I don't really feel Matt has tried to make the point that Black Mesa is playable for the high handicapper so much as he has tried to point out that its a great golf course anyway--if that's correct then I agree with him.
You are very wrong on this point.
The entire crux of the argument going on for 5 years now between Matt and me (and many others) is our disagreement over the playability of BM specifically for HH golfers. I have stated repeatedly that I think BM is a wonderful course, in many ways the best desert/canyon type course I've played, that it deserves all of its high praise, etc, etc, but Matt continues to lie and mislead others about my position, which is simply that BM is not an especially accommodating course specifically as it relates to HH golfers (and I'm again referring to the types of golfer Patrick Kiser cites, not beginners who hit worm burners quite often).
Several other very experienced and quite competent golfer/posters who attended the GCA outing in the fall of 04 that I spoke to agreed with me, some even went further than I did. Many others disagreed, and some even provided compelling arguments. That's what makes this a discussion site, disagreement and discussion.
Unfortunately, Matt does not think this is a discussion site, he believes it is a site where he gets to say whatever he wants and everyone must accept it as THE GOSPEL. Matt does this because he cannot stand anyone having a different opinion than his own. Matt prefers to belittle anyone who disagrees with him, labeling them whiners and untruthful incompetents, which would seem to be one of the most clear cut examples of projection I have seen.
Is BM great? I don't know, I willingly admit I haven't played enough courses to say, and I also willingly admit it is one of the better courses I've played. I just happen to believe it isn't well suited for HH golfers, who tend to be inconsistently wild, through the green. If a HHer doesn't mind losing balls and taking drops, great, he'll have a tremendous experience. There are some golfers who don't like determining drop zones several times in a round - for those golfers, I would advise other venues, or even as Matt suggests, waiting until they get a little better.
Somehow in Matt's mind, that means I am dishonest and ignorant and cannot appreciate the greatness of Black Mesa.