| Links Corner Course Database ID Number - 922 |
Release Date |
CRZ Filesize |
Par |
Course Length |
| 2002-05-30 |
32,478,907 bytes |
72 |
7044 yards |
| Type |
Style |
CRZ Filename |
|
FICTIONAL |
OCEAN |
Badger National.crz |
| Course ID |
Course Key |
| a24c4c206e9511d6aac3eb2f1485467d |
fe9c08d48f7b785dcfc62e776a6e8273 |
|
LINKS CORNER REVIEW |
Reviewed by
Nilkas Oscarsson
June 2002
From the readme file:
"This is a fictional course that is set along the shores of Lake Michigan in Wisconsin, hence the name Badger National. Note the 'W' on the flags and the Badger tee markers. This is my second course, my first being Osgood National. These are all holes that I drew up on paper and converted into a course using the APCD. I try to make tough holes but still be fair."
Expectations:
Mr. Osgood made a promising debut with his last course Osgood National, which was well received by the Links community. That course was made for the digital armchair architect contest and was limited by its rules (only stock stuff could be used). Therefore, I expect a little bit more this time, as these limitations are no longer in the way. The designers skills should be a little bit better too. The first user reviews quickly pumped it up to five stars (did you call all your buddies Scott?), only to drop to three shortly thereafter. I have high expectations on this one, but I'll keep an eye open.
First impression:
The logo and splash screen are screen shots from the game. Not much time spent here, but for something that shows for a few seconds, it's enough.
The first hole is a long par 4 that goes in a long left curve. The fairway looks narrow and is guarded by bunkers on both sides. The fact that the bunkers start pretty early combined with the length of the hole, makes me choose the driver. No point in laying up short of the bunkers. The approach shot would be too long. Looks like I need to put on that green jacket today.
The textures look great and blend nicely together. They appear to be custom, but seem a bit familiar. The trees look a bit repetitive and I get a feeling there are high trees and low trees, but nothing in between.
A walk through the course:
I (deliberately) hit into one of the bunkers to see how it was made. Looks excellent. The designer has set the edge sharpness to 3 which means the edges look more natural. The next thing that strikes me are the colored sticks to mark the distance to the green. They are placed in the middle of the fairway. I've never seen this before. I wonder what happens if I hit one? I hit my approach shot into one of the green bunkers. Not on purpose this time though. The green is very small and considering the length of the approach shot, I would consider it a little bit unfair. I like to start off my rounds a bit slowly, but at Badger National you are thrown right into the fire.
After a while I realize that all greens have more or less the same size. In my opinion they should be adjusted according to the length of the approach shot. A part from the size issue, the greens are excellent. They have many undulations, but they always remain fair. There are three pin positions for every difficulty and they are placed just where they should be. Most of the time the greens are protected on all sides. This is target golf all right.
On hole 2, I see some problems that will reappear later: the wood plank texture used is too big. On other holes a vertical mapping was used and it worked much better. Some sticks around the water hazard were out of proportion too. Sometimes these sticks are red, sometimes yellow. Why I don't know. Could be my ignorance though (never was much of a rules freak).
Hole 3 is a beautiful long par 3, which could have been the best hole on the course if it were a par 4 (it would have to be longer of course). As a par 4, you would have had the choice of going over the fairway bunker and have a short and simple approach shot, or making a safer drive to the left, away from sand and water. The safer you'd play, the more difficult the next shot would be. A missed strategical opportunity if you ask me. On a par 3 I have to go for the green.
On hole 4 another typical feature of Badger National appears for the first time: the blind shots. I like this every now and then just to break the rhythm a bit, but I think he overdid it a bit here. Four tee shots can be considered blind. Sometimes, trees are placed in the line of play, forcing you to move the ball or shape the tee shots. It makes your round more interesting I think. The length distribution is quite good and I used all clubs in the bag. The best of courses frequently fail here. The mix of dogleg and straight holes is also well made.
The course gives a pretty flat impression. Especially the terrain beside the course is a bit lifeless. The stock panorama blends in very well with the course and never dominates.
On the ocean holes I thought the rock surface was much too plain. Also the waves texture is a long way from the quality of Pacific Breaks. Hole 17 has some nasty mesh shadows seen mainly in the top cam. A bit of a shame, especially so close to the end of the course.
The sounds on the course are well placed, fun and not too loud. There were some duck sounds that I liked and in APCD I found the sound of a flushing toilet, but I never managed to hear it on the course.
Scott added custom tee markers and flags with this course, but there were no hole previews. Would have been nice to have, especially on those blind holes.
The verdict:
The remaining impression of Badger National is its excellent variation in hole design. No two holes look alike. It is also quite a difficult course. For PS players it may be a bit too narrow. Scott set out to do a challenging course and he certainly succeeded.
The three star rating that it currently holds, is way off. This is a very well made course and it's great fun to play. There were some minor errors, which keeps it just short of the best. I give it the score: 87%.
The download size (~30Mb) has to be considered quite decent nowadays and I suggest that you go and get it now. You'll be glad you did.
Thank you Scott and good luck with "Myrtle Beach Tour 18".
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