JES II,
You are showing your lack of understanding of the #16 hole at Cypress Point. Best to play it than make your comments. One more point to help educate you. If a golfer hits two wedge shots of 115 yards (assuming little roll) doesn't that equal 230 yards of carry. The average golfer does not carry his driver 230 yards in the air (sorry JES II, that is a fact). However, these same players can often hit a wedge 115 yards. Play the hole, then comment.
I'm afraid you are the one that doesn't understand this term "shot testing" or maybe its that you have your own definition.
Tom Paul says "shot testing" in a design or strategic sense on a course is a concept that requires the player do something specific". You say it is about putting each player into the same position on a particular hole. The only holes I know where the player is put into the same position to play a hole is on par three holes. Why would any par three not require some kind of shot testing? Please educate me? The architect picks the location from where the golfer is to play, orients the target and the hazards so everyone comes at it from the same angle of approach, and essentially challenges the player to do something specific to succeed on the hole. What am I missing? Please explain? Is #16 at Cypress Point not a shot testing hole? Is #17 at the TPC of Sawgrass not a shot testing hole? Is the local muni's 130 yard hole with a bunkers surrounding the front not a shot testing hole?
Moreover, does a "dogleg left" par four hole fit the term for "shot testing"? If not why not?
To go back to the #2 hole, on your approach shot on #2, the architect doesn't tell you that you have to hit a low running draw into the green for your second. You might use that shot to run it on or you might hit a high soft cut shot depending on conditions and your preferred ball flight. You also told me that the distance in might vary from 200 to 220 (off a downhill lie) and that this was a big difference for you. Seems to me not every golfer is in the same position on the approach so does that negate the shot testing of the hole? I don't think so.
By the way, I didn't even know what Tom Doak said about this in the Confidential Guide. When I referred to Tom Doak's opinion about the cart before the horse hole it was from one of his earlier posts on this thread. Tom said:
"Tiger Woods decided that a lot of the holes at Hoylake were better approached in "cart before the horse" style (by himself, anyway), and that was great to watch.
To me that is more interesting than the diagram shown. Let the player bomb away with driver into a landing area fraught with difficulty (but not the certainty of water), or let him lay back and attack the green with a longer iron.
I don't think the hole should be as Rich suggests, where the long hitter can carry everything by force. But the other extreme is not right either -- if you really FORCE everyone to lay up in roughly the same spot, you are just giving all the advantage to the better man on the approach.
By the way, are any of the Hoylake holes shot testing holes? If Tiger turned them into cart before the horse holes as Tom suggests, wouldn't they then qualify in some way? If not please tell me why?