| Links Corner Course Database ID Number - 276 |
Release Date |
CRZ Filesize |
Par |
Course Length |
| 2001-05-06 |
35,070,872 bytes |
72 |
7496 yards |
| Type |
Style |
CRZ Filename |
|
FICTIONAL |
DESERT |
The Pit.crz |
| Course ID |
Course Key |
| b769b14041de11d5a9fdbb21d76d4d61 |
842d1bd59509f64eef1c97c9a223be97 |
|
LINKS CORNER REVIEW |
Reviewed by Pete Dixon
This is one of the four courses Dave released at the same time a month or so ago, the others being Deer Track, Greens County and Alta Vista.
This is a fictional/imaginary course that is based as it says in a pit or canyon and uses the background seen in Mesa Roja. The instant impression you get is that this is an original design crafted by someone who is at home with the APCD and has put considerable care into the process.
The fairways undulate well and are blessed with a nice cut of semi-rough between that and the rough. Custom textures are used and the bunkers have a mix of types of sand used. The greens are pretty tricky and there are some sharp breaks to contend with which make them on the hard side.
I think that courses that use the canyon or desert type textures pick the most difficult kind as they are naturally Spartan and hard lined, this course does soften this by the use of planting but I think some more could have been done in this area to soften things further and enhance the overall view.
Bunkers are on the whole, well done but there are just some lips that are not finished off to that exceptional quality that is seen on some courses now, it is evident but not 100% of the time.
There are some holes where you can't see much from the tees as your view is blocked, I personally like to see out into the fairway when I am on the tee and the best holes here are the ones that let you do that.
Best Hole: The par 5 10th, one of the holes that gives you a lovely view off the tee where you have to drive your ball into a pass and you have to avoid bunkers on the left and right of the fairway, this is a tough tee shot make no mistake, your second is then a long 'go for it ' 3 wood uphill to a green surrounded by bunkers. The picture I have supplied is of a fairway shot from the 2nd just because it looks so darned good!
Overall: I think this was a tough course to do and some of the elements fit in perfectly while others just don't quite work and as there are some excellent holes here equally there are some that are less interesting which is a pity as this could have been a lot more likeable but suffers in places. I would still say it is well worth a download but it is not as good as Deer Tracks which is better than this, but not such a difficult type of course to design.
Course Info :
Cameo Screen?
Splash Screen?
Text file?
Hole Previews?
35mb
Reviewed June 2001 |
|
CLIPNOTES by Ben Bateson (ousgg) |
Description
Imaginary, desert course |
Location
TBA |
Conditions
TBA |
Concept 4/10
The sandstone rocks which promised to bring so many desert courses to
the APCD have found another exponent here. The Pit features a terrific
eye for hole design, and you'll be faced with something novel right up to
the end. That alone is not enough, though, as the designer has clearly
found it difficult to maintain the environment, including some particularly
odd choices of planting and some deep, marshy grass which looks both
low-resolution and completely out of place. It's just about worth putting
your brain on hold to account for this flaw, though. |
Appearance 3/10
Some rather amateurish mesh work means the rocks are truly outlandish, and they are hardly thrown into relief by the stock textures
and some very odd mis-scaled planting. There's a lot of shape-placement to the course, although at least a good sense of perspective
allows you to see most holes in a good view. |
Playability 6/10
There's no shortage of interest here, even despite some blind tee shots and lack of atmosphere. Target-golf through and through, it is
a peculiarly appealing blend of risk-taking and shot placement: one course where the designer hit the playability factor right on the
button. Trademark-type holes are legion, but in such proliferation that they're difficult to remember after the event. |
Challenge 6/10
Very artificial courses such as this often tend to be having a bit too much fun with their layout to take sufficient care with the player
challenge, and indeed this is the case at The Pit. While the inventiveness is all well and good, there are too many easy escapes, and
the occasional nasty green just isn't acceptable any more. Not quite right. |
Technical 4/10
There has been considerable effort here to produce something new and different, but sadly the designer hasn't quite had the skill to
pull it all together. Full marks for ambition and some cracking hole design, but the little touches (not least the hole previews which are
desperately needed on this course) are too far away. |
| Overall |
Flaws, yes, but you wouldn't want to miss this one. A very far-out desert course. |
23/50 |
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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