Design a hole for Arthur Hills -- Links Magazine

[Steve Sayre]

Seen this?

http://www.linksmagazine.com/designcontest/design_a_golf_course_hole_arthur_hills_west_haven.aspx

"So with the help of Arthur Hills and Westhaven Golf Club in Franklin, Tennessee, the LINKS Magazine Design Contest is inviting you to design the par-4 13th hole at Westhaven Golf Club, a course that is scheduled to break ground this spring and open in 2009. After choosing the winning design, Hills and his senior design partner Chris Wilczynski will actually build the hole, so you can see your idea literally take shape.

[Greg Krueger]

Steve, there was a thread on this about 6 weeks ago. I think the deadline for submitting a design is 2-29-08!!

[Steve Sayre]

ooops asleep at the wheel

[Kalen Braley]

Here is the winner for the Arthur Hills design contest!

http://www.linksmagazine.com/designcontest/design_a_golf_hole_contest_winner.aspx

And the winning design hole:

http://www.linksmagazine.com/designcontest/winning_golf_course_hole_design.aspx

Although I think I like the two runner up designs better:

http://www.linksmagazine.com/designcontest/runners-up_in_design_a_golf_hole_contest.aspx

[Garland Bayley]

Doug Wright,

If that is your design, stand up and take a bow!

[Kirk Gill]

Alas, our own beloved Doug Wright is not currently a Civil Engineering major at Lehigh University.

Although I'm willing to add my congratulations, anyway !

[Jason Connor]

Although I think I like the two runner up designs better:

http://www.linksmagazine.com/designcontest/runners-up_in_design_a_golf_hole_contest.aspx

But the winning design has "Dramatic visuals and high shot values from tee to green" (whatever that means).  The hole design says so itself.

I'm also not sure why the tee shot encourages a fade.

[Doug Wright]

Doug Wright,

If that is your design, stand up and take a bow!

Not me, but I did a major double take when I saw the winner's name!

[Kalen Braley]

Jason,

I wasn't sure why the shot encourages playing to the right fairway, it looks fairly open from the left as well.  Perhaps if there was a bunker on the front left of the green that would make sense.

Now that I see what a winning bid looks like I'll have to use colors and more contours in my next submittal. 

[George Pazin]

It's funny, I usually enter the contests, but haven't in awhile, because all of my designs incorporate one thing that is almost universally lacking in the winners: width.

I proclaim our Doug Wright a winner nonetheless - anyone who can carry my 200 lbs. to victory in a match is downright superhuman. Doug joins Jamie Slonis in accomplishing this tremendous feat.

 

[Kalen Braley]

George,

That was the fatal mistake in my design as well.  I had a really wide fairway where approaching from the short side was blind and had to deal with a bunker.  But one could choose the left side which left a longer approach but a much better angle in. 

My bad, what was I thinking.   

[Marty Bonnar]

I don't get these - so called - design comps. Seems to me a bit like vanity publishing. Get some schmucks to do a bunch of very poorly informed designs and award one of them the glory of actual construction. (I'd be prepared to bet the reality of the build will mean at least a 'couple' of design mods in the field which will render the original design pretty meaningless). Are there any examples of previous comps and how they turned out in actuality?

Yours with thirty years of design education and experience in my pocket and if Arthur Hills wants a hole designed by me it's gonna COST!

FBD.

[George Pazin]

I don't get these - so called - design comps. Seems to me a bit like vanity publishing. Get some schmucks to do a bunch of very poorly informed designs and award one of them the glory of actual construction. (I'd be prepared to bet the reality of the build will mean at least a 'couple' of design mods in the field which will render the original design pretty meaningless). Are there any examples of previous comps and how they turned out in actuality?

Yours with thirty years of design education and experience in my pocket and if Arthur Hills wants a hole designed by me it's gonna COST!

FBD.

Martin, by and large, they're simply marketing opportunities. Anyone can sketch a hole, but can they build it properly? Maybe, maybe not, probably not.

The judging of these contests is what I find most disappointing.

[Kalen Braley]

George,

The judging is always bad when I don't win!! 

But seriously, by putting up those "Creative" entries link, all does it encourage more goofy crap on the course.  I liked the two runner up drawings, but that was about it.

[George Pazin]

The judging always seems to favor rote, simplistic, black and white design - drawn by a nice hand.

Can't speak for yours, but my designs provide neither.

 

[Kalen Braley]

The judging always seems to favor rote, simplistic, black and white design - drawn by a nice hand.

Can't speak for yours, but my designs provide neither.

 

I would agree, they seem to be more like art contests....

Perhaps I'lll get my 11 yr old to draw my next one...she's got some good artistic talent.