Is distance its own reward?

[Tom_Doak]

Mike C:  He didn't use the phrase "turbo boost", but I heard Jack Nicklaus talk about this concept at Sebonack.  He had us build a couple of bunkers that if you could carry it 285, and catch a downslope that couldn't have been more than fifteen yards, you would get a kick forward.  Jack thought that was a just reward for being able to carry it 285 and for daring to take on a shot you could just barely make ... even though, he pretty much told me on another occasion that he never took risks like that in his championship days.

There is nothing wrong with having a "turbo boost" here and there.  My own feeling is that these should accommodate the short hitter at least as often as they accommodate the long hitter, if not more often ... but if you're GOING to give a turbo boost to the longer hitter, it should be a real reward, like letting him reach a par-5 in two, and not just hitting a 9-iron to the green instead of a 7-iron. 

I am also a firm believer that there should occasionally be such things as "bad" turbo boosts, where a drive to a certain spot accelerates away into a worse spot.  (Ballyneal has a bunch of those.)

The one thing I don't agree with is the commonly accepted wisdom that the turbo boost should only come after a long carry over a hazard of some sort.  Why?  Why not reward the player who can hit it x yards into a narrow slot, or who can hook or fade the ball to gain distance off a sideslope -- like the Augusta of old, or like the diagonal ridges Mike Young endorsed yesterday.

[Rob Rigg]

Tetherow - Hole #2 - Par 5 - Turbo boost if you can place the ball in a narrow slot between the bunker in the middle of the fairway and the rough on the right.

You know if you hit the slot but the tee shot is semi-blind so you cannot be sure if the ball stayed in the top fairway on the right, got caught in the rough in the middle, or dropped down to the fairway which runs to the left of the bunker.

Very shaggadelic turbo boost.

#16 - Similar turbo boost scenario.

Are two turbo boosts on one course excessive?  Never!  Well, maybe sometimes. 

[Patrick_Mucci]

Or should the architect try to provide "rewards" for the golfer who hits it both long and straight with things like turbo boosts, or speed slots?

Mike,

You have so much to learn and I only have so much time to devote to your education, especially when looking after TEPaul is a full time job.

Architects do exactly what you state.

However, the golf course remains static while distance is constantly increasing.

And, you can't create defenses for one level of golfer that overwhelm most other levels.

A review of a scene from "Roar of the Greasepaint, Smell of the Crowd"
should provide a suitable analogy.

Reining in the I&B is the answer, not Maginot Line architecture.

[Mike_Cirba]

Patrick,

You're not the only one who can play Devil's Advocate here! 

[Garland Bayley]

Patrick,

It is soooo nice to see you using green outside of the the quote box! 

[Adam Clayman]

Isn't the best turbo boost a perpendicular ridge that if carried provides the boost, while failure to fly to the leeward side provides a dead thud?



In this next pic...The turbo's on the left side of this fairway are similar to what Tom mentions and in reality are somewhat sucker TB's. Due to their proximity to each other, a carry of one might not roll out to carry the next (Admittedly, when it is humming this is less of an occurrence), leaving either an awkward stance or, with the wrong spin on the ball and or wind, a bunker shot.



The following is the mother of all TB's. Carry the bunker perfectly (100 yards from the green) and you will either be on or very close. Thump depending.

[TEPaul]

MikeC:

I can tell you from years of experience that distance does not make a damn bit of difference unless you ain't got it.

[John Chilver-Stainer]

I agree distance is it’s own reward - to reward a long drive even further with turbo boosts is feeding the ego of the n.l.d.’s. Sure they’ll love you for it but at the expense of the courses integrity. 
I prefer the case of the Turbo Boost getting the long hitter into a worst position. 

I just created an interesting one recently on a short Par 4 where the long drive which catches the turbo boost will ultimately end up on the down slope of a valley playing to a green at the other side of the valley at least 15 feet higher with the green surface invisible.

My vision for the smart shot is a 5 iron FROM THE TEE to a flat spot before the valley with a raised view of the Green. An 8-iron to the Green can hit the surface or use the back slope to bounce into the green.

It works a treat. The n.l.d’s love the idea of getting another 20-30 yards on their long drives and are left with a “nasty” shot to the green and the dissatisfaction of not seeing what happened. At the moment I’m the only one to play the 5-iron to the flat spot (the course has only been open a month), but I can vouch for it that the pleasure of seeing the ball taking lot’s of air over the valley to catch the green and then roll near to the pin is the biggest “turn on” of the round.

[Ajay Yadav]

IMO, Turbo boosts, whether for a long straight shot or a draw / fade executed well, should be accompanied by a penalty (similar to the biunkers at Sebonack that Tom memtioned or for eg. if the ball does not carry the required distance, then it comes back 20-30 yards or perhaps runs into some other trouble).

It makes sense where the reward is significant and the penalty is also significant (atleast half a stroke) as that brings in a good balance of risk and reward.. and brings in choices..

Too many times... turbo boosts are provided where there is no penalty for attempting the shot and failing.... 

[Carl Nichols]

Can properly placed turbo boosts be a subtle way to encourage people to play the right tees?  At my home course, two of the holes have turbo boosts that short- and medium-length players have no chance of reaching from the back tees, but that they can reach from the regular tees with a well-struck ball.  So while the tees are only about 20-30 yards apart, the net effect is more like 50 or 60 yards.  I can imagine that might have some effect on the choice of tees (for the better).