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Castle Rock v2
by Mat Leclair
| Links Corner Course Database ID Number - 682 |
Release Date |
CRZ Filesize |
Par |
Course Length |
| 2001-12-08 |
19,889,387 bytes |
72 |
7143 yards |
| Type |
Style |
CRZ Filename |
|
FICTIONAL |
WOODLAND |
Castle Rock Final.crz |
| Course ID |
Course Key |
| c37bb26f6687400a8681dbcb6d8e6f4f |
afbad961bc46e2226517ffdedc7a02dc |
|
LINKS CORNER REVIEW |
Reviewed by Joe Turner `Loner'
November 2001
A beautiful deep, lush green course with massive tree plantings with luxurious undergrowth, well blended tee boxes, roughs, fairways and greens. I was a little disappointed that this beautifully done course didn't have mowed fairways but the texture he used wasn't the usual flat but a deeper looking one as were the roughs. The meandering brook was, at times, well placed for use as a hazard on many of the holes. Many objects throughout the course enhanced this well made course, half-barrel waste containers, benches (a little too large) wooden planking leading to the tees, stone and wood bridges and an occasional small building for personal use.
The elevation on this course I found to be more than excellent as was the caddie. The fairways were very generous without being large. The greens although undulating in parts and slightly sloped in others seemed to be quite easy if you landed within 15 feet of the cup. Mat used fairway markers that you could actually read and added to the realism of the course.
6th hole, par 5, 518y, this was a long dogleg to the left and it had a creek running across the fairway. I found that a drive straight up the center of the fairway cleared the creek without a problem. The drive was 282y and I had a 226y approach to the pin. My 2 iron cleared the trees and I landed only 11.2ft from it, eagle for you birdie for me.
12th hole, par 5, 563y, this interesting reverse 'S' shaped hole had useless bunkers at 240y. I cut across with my drive the left side of the far right bunker, 289y. With only 160y to go if you cut across the trees you will be on the green in 2 giving you an easy eagle or at least a bird. This difficult looking hole was certainly too easy to play.
16th hole, par 3, 186y with a 28ft drop, I used a flop 5 iron here, my pin placement was at the front of the green only a few yards from the creek cutting along the front of it. The choice of clubs proved to be the perfect choice.
He ended this course with a magnificent looking and playing 18th, a fitting finish to any round. Unfortunately this well crafted course had its playing faults. The bunkers and other hazards weren't hazards, the ones in the fairways were to close to be a danger to a drive off of the tee and the ones around the greens weren't because the greens were easily reachable with your next shot. You never had to layup for the third taking a chance with the hazards. The greens didn't have slight breaks when you were close so birdies were plentiful. At 13.5mb this course is one you should download and play set for difficult conditions, the holes are not that imaginative but they would be a challenge under stressful conditions. A keeper, at this size, yes.
Reviewer Note
I am a player not a designer and therefore rate a course as a player for other players.
Summary :
Included: readme, cameo, splash, hole preview, custom flag, custom tee markers and fairway markers.
Not included: ball washers, hole sign and hole numbers.
Statistical information: par 72, 7143y, 4 sets of tees, 4-3 pars, 10-4 pars, 4-5 pars. |
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CLIPNOTES by Ben Bateson (ousgg) |
Description
Fictional, forest course |
Location
Mat’s courses are traditionally around the Ohio region. |
Conditions
Some pin positions mandate S*/S* |
Concept 4/10
There are early echoes of the deep forests that were to become something of a trademark for this designer here, but also a great deal of problem with coherency. The dark woodlands envelop every hole, and there are some tortuous excesses where hole design is concerned. This might have been exciting once, but age has shown it up badly. |
Appearance 5/10
With the dense planting that these forests demand, clones become almost an inevitability, and certainly less care than usual has been taken to iron out the duplicates. The texture set shows a good deal of promise and ambition, but some poor 3D and edges don't help the authenticity. The overall effect is far from unconvincing, but lacking in glamour or warmth. |
Playability 3/10
What starts off as an amiable round of golf too quickly becomes depressing and threatening, as the player is forced to resort to lay-ups from the tee and from fairway bunkers. The designer's predilection for uncomfortable water features and many blind tee shots are responsible. I'm afraid I found this a drag. |
Challenge 7/10
Perhaps a test round or two managed to convince some that this course was being made unfairly hard, because several 'easy birdie' holes have been thrown in. As a gimmick designed to keep scores down and maintain interest, it works remarkably well, although the balance of the course is deeply affected. |
Technical 5/10
Given that Castle Rock really was among the earliest designs, it still retains some interesting aspects today. But there are some clunky visuals, particularly when it comes to non-grass texture choices, and the hole design is - well - extreme, to put it mildly. |
| Overall |
Probably one of the first classy designs with the APCD, but pales against the more subtle courses being released today. |
24/50 |
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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