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Columbine Country Club
by Brian Jameson
| Links Corner Course Database ID Number - 1600 |
Release Date |
CRZ Filesize |
Par |
Course Length |
| 2005-07-05 |
33,173,504 bytes |
72 |
7276 yards |
| Type |
Style |
CRZ Filename |
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REAL |
MOUNTAIN |
Columbine Country Club_locked.crz |
| Course ID |
Course Key |
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| COURSE NOTES |
| This is my first real course i hope you like it. |
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LINKS CORNER REVIEW |
Reviewed by Chris Gormley
Background Info: This is 5th course released by Brian with the others being Birkenhead Park GC, Dellemere Forest Golf Resort, Hillfoot Hey Golf Club and Staffordshire Lakes Country Club. All of these designs were APCD 1.5 designs so I am hoping that Brian has mastered all of the advanced techniques that the APCD 1.5 has to offer. Here is a little excerpt from the Columbine CC readme:
'Columbine Country Club (CCC) is a traditional, eastern or midwestern U. S. style course at the foot of the Rocky Mountains. Located in the South Platte River bottom, CCC is rich with mature trees, thick-grassed fairways and rough (bluegrass) and dependably true greens (bentgrass). The course is generally flat, but it requires golfers to use almost all their skills--there are few up/down or sidehill lies--and all the clubs in their bags. In a state with multiple top-50 courses, the USGA has chosen CCC as its regional qualifying site for many years. The signature hole is number 4, a 426-yard (middle tees), par-4 tester requiring shots over water on both the drive and the approach. Both par-3 holes on the front side are generally 200+ yards. Even the shorter par-4 holes (e.g., 5, 6, 11, and 18) defy attempts to overpower them and require drive placement to avoid hazards and/or to position approach shots.
My thanks to designing this course goes to Robert Hurst, my long time fellow designer and friend who is responsible for my hole previews thankyou robert.
i hope you enjoy this course as much as i enjoyed doing it,it is a real course so have fun.for any questions on the course and any feedback my e-mail address is brianrjameson@aol.com'
Overall Impressions:
Having not really played any of Brian's previous courses I am really looking forward to checking Columbine Country Club out. This course is very open and spacious with only a couple of terrain changes, which Brian mentions in his readme, and since this is a real course rendition there is not much he can do about the terrain so what is here is here and the designer does not have much leeway on this sort of thing. I will mention though that the terrain changes that do occur throughout the course need a little more tweaking as they do appear 'chunky' in some areas. But this really does not take away from the design, just something that Brian needs to watch out for in his next design. The hole layouts are pretty good for the most part but a couple of the holes are extremely difficult because of the hole layouts. There are couple holes that are designed really well and they offer a player some really nice risk/reward opportunities. Note that I am not saying that the hole designs are bad, because they are not, I am just stating that some are tough.
The APCD work throughout the course is done pretty well except for a few little things. The shapes throughout the course need a little more refinement. There are some jagged parts to some shapes and this takes away from the real look of the course. Just adds to the realism if things look natural. The bunker work also needs some more refinement but that will come with more experience with the apcd. Next to planting a course I think doing the bunkers is the next hardest part of a design. The seamblends were done pretty well throughout the course and really add to the realism of the course.
The Fairways on the course and well contoured and will challenge a player at every turn. A few of them get a bit tight but not anything that a well placed drive would not handle. The greens are also pretty large for the most part but there is one green, I believe hole number 5 that is very tiny and will give some players fits. The hardest thing about the greens are their contours. Some of the greens are very tough to put on, so much so that I would advise against using Firm/Fast settings on this course. I found a few holes almost unplayable with that setting but the other settings were playable and challenging.
The hazards that are utilized throughout the course are placed well and really challenge a player to make the right shots. I commend the designer for the use of water around the course, made me change a lot of my shots. The textures used on the course are pretty good and fit well together. The planting is also ok in spots and a little lacking in others IMHO. The 10th hole was probably the best planted hole on the course. The under planting throughout the course needs a little more variety and there are a couple of oversized trees throughout the course. Planting is tough to get right, and with a little more experience I am sure that Brian will master this skill.
Closing comments:
Overall Columbine is a decent course, but is lacking some of the refinement that is needed to match up to the other courses being released to the community at this time. It is really a fun and challenging course to play and if a few cosmetic things don't bother you then this course is one that you will want to make sure you download.
"I am writing this review from the viewpoint of not only a player but as a Tour Director. Although I am not a designer I understand the work that goes into a design as I have beta tested many courses and my review is simply how I as a player/Tour Director would view this course."
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CLIPNOTES by Ben Bateson (ousgg) |
Description
Real, parkland course |
Location
Colorado |
Conditions
You could get up to M*/M* if you're prepared to take a few risks. |
Concept 8/10
One of Brian's rare attempts at a real course, Columbine has the same understated charm as the likes of Stonebridge or King's Walk. Very flat, despite being at the foot of the Rockies, it has a terrific front nine full of shotmaking and signature views, and the 5th, with its lay-up fairway and tiny green, is an instant winner. While it's initially unprepossessing, there's growing power and tournament potential here and it's one of the best from this designer. |
Appearance 6/10
This sort of flatness on a fictional course would be heavily criticised, and it has to wondered whether full attention has been paid to the fine detail. The autumn-like planting is creative, though, and there has been attention put in to the course buildings and surrounds, even if the panorama is somewhat blurry and out of place. |
Playability 6/10
Once you hit through the terrific 4th and 5th holes, there's something a little mundane and routine here, but then plugging away is a wholesome and realistic part of competitive golf, and it's fitting that Columbine plays host to that. A bit less fitting are the inconsistent hole previews and occasional trivial stroke. The green complexes are fascinating, though; for something so flat, there's a lot of game here. |
Challenge 8/10
You'd want to select your pins carefully, for the greens are stiff, but the deep rough here is a great - and suitable - leveller, and Columbine works very well for something so unprepossessing. The opening nine, in particular, will make you sweat to stay level with par - perhaps it's a shame that the closing half is a bit of a let-up. |
Technical 6/10
Solid if unremarkable work from this designer has been apparent over his entire range of courses, and Columbine is right up there with them. Perhaps there's little by way of flair, but it's also difficult to identify much wrong. |
| Overall |
Shorter, flatter and more intricate than your average tournament course, Columbine is a great slice of the Midwest. |
34/50 |
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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