Since Howard started a new thread on this, I will try to reply here...
From personal experience I think the following equation applies: Richard minus Victor=often spectacular but ultimately vulnerable
Okay- fess up, who voted for which course in the straw poll.
How was the experience/vibe of the group staying in the Clubhouse?
TD refrained from the uphill finisher at Dismal...he just made the 18th green a mile and a half from the clubhouse Can't do that everywhere.
Dang, Chris, you know me too well...
I voted for Red. I believe both courses have similar shot values and amount of fun. I prefer Blue greens more, but Red is spectacularly beautiful at times and more memorable. I just have a hard time remembering holes on Blue and the lack of any visual markers in the horizon (and the lack of hole number indicators on every tee box) hurts the memorability factor. I also believe the #10 and #11 on Blue are probably the weakest holes on the entire resort.
One interesting personal note... I think I lost about 8 balls the first time I played Blue. I lost 2 or 3 on Red (both rounds). The second time I played Blue I lost about 4 balls (I lost 2 balls on #7 after hitting the green on both rounds!!!). But the third time I played Blue, I did not lose a single ball (even though I would have lost a ball on #7 (AGAIN!) if I didn't get plugged just short of the green).
I think that is the result of better framing off the tee box at Red. The target point and places to miss are more obvious on Red. It takes a few rounds to figure that out on Blue. This may be a big factor in why folks prefer Red over Blue. Perhaps the opinions will change if they play more rounds.