Mr. Doak said "I am considered a sacred cow by many, which is too bad. If that's the case then I have nothing to learn from being here. Feedback is essential to growth. I HAVE gotten some good feedback over the years, and I'm even trying to respond to it with some of my current design work, but there are less and less posters who are providing it, and some of them lay it on so thick that it's difficult to cut through the cliches to get to the point."
Why not provide this feedback by telling him which holes we hate/find mediocre/like the least on his courses and why.
Although others will be able to offer much more constructive criticism, I will start with a feeble attempt. Tom feel free to tell my why I'm crazy!
I have only played Apache Stronghold and Black Forest.
At Apache the hole that didn't sit well with me was the 10th. I didn't really think that the tee shot offered any reasonable options for the shorter hitter. I couldn't carry the "serpentine" bunker; hitting it left seemed too much risk for the reward and laying up would have been a guessing game. I ended up in the bunker the first round...aimed further right the second round thinking I would have a better chance to carry but you guessed it...bunkered even further away. A shorter carry to the right side or offering a bunker free route to the right would have helped here.
My memory is foggier with Black Forest and I wasn't as interested in GCA when I played it but I remember thinking that the 16th felt out of place on the course and not because of the presence of the pond. The tee shot seemed awkward and the green out of place. Hopefully someone else can speak more intelligently about this hole.
Hopefully I can get to High Pointe this summer to bitch and moan about how the 18th is a disappointing finish to an excellent golf course.