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Brookdale Country Club v2.0
by Stuart Kahle
| Links Corner Course Database ID Number - 1479 |
Release Date |
CRZ Filesize |
Par |
Course Length |
| 2004-08-08 |
34,975,744 bytes |
74 |
7538 yards |
| Type |
Style |
CRZ Filename |
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FICTIONAL |
PARKLAND |
A_BrookdaleCC.crz |
| Course ID |
Course Key |
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LINKS CORNER REVIEW |
Designer: With 13 designs to his credit, Stuart Kahle has an impressive course portfolio dating all the way back to 2000. Having released 11 2001 courses, Brookdale Country Club is actually his first officially released 2003 course, with his other 2003 design, Centenary Links Country Club, being an exclusive course included in the Links Corner Expansion Pack. He is known for keeping his file sizes relatively small, with courses ranging from 7mb to 38mb, and considering he has designed both Fictional and Real courses, including styles of Links, Mountain, Parkland and Tropical, he is definitely one of the most accomplished designers in the Links community.
Course: If you have played any of the designer's works, you will have noticed that he enjoys creating courses that would be found within Australia, and Brookdale Country Club is no different, with both the look and playability being very similar to what you will find when playing a golf club out in the country. Considering how beautiful the Par 3's are, it is a shame there was not any more, and even though there are numerous Par 4's, each one has been designed differently enough so that playing a round on the course won't become a chore. The Par 5's are quite long, but are often reachable with two large hits, while even though the water is not obvious within the course design, it can often cause problems if you don't acknowledge that it is there. With innovative features like a double green that both Holes 8 and 14 share, some blind tee and second shots, and two fairway options on Hole 18 to set up a grandstand finish, Brookdale Country Club is an enjoyable course true to its Australian theme.
Favourite Hole: The Par 3 on Hole 9 is by far one of the most visually stunning hole designs I've seen, with beautiful planting next to the water, and with bunkers lying in wait when hitting into the tight green, it is definitely my favourite hole on the course.
Playability: With bunkers being scattered around the course, the fairways slight elevation and undulation changes can often roll your ball right into one of them. As the greens have some challenging curve and slope in them, placement of drives off the tee to set up the second shot is most important, as if played correctly, the course can offer up some great scoring opportunities, but with mistimed shots, could also become your worst nightmare. Even though the course has twelve Par 4's, with Holes 3, 7 and 12 being drivable off the tee in the right conditions, the Par of 74 is not as difficult as it seems.
Technically: From first impressions, the course has it all, with great textures, seam blending and wonderful APCD work in all directions. Unless you are a designer, finding a mistake will be tough, as visually, there are no flaws in sight on any of the holes, which is great for golfers who enjoy visual scenery. With the course's bunkers being an integral part of the design, it was great to see a very nice sand texture had been chosen, with the blending and lipping techniques being spot on. The course also includes extras like houses and an assortment of wonderfully made brick walls. The sounds included, especially the variety of birds, can get especially annoying, but living in Australia myself, many courses and areas have wildlife like that, so the sounds are true to form, while if they become too irritating, switching off the ambient sounds when playing can be easily done. Where this course succeeds most though was with the planting, both of the smaller variety in the fescue rough and the larger trees, allowing for a truly immersive and realistically styled Australian course. The water areas, both small and large, were perfectly executed, and aesthetically amazing to look at, while the clubhouse behind Hole 18 really put the finishing coat on an amazing design.
Other: The course includes a cameo, handicaps, hole previews and splash screens, while the zip file included the course file, logo, read-me, scorecards, and wallpapers. The read-me is exceptionally useful, as it shows the pin positions on all 18 Holes, which is great for allowing players to diversify their round when they choose. With crowds included in the tournament options, the course and added extras are certainly of a very high standard, and allow for an enjoyable playing experience.
Download Value: At just over 36mb, the course is quite small in regard to current standards, and considering the amount of extras included within the course and zip file, it is a great download. If you have enjoyed the designers previous courses, then you will really like his latest offering, as it certainly is his best work to date, while with amazing APCD work found all around the course, it is a great fictional design to both look at and play, and will certainly be staying on my hard drive.
Information:
Course Statistics:
2003 - Fictional Parkland - Par 74 - 5 Tees
7538yds (Back) - 7000yds (Forward)
Par 3's: 2 - Par 4's: 12 - Par 5's: 4
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CLIPNOTES by Ben Bateson (ousgg) |
Description
Fictional, estate course |
Location
Victoria, Australia |
Conditions
Probably best to stick to S*/S*. Good in gusty conditions. |
Concept 9/10
Home of a hundred delicate views and screenshots, Brookdale is a real charmer of course with its soft appearance and estate walls lining the course. The hole design is very evocative of a 'proper' golf club, with at least one stunning hole, and a clear irreverence for 'standard' layouts, having just two Par 3s. The subtle strategy, using scattered patches of planting and bunkers focussed largely around missed fairways, befits the very Australian environment perfectly, even if there is a technical flaw or two. |
Appearance 8/10
Some very impressive moments are impressive at Brookdale, including the 3D walls and course buildings, and the sparkling turquoise water textures. But, equally, the feather-light grass planting and some excellent texture work shouldn't be ignored. There are perhaps one or two clones in the treeline, but little else is apparent as a flaw. |
Playability 8/10
The round is spoiled by one thing only: appalling sound planting. One particular bird is very persistent and monotonous and it really does take the edge off what could be an otherwise superb round of golf. Turn the sound down, however, and you're left with a great selection of risk/reward and hole options. It's clear that the designer has gone to great lengths to emphasise that long drives are not necessarily the best. There is genuine opportunity to try shots from all distances, and the hazarding is an almost perfect blend of sand, water and planting. If only the noise was better. |
Challenge 5/10
The good variety of hazards is natural in feel and unobtrusive to the simple tasks of hitting fairways, and the deep rough lying in close proximity to the fairway was undoubtedly a good idea. A shame the course is let down by some immoderate green slopes and pin positioning which create something of an artificial challenge after the wholly natural one which goes before. The fact that it is a Par 74, with the occasional birdie putt to compensate, doesn't really do enough to make up for this. |
Technical 7/10
It's a shame to penalise this too harshly for poor sound planting, but providing an accommodating environment always has to be a keynote for a Links designer, and that's where Brookdale has fallen short. Elsewhere, the effort in planting and texturing is more than apparent, and the tantalisingly good hole design showcases the designer's talent very well indeed. |
| Overall |
A lovely, relaxed course with appeal to the visualist and golfer alike. You'll probably want to turn the sound off, though. |
37/50 |
Please remember that Clipnote reviews are the opinion of one person and do not constitute an 'Official' Links Corner review of the course. |
This course is available as a FREE download.
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