Is a courses first routing...

[John Foley]

ever or always it's best?

I got thinking about this when I read that a certain course went through 11 different routing before what was on paper finally got built. I'd love to her from the group on that first routing. How much better/or worse a course becomes thru the routing change process. It seems to me that the holes you find first can stay in your mind (almost to a fault?) and it can be difficult to go through the changes knowing certain holes are going to be lost.

How about this, What did the first routing at Pacific Dunes look like? What about TPC-Sawgrass or Pinehurst #2? What are other examples of courses where you'd love to see the first routing?

[Ken_Cotner]

John,

First routing from when the course opens, or first routing conceptualized by the design team?

Ken

[John Foley]

Ken,

Good point.

Conceptualized.

We can see the details as a course changes., what is intriguing is the process to get the course open. Is it better or worse due thr that regulation/permitting process?

[Erich]

Tom Doak,

Will you be including other routing ideas that you had for Pac Dunes in your book "Making of Pacific Dunes"?

Also, any progress on getting that published?

[Tom Doak]

The course you know as Pacific Dunes is my fourth routing for that site.   The changes were all developed as we got to know the site better, and with some input from Mike Keiser and his friends.  But all the changes were made for POSITIVE reasons, and so the fourth routing is far superior to the original.

(And yes, you'll see the process if I ever find time to finish my book.)

More often, however, one makes refinements to the routing because of outside influences -- environmental, developmental, etc. -- and in those cases the final routing may or may not be a better golf course than the first version.  On the other hand, the first version could never have been built.

[Tim Weiman]

I'm not sure it was the very first routing, but the routing that Tom Fazio did when Sand Ridge was still called Sand Hills was definitely more interesting than the final product. It utilized the natural features of the property better and avoided a couple of the long walks from greens to tees.

Too bad environmental issues (wetlands) prevented Fazio's preferred plan from being implemented.

[Paul_Turner]

I get the impression that desigers like Mackenzie and Colt didn't go through any/many iterations.  Often just going with their first instinct and not being too fussy, they worked fast.