Brian,
I think you will find the bunker greenside front on 4 a lot deeper than the photos appear. There is a photo above with workers in the bunker that gives some perspective of its depth.
However, there is no doubt that every feature will not be made as penal as it could be.
Part of what Keith Foster is doing with the club's project leadership is making sure the course is enjoyable for all levels of the club's golfers. From what I understand from those discussions, that appears to me to be the toughest part of Keith's work. For context, Cricket has very active senior and ladies golf programs. We also have 150 players with indices below 7 and 20 at scratch or better. Quite a broad audience.
Before the project started, I was speaking with our Director of Grounds, Dan Meerman, and he brought up two key questions for thought. First, how many forced carries are you asking the golfer to navigate. Second, why were specific old features removed. Just because they were there in 1938 doesn't by default make them good.
For forced carries, there are forced carries on:
1, off the tee across the stream
2, on the approach, again across the stream (certainly 1 & 2 are non issues to better players, and probably wouldnt have entered your mind for a list of forced carries)
3, entire waste area tee to green (70-100 yards)
4, across HHA, 30 yards at extreme right, 100 yards on preferred line to left, plus on to elevated green
5, previously to the elevated green
etc...
Using these as an example, a key task is to make these holes manageable for higher handicap players. Hence, on 4, the HHA is less deep and less severe on the extreme right side. On 5, not really visible from the photos, the fairway now extends on the left around the greenside front bunker, so a player could approach the green on the ground at about 8 o'clock on the green. Also on 5, the fairway bunkers have been constructed with the sort of graduated penalty you described. There are three bunkers on the right side of the fairway. The bunker furtherest from the green is shallow, and they get progressively deeper with a higher face. The thought is that a shorter player or one electing to lay up will have a mild penalty, and the penalty gets two steps more severe for the longer player or player choosing driver.
For the rationale behind removing features over the years (meaning total removal, as opposed to diminished due to maintenance practices), one of the features still in question is the top shot bunker on 16, visible about 100 yards off of the tee at the bottom left of this 1938 aerial. Something will be done there, but the question remains open.
So, not really an answer to your question, but I hope this gives a bit of insight into the questions that Keith is discussing with the club as the final decisions are made in the field.