Rick, you say the Lake course is currently your favorite course in China, I am curious to know the other courses you have played.
Currently I have played.
All courses at Stone Forest
All the courses in Mission Hills Haikou
Dunes at Shenzhou Peninsula East and West
Yaolong Bay
6 Courses in Tianjin including both Smidt Curley offerings but not yet the new 27 club.
Lake and Mountain at Spring City.
I have yet to play any Beijing or Shanghai offerings.
I also want to play Shanquin and Tiger Beach.
I personally like the Lake better than the Mountain because of a few different reasons.
1. I think there are more options and possibilities on many holes.
2. I have a low handicap and I like some of the extreme difficulty of the deep bunkers, some of the forced carries, and finding the fairways in the strong winds that blow in the afternoon.
3. I just really love the stretch from 4-10. It is just really fun golf hole after really fun golf hole.
4. The Mountain Course feels like lots of other parkland courses to me whereas the Lake course feels like a special place.
I do think that other golfers may find the Mountain Course more appealing. It is much easier Tee to green for the average player making it more lovable for a wider range. I also just had a great second trip to Spring City with a good friend and I played quite well there both times I played. Maybe that explains my bias. You are certainly welcome to your opinion. Feel free to tell me what you do not like. I'm on here to learn from other people and maybe I will get a better understanding for a differing opinion.