Like Jim Bearden on another thread, I love discussing the ideal concepts, knowing full well that nothing is absolute in golf design, you must fit the land, blah, blah, blah, etc. However, design is often about matching playability ideals with a somewhat moldable green site, and rarely is it about discovering breathtaking natural holes that just cry out to be one specific way. With that as a given, here is a question.
Most good golfers I know would think that physics should affect the design (as in Larry Nelsons edict of no uphill shots from downhill lies, esp. with long irons) Others think targets should bend with the wind to assist in shaping shots, etc.
Geo. Thomas favored long, narrow greens in downwind situations, figuring that the golfer wouldn't have to hit the ball so hard, and could concentrate on accuracy. In essence, he used physics (the combined green shape and wind) to assist the golfer and produce a doable shot, as opposed to one that is very difficult to do.
The first course I helped design was Kemper Lakes, home of the 1989 PGA won by Payne Stewart. The sixth hole there is a 200 yard par three. Killian and Nugent (distancing myself here, in case the answer to the question is no!) used a long, skinny green, (pinched in the middle to about 45 feet wide) bunkered on both sides on a hole running west, and generally with a cross wind, slightly in the golfers face. In theory, this adds to difficulty by magnifying the required fade, whereas a trailing wind might help straighten it out.
This was mostly an design and/or artistic decision, as the ground was fairly flat and there was room to do most anything. Now, knowing that, and assuming you were a design consultant on that project, what would you have recommended?
In general and IDEALLY, is a long, narrow green in a crosswind good conceptually, or should the green have been wider, to account for the wind?
If generally acceptabe to you, what conditions might affect your decision as architect as to when to use this type of green (hole length, par, place in round).
Discuss!