Related story: My last course was built on a relatively flat and challenged site from a drainage standpoint with little character from which to generate even decent holes. The course needed to be manufactured and I moved about 200K cubic yards to do so, now, I did not admittedly get it all 'just right' in some areas and if I had to do it over I would certainly have taken a different approach, but for the most part the play is interesting, fun, challenging and the look not too forced. Last year another course located just 4 miles away was built upon very nice rolling land with a lot of interesting natural character and one could have found at least 13 to 14 natural holes. However, those in charge designing felt it was valuable to move...get this 1.4 million CY.
The course has nothing but giant boobs lining almost every hole, containment everywhere, average 12,000 SF putting surfaces and 60 circular or oval shaped 1.5 ft deep bunkers of which may be 7 are partially interesting and somewhat strategically located. Guess what folks, we would probably rather go to a putt putt course, but the unsofisticated blue collar golf market loves it, I mean they really love it and I told my client long before they were done that they would,
because they don't know any better and compared to the weak and horrible golf they have had for the past 35 years, they think they were transported to the Carolinas, or some damn resort.
The course was WAY overdone, forced on the land in every way imaginable with way too much paint on the canvas for the sake of someones understanding of an image. But hey, they are ringing the cash register and how can you knock that