Great photos, Mark, you certainly had a great day to play. Just a few thoughts so far...
On the issue of approaching the 1st green from closer to (or even on) the 2nd fairway, I can tell you as someone who has hit it over there unintentionally that while it appears you're facing straight up the slope of the green, any shot landing on the green from that distance is going to head left in a hurry and run off the green. Not only does the green slope severely from back to front, but also nearly as severely from right to left. And as you can see in the photos, a shot from that angle that ends up just a little weak and/or a little right is in disastrous trouble.
Bombers aim their tee shot on the 1st hole down the right side of the fairway as the fairway bunker is only an issue for them if it's playing into a gale. The light rough down there is not much of a penalty and will often provide the longer player with a more even lie than anything on the fairway. Factor in that the rough in that area is often dryer than either the fairway or the left side, and you get a little speed boost to your tee shot - an even greater incentive to pound it down the right side.
You hit the nail on the head, Mark, when you say that the best position to end up on an approach to the first is just short and maybe a tad left. It leaves an uphill pitch no matter where the hole is located, and a pretty good chance at saving par.
As for green speeds, the stimp reading is typically around a 10 all season long. They can get a little leaner in the fall, and as a result you get just a little more roll, but they never get anywhere near a 12.
But a 10 is plenty, and means that you may accidentally end up in a spot where your best putt may only get to within 10 or 15 feet. To me, I think that's fun - clearly a shot that puts you in that position is a mistake and should be avoided. It means you're likely to take three shots (in this case, maybe all of them putts) unless you pull off something truly brilliant.
For example, if on the 1st green the hole is cut in the front-left corner of the green (as it often is), and you find yourself on either the second or third level of the green above that hole, you've made a big mistake. You'll do really well to two-putt and you're more than likely going to take three. If you try to get too cute, you may even leave your first putt short, in which case you risk taking four putts.
How is that any worse than knocking it into a bunker or other hazard that makes it unlikely to get up and down in two shots, but reasonable to do in three (and when you get too cute can sometimes take four)?
Why can't a section of a green essentially put you in the same position as if you were in a hazard? Folks who know the hole (or are very astute at reading it the first time around) can tell that you do not want to be above the hole, or you're going to find trouble. Do players need to have an extremely obvious warning of the sight of a bunker surrounded in tall rough in order to figure out not to hit it there?
One of the countless things I've learned in my playing time at the Downs has been the realization that you can be on the green and still essentially find yourself in a "hazardous" position. It's one of the things that makes the golf course so unique and so astoundingly good.