I played an Art Hills course in southern Michigan twice this summer, while visiting Mom. It's called the Legacy. I really enjoyed the course, and in many ways, it shows an evolution of Art's thinking, including many old fashioned features, options, carry hazards, and so forth.
The second hole had two fairway bunkers on the right side - one a carry bunker and the other a pinch bunker just beyond the normal landing area. I don't recall seeing this feature anywhere else. The green has a front left bunker, so the preferred tee shot carries the first bunker, and must stay short of the second - combing line and distance accuracy for the perfect tee shot, which I liked.
What really caught my attention was the disparity of rough right and left of the fairway.
On the bunkered right side, tall native grasses border the fairway after just a few yards of cut rough, which caught me the first time I played. The second time, I overcompensated way left (The perfect guest, I leave very few divots on the fairways.....) and found 40 yards of short, eminently playable, bluegrass rough. I had to come over a bunker to the narrow angle of the green, but decided to play to the front of the green and made par......
In essence there is the route of playing left for almost certain bogey, or good par, or playing right, which increases chances to attack the pin for birdie, but raising the possibility or bogey or worse from the bunkers or long grass.
Does the tendency to have equal width roughs on either side of the fairway negate strategy of the fairway bunkers?
Similar deep rough on both sides would likely influence me play to the middle of the fairway - any advantage in going for the pin is quickly negated.
Similar shallow roughs would leave the fairway bunkers as the sole question in determing line. Ditto for native rough on the left, and mowed rough on the right. That would make me more inclined to challege the bunkers, knowing the rough on that side would only gently punish, if missing the bunkers. While that would enhance the temptation of the designed strategy, it also seems like it forces me to the bunkers too much.
However, it seemed to me that the option to play away from bunkers completely was enhanced even more by a wide, gentle rough away from the bunkers and preferred or advantageous angle to the pin, and thus creating perhaps the greatest dilemma. Or, does it make it too easy to play safe?
All in all, I think Art got that one dead on, but it raises the question, why are roughs usually equal on both sides of the fariway? And how many ways could unequal rough enhance strategy?