In regard to innovation, I believe it is troublesome to draw on design or creative mediums, like music, fashion, art or building architecture, as there are no rules apart from perhaps gravity that need to abided by in these forms, and new discoveries in materials can readily be incorporated and drive innovation.
Clearly, this is the defining element in course design, that it's intended use is for a game bound by strict and traditional set of rules.
In other sports, innovation is driven thru a rule change that can allow a change to the playing arena or playing equipment.
Perhaps innovation could be let loose, if the course was for viewing, appreciation and interpreting only??
- what would today's GCA's do if their designs were intended not for play - but purely to be walked and appreciated, discovered and studied?
Thinking of other mediums for golf course architecture, paintings, drawings, photography, even video games - these are open to much greater and wider innovative techniques, and do sometimes stretch the "rules", but that doesn't matter does it, because we do not have to play golf on a beautiful water colour, just appreciate it! A simple black and white photo is manipulating nature, and can be viewed as a form of innovation, do the rules allow for us to wear 3D glasses? Or perhaps just rose colored glasses...?
So, as long as we have 34 rules governing the playing arena, then innovation will always be severely hamstrung, IMO.