It is astonishing to me that you would argue drainage measures are not worthwhile.
Sean,
I haven't seen anybody arguing this.
Adrian, Jon and Robin are correct not matter what you do clay will impeded the water and make life tough and Robin has explained the construction issues very well. Even the best drainage system will need secondary drainage and or the top of the drain lines refreshing after a number of years to make them effective again all at more expense. In reality you are likely to see the effects of the drainage as much if not more during the spring, summer and autumn than through the winter.
I can imagine what Robin is having to deal with having seen a number of likely similar sites in the last few months and they aren't pretty, at one recently a guy had to wade out in his bare feet and a 13 tonne excavator went back in and dug his boots out for him....Seeing an area of stripped clay soil left over the winter months can be quite eye opening to see what the ground has to deal with.
I know first hand that a number of courses that you've complained about in the past are actively looking into and installing drainage but unfortunately drainage is surprisingly expensive and they can't do everything they would like to.
Ryan's quote is in most cases accurate;
"It is not dereliction of duty on the part of clay based courses or defeatism - it is realism/pragmatism"
In all reality golf in the UK is not a 12 month game. I pay my fees as a member for golf during the spring, summer and autumn and anything in the winter is a bonus, that said it does come into my thinking when choosing which club to join whether I'll get much decent winter golf as it is extra value. Paying a green fee in the winter should be with tempered expectations and an eye on where and when you play in order to get decent conditions which is obviously what you do. If a course doesn't drop it's fees to match the course conditions it obviously doesn't need the money and may not want the golf in order to protect the course from more damage in wet conditions.
I think it is unfair to dismiss a course's rankings based on it being wet during December on the shores of a lake in one of the wettest part of the UK though.....I completely agree that drainage is a vital part of any great golf course.