Maybe I’m too late and the thread has been jacked…just a general observation:
I certainly can’t speak for the architects, but have a lurker’s confession that may be an apt hint. When I find my eyes glassing over on some threads, I remind myself that this is very elite group of golf nuts and an even more elite target market: the traveling, upscale (maybe affluent) golfer. In other words, just the type of customer everyone in this business desires. In my case, I run a small, rural golf course and just try to stay afloat in our market. But we do have a spectacular site, a regional appeal to travelers, and warmer conditions in the shoulder seasons and winter. Some posts I read just to get a feel for what motivates a golfer to throw his clubs in the truck and go play a different course. There isn’t so much a need to discuss someone’s opinions in this context; it’s more a matter of understanding them. It’s my guess that some of the archies that do read this site just want to learn how golfers (a very committed, educated, and, for better or worse, elite group of golfers) respond to golf courses and design. Same with supers with regard to setup, conditioning, and maintenance. What’s to discuss? Folks who build and maintain golf course know far more about how to do their jobs well than a lot of us that just like to talk and read about them.
It’s interesting to me because most golfers couldn’t care less about discussing most of this stuff. Not that they don’t appreciate it on some level, it’s just on a more subconscious, nonverbal, non-analytical, or emotional level. For example, on a thread about changing a course’s routing, several architects mentioned the members’ resistance to make routing changes even if would make the course better. Invariably, when I theoretically discuss with a few of our golfers about how a hole or the routing could be improved, I always hear “that’s my favorite hole; don’t change it.” I’m pretty sure these same golfers would learn to love the changes once they were in the dirt, but lack the imagination to visualize them out of thin air.
I’m not saying I’m here solely for market research or any other particular purpose. I just enjoy reading sometimes articulate and intelligent thoughts about golf design. I especially enjoy the expert remarks from the archies and supers. Personally, I thank all of you for contributing. I don’t know how you find the time and fully understand if you can’t.