RJ just for clarification, I tossed Wild Horse into the discussion because Nebraska and Iowa golfers often compare the two courses, and in the year I spent consulting in both states I heard quite a bit of debate about the two. I also think The Harvester gets far less publicity on this site than Wild Horse, and I wanted to compare it with a well-known GCA entity to offer it a bit more credit than Mark's original post did. Beyond the fact that they're both public courses not too far from I-80, I agree that they're very different courses in different markets, likely with a very different business approach.
As for whether the local market appreciated the acclaim that the course received, it's worth mentioning that when I talked about the course to Des Moines-area golfers, they immediately referenced its high magazine rankings. There seemed to be a lot of local pride in how highly touted the course was, but that pride doesn't always equate to a lot of people making the 30 minute drive and paying the steep greens fee. On that note, I never paid more than $70 to play there. I wouldn't pay much more than that, but only because I don't have to. I'm perfectly happy to play at twilight.
Just for kicks, a few photos:
1st tee shot:
The short par 4 5th:
The skyline approach to 7:
The long, downhill par 3 14th:
The Dye-ish par 3 17th. Part of the reason I prefer The Harvester just slightly over Wild Horse is it's greater variety of par 3s. I like all four:
A panorama of the wild, controversial, potentially drivable par 5 18th. It wraps around the lake with the green by the stand of trees on the right. Personally, I'm a fan. One of the things I really like about The Harvester is its handful of very original holes. The 18th is one, along with holes like the 2nd.