I nearly ruined my friendship with Brian Colbert early on by saying that i didnt think that some of his stuff was all that bad. He wrote me a legitimate and moving essay that probably isnt safe for public sharing.
That said, maybe he will chime in...
Mark
I think the some of my comments are in line with what has already been posted, but I'll break it down course by course (from most played to least played).
Stonewall Orchard - Stonewall has a beautiful natural setting, but the only holes that I would say are memorable are such for the wrong reasons. There are holes that are so mundane that it feels like an intern designed them - 1, 2, 3, 7, 11, 12, and some in the middle of the back 9 that I can't even picture. Then there are a few holes which are horrendous. 4 is built on the side of a hill with pretty much a mandatory 220-240 yard tee shot on a 320 yard hole, leaving an awkward 60 yard pitch off a side hill lie to a green which is built up on all sides. 5 is a forced carry par 3 with water maybe 2 yards off the front of the green. I'm okay with this except the hole can be stretched to as long as 240 yards and the green is effectively half its actual size because of a 6 deep swale which makes pretty much the entire left unpinnable. There's 10, an S shaped par 5 with trees about 50 yards off the tee blocking any kind of aggressive play, turning the hole into a layup off the tee, a layup off the fairway, and a wedge. If they cut down the trees on the right I think it would be a cool hole. Then there's the famous 18th. Apparently the mound has been lowered so you don't bounce in the water if you miss the green right, but I don't really think that makes the hole too much better. I have played this course about 8 times, mostly in competition, and I would probably hesitate to shell out more than $50 to play it again.
Newport National - Played it about 6 times in college. In my mind a decent attempt at American style links golf, but again there are a few holes which were extremely poorly done. 2 is a par 4 which has a landing area with absolutely no option but to hit the fairway. This would be fine if it didn't also present the player with a 200+ yard approach shot to a green designed to hold a wedge if the player opts to hit a straighter club to avoid the essentially island fairway. 4 is a driveable par 4 which in my mind presents a safer shot if you actually go at the green off the tee than if you try and hit the layup. 8 is a par 5 which my teammates and I were intentionally hitting it down the wrong fairway to cut off the corner of a par 5 because a straight tee shot could only go ~230 before reaching bunkers and OB. 11 is a par 5 which you have to basically hit iron, iron, wedge because the tee shot is so narrow from 240 yards to 290 that barely missing your line would lead to a lost ball or a ball in a really deep bunker. 15 is a par 4 which I again found myself intentionally playing down the wrong fairway for a better angle into the green and because playing down the incorrect hole is to a 70 yard wide fairway with no trouble and playing down the correct hole is to a narrow fairway pinched by bunkers and gorse. Finally, 16 is a par 3 which is about 260 from the back tees, typically playing into a prevailing northerly wind, with a green flanked by a 30 feet deep swale on the right and with a green that is so severe, balls were stopping about 6' from the hole one tournament round and then they were rolling about 40' to the right, all the way off the green.
Persimmon Ridge - I think this is the best of the Hills courses I've played. Only hole 3, a split fairway with a crazy green across a ravine, needs work in my mind. 13 is another hole which makes little sense. A forced carry for all players with the bailout containing severe mounding which basically render the green unhittable on the second shot. I would go so far as to say I think there are some really good holes on this course. 17, a par 5 which is similar to 13 at Augusta, comes to mind. Lots of artificial shaping and containment mounds though.
Finally, Blackthorn Club/The Ridges/Blackthorn Club at the Ridges - Some funky stuff on this one. A couple holes which I found to be completely unplayable for every level. 17 is a par 4 with a severe hill to the right of the fairway then a green which is one of the more severe greens to penalize a miss that I have ever seen. Hole 1 which was designed to play due east into the rising sun which comes directly over the mountains in a way which is so severe that the tournament I played chose to start all play off the 10th tee. Then 2, a par 4 which was about 360 yards from the back tees, only there is no good club to hit off the tee other than about a 4 iron, leaving a 170 yard shot into a green which was designed for a 100 yard shot. 6, a par 4 of about 500 yards with a severe falloff to the left of the green and penal bunkers to the right, and only about a 5-10 yard wide front edge to play a running shot into it. Finally, 8 is a hole which has a prototypical Arthur Hills split fairway. A creek runs down the middle and a lake runs down the entire left of the left fairway. The right fairway is so severe that it feels like you are playing on a nascar track. In 4 rounds I never once saw a player take the right fairway. What's amazing about this hole is that there is literally no layup area from between 150 yards and 60 yards away from the green. The fairway in this range is surrounded by a creek which effectively makes the layup area smaller than the green. I found myself playing this hole 2 iron, 3 wood, 50 yard pitch. To be fair, Arthur Hills was given an incredibly severe property and forced to build around homesites. I think he did a good job with what he was given, but there were a lot of head scratchers out there.
I believe a few things about Arthur Hills. 1, He is bold and daring in the holes he designs, for better or worse. 2, He is an incredibly smart guy who has been monumentally successful in his design business. 3, He can design courses which meet the needs of his clients. 4, If it was my own personal choice, I can think of numerous firms I would rather choose to design my course.