I have not read through all the posts, as I have not had the time.
But the subject certainly made me jump...
I found the course to be quite good from my recent play. I've come to expect solid routings from Bill & Ben that feel like a journey across the property, have excellent finishing / tie in work, and present rather good to very good holes in general. BT was not a disappointment on those factors. We move from dunes to meadow to forest and finish back in the dunes... Pretty good I thought. I was quite surprised to learn 7 through 13 were mostly hand made and involved a lot of dirt moving. I could see it a little from the 13th green, but less elsewhere I felt.
It's interesting to hear about the 14th because ... it reminded me a little of the 14th at Lost Farm but reversed. The green is more receptive at LF. I found this hole to challenge preconceived notions of going at a hole on a par 3. So rather refreshing actually, but more than one hole like this would be a tad much. I pared it, so maybe I'm biased... Definitely can be a scorecard wrecker and I'm wondering if that's why the feedback to it is mixed. Awesome match play hole I would think.
However ... I listened to our caddies and it sounded to me like BT can be quite brutal when the weather gets dicey. Fortunately for us ... we scored on the weather front. I could certainly see how a hole like the 16th into the wind and rain could be over the top. But isn't that why there would be a different set of tees? Just step up is what I would do under difficult conditions. But also ... get a knockdown game because BT is quite awesome for the ground and run on game. You don't have to fly it here as much. Our caddies seemed to prefer BT because it is not played as much and the pace of play is usually better. For what it's worth, the 16th felt like it had a little of Lincoln Park's 5th in it
. It's one of my favorite holes on the course... Go figure.
The walk from the 13th to the 14th is in my mind a big deal. Why? Because it builds anticipation. I actually wished we had walked it, but they had an "extended cab" golf cart shuttle us up there ... and we ended up waiting there anyway, since things were backing up. The walk appears reasonable enough from I could tell and not all that bad because it's gradual, so I'm not getting the fuss ... then again I'm used to SF golf where many a hill is encountered (think Lincoln, Olympic Lake, Cal Club, Green Hills, Presidio).
Couple of pics...
14th Tee (notice new bunkering lower right with tree clearing completed)
16th Tee
18th Bottom of fairway humps & bumps often criticized ... I guess they did not play Pacific Dunes?
Clubhouse panoramic against 18th and practice area