Joe,
I think that most sane people (and many that are not
) find lengthening courses some how distasteful but it is the first wepon that is used in most cases. The problem is it does not affect the top players anywhere near as much as most people think.
For example if Carnoustie was as open as TOC I think the scoring there would be very close to that at TOC. Making a course more challenging to the top players is more to do with contours than distance, green speeds, etc. Rough is of course a deadly wepon but is also deadly boring for the viewer.
I believe strongly sloping greens and surrounds plus unlevel lies in the fairway are the way forward. The reason most top players moan about sloping greens is because it presents a challenge that they struggle with.