Adam, Huck, RJ, et al:
I was smitten with The Land of Enchantment for quite some time and my wife and I have been scoping out property in the Santa Fe area for quite some time. Truth be told -- you can never play Black Mesa and Paa-Ko too many times. The only issue I have with Paa-Ko is that the par-3 4th is really overdone by Ken Dye. It wasn't necessary to have a par-3 that can play anywhere from 160-230 yards with three tiers that look like they came out of a department store. The other par-3's at Paa-Ko are quite good and very demanding although some of you might whine that they are tooooo tough.
The key thing to remember is that New Mexico is only beginning to bring forward high octane quality golf. Plenty of the original layouts that people talk about -- i.e. Inn of the Mountain Gods in Mescalero and The Links at Sierra Blanca in Ruidoso are good courses but nothing worthwhile to make a special trip to see. I have never thought Cochiti was in the same league as the others but I give them credit for making people believe otherwise.
UNM / Championship (South) is a very good Red Lawrence design but they often overwater the place where tee shots can hit and simply roll 5 yards at best. This is the same issue that Adam and I have discussed regarding Pinon Hills. These courses would play even more thrilling with the bounce included.
Santa Ana is a good design and the final holes on the Cheenya nine will not suffer fools at anytime. Twin Warriors is also just a notch below what you find at Paa-Ko and Black Mesa -- the tee game stuff is good at TW -- it's just that the greens really lack the character and detail you see with what Ken Dye and Baxter Spann did at the two aforementioned courses.
Unfortunately, New Mexico is thought of by too many people as simply an extension of Mexico. The people and countryside are dynamic and when you come from New Jersey you learn to appreciate the innate beauty that is The Land of Enchantment. Can't wait to hear the stories and opinions of the courses.