bogeys and one birdie. Most of my par putts were relatively short, but most of my birdie putts were pretty long. LOL Scrambled well enough to limit it to two bogeys. Onward to round #2.
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Post by zooby97 on Jan 18, 2021 20:05:01 GMT -5
I loved the course. It reminds me of driving in the mountains with all of the turns and elevation changes. The fairways snd especially approaches look like roads heading to your destination, love it.
I had a rough driving day in Rd 1 and had to scramble more than I wanted.
-2 70
But not a big fan of 144 greens. Thank god for Victory Arena for putting practice with the 144s.
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Post by axelvonfersen on Jan 19, 2021 1:51:31 GMT -5
But not a big fan of 144 greens. Thank god for Victory Arena for putting practice with the 144s. I thought the green speed was good, the rest of the course is so "tough" you deserve a break (pun intended) once you're on the green.
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Post by zooby97 on Jan 19, 2021 4:03:22 GMT -5
But not a big fan of 144 greens. Thank god for Victory Arena for putting practice with the 144s. I thought the green speed was good, the rest of the course is so "tough" you deserve a break (pun intended) once you're on the green. You are right. The speed was good. I was just used to the 187s at the Florida course. My preferred speed is 164.
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