Matt:
Some good observations. Of course, many of the more notable western courses highly thought of, by both this board and raters, are remote by any definition -- the Bandon courses, Rock Creek, Ballyneal, and Sand Hills. Even a place like Chambers Bay, while in a major metro area, is a long journey for, what, 80 percent of the country's population. Compare that to the wealth of solid courses in Westchester County, Long Island, and the greater Philadelphia area. Still, that hasn't prevented most major golf publications from recognizing the outstanding virtues of Sand Hills or PacDunes.
Is it your argument that second-tier Western courses aren't getting their due compared to second-tier Eastern courses (save us the discussion of Baltusrol Lower -- you've beat that horse into a baseball glove already...)? That a place like Manny's or Lancaster gets more due because of its ties to other Philly-area greats, compared to some of Engh's work out West?