With respect to par 3's there seems to be a preference to elevate the tee above the green.
But, at what differentiation in elevation do the holes transition from good architecture to goofy golf ?
Disregard the vistas generated by elevated tees.
View the question solely in the context of playing the golf hole.
In addition, how difficult is club selection for the golfer the first time he plays a hole with a substantial elevation differential ?
Pat,
Bethpage-Green Course has a number of par 3 holes with marked elevation change, specifically holes #3 and #15.
As it fits your question, Hole #15 is a fitting example.
The tees are approximately 35-50 feet above the green, and the player walks up a path to access the tees.
Club selection is critical here, because the green is smallish in shape, if the player wants to score. The state has mitigated this by posting a sign adjacent to the path that gives the yardage to the hole location from the day's tee marker.
So to answer one question, the nature of how far the club carries with elevation change may be a question for the lesser player, but not for the better player, many of which I have seen know their carry yardages and factor in elevation to this when selecting a club.
The absence of a penal feature such as water also mitigates club selection--if a player is a club short or long, they are not excessively penalised--their ball may just end up in a bit of fairway cut short of the green, or rough around the other three sides.
Lastly, is the length of the hole a factor in decisions to elevate tees ?
I'm not sure in this example, you may have to ask Emmet
I'd be curious to know which golfers prefer the upper tee versus the lower tee on # 10 at Pacific Dunes and WHY.
And remember, before you answer the question, couch it in the strict context of playing golf, not taking in the scenery*.
The 6th at NGLA, good architecture.
The 12th at Roxciticus, goofy golf.
It seems fitting that I now "go the other way"
on the Green Course--low tee, elevated green. Bethpage Green 3rd hole. I'm not sure if this fits in the "goofy" category, but it certainly is quirky, befitting the original designer's penchant for quirky holes. The green is completely blind from the tee.
In some cases, depending on the hole location, the player cannot see the flagstick, and it becomes a "hit and hope" situation. However, here, I think it is more a maintenance issue than a design issue.
When Emmet first designed this hole, if in fact he did (and not Tillinghast), the course was private-as Lenox Hills CC--and thus it becomes reasonable to assume that the player had a caddie that knew the yardages from various locations on the teeing ground to various points on the green.
Today, there is no sign that gives players yardage to the day's hole location from each set of tees, which would aid players, especially the better ones, in scoring. I feel that a sign, similar to that on Hole 15, would help players pull clubs more accurately.
Perhaps a longer flagstick would help as well.
Many times do I see players underclub, and end up in the rough short of the green, or bunker just short of the green.