This course tour has brought to mind some similarities with Kingsley Club by Mike DeVries. See if you don't agree:
http://www.kingsleyclub.com/course-tour/course-tour.htmlThe photo that jogged my notice of the similarities was the Penati photos of #15 and remembering the Kingsley Clubs general theme on its 17th hole where the tee shot is to a crest of a hill, then down to the green. Short of the crest of hill is still blind. Kinglsey is longer distance to green after the hill, and a par 5 - whereas Penati is par 4. Then I considered the reverse redan shown at Penati, and thought of the 16th at Kingsley more in a redanish right to left configuration. But, the feeling of the hole is somewhat similar.
The points I feel I notice are that Penati looks to be a fine job of grubbing and shaping with good use of existing land form (perhaps melting down some severe knobs and crowns, but nice green approaches and nice blending in the corridors of fairways and greens surrounds to the land. But, I think where Kingsley Club generally has the edge is the greater extent of tree removal, and there seems to be more deciduous trees at KC whereas Penati looks like mostly all conifers.
The spindly look of the conifers that are left at Penati, particularly on the front 9 as shown in Frank's photos, seems terribly clostraphobic. It feels from the photos like a good deal more tree thinning along the corridors could take place. Yet by the looks of the spindly nature of that stand of trees, a big wind might take them eventually, or the pulp and paper industry that seems to be headquartered in northern Slovakia might be contracted to sell to them. I'm sure there are all sorts of enviro hoops to be jumped through and may restrict what one might want to do with the trees from what is possible.
This sort of pine barrens sandy terrain also brings to mind the possible project Mike Kaiser and Tom Doak may be looking at in central Wisconsin in Adams County, that we discussed recently. The similarity also seems that the land here in Wisconsin was managed for pulp and paper on that sand barrens area, perhaps the same as there in Slovakia.
The corridors and bunker work looks very nice, but I can only imagine (going soley by the photos) that tree thinning is still to be a consideration as years go by. But, good luck with this very nice project and compliments to Mr. Davidson.