Matt:
1. In the St. George/Mesquite area I have played Entrada, Coral Canyon, The Ledges, Green Spring, Sunbrook, St. George Golf Club, Southgate, Wolf Creek, Oasis, and the new Coyote Springs about 45 minutes from Mesquite. I like Wolf Creek the best in that area, but then I'd probably put Sand Hollow 2nd among those courses with Entrada and Coral Canyon to follow. Wolf Creek is pretty high on my personal list so there is a decent gap between it and Sand Hollow, but I think it is good enough to be the new king of St. George.
If I were to quickly compare the top par 3s, 4s, and 5s of Sand Hollow to Entrada I would say the following:
Par 3s: Sand Hollow's 15th and 11th vs Entrada's 8th and 14th. I give a pretty easy nod to Sand Hollow here, although I really like Entrada's demanding 14th hole.
Par 5s: Sand Hollow's 2nd and 7th vs Entrada's 9th and 16th. I pretty easy nod the other way in this category and think Entrada takes the cake here.
Par 4s: Sand Hollow's 9th, 12th, 13th, 14th, and 16th vs Entrada's 2nd, 10th, 13th, 17th, and 18th. If I were to pick from favorite holes from this ten hole offering I would take Sand Hollow's 12th, 13th, and 14th coupled with Entrada's 2nd and 17th holes. Interestingly I would probably then select Entrada's 13th and 18th next coupled with Sand Hollow's 9th, so it is pretty close there but I give the edge to Sand Hollow.
When you throw Coral Canyon into the discussion I would say their best par 3s (6th and 17th) don't compete with Sand Hollow but are comparable to Entrada's. Coral Canyon's best par 5s (2nd and 14th) don't compete with Entrada but are not quite as good as Sand Hollow's. Coral's par 4s (5th, 7th, 8th, 9th, and 15th) it compares favorably, but falls just a touch shot of Sand Hollow and compares favorably to Entrada. The stretch of holes 7 - 9 is a very nice stretch of par fours.
So in conclusion, I think Sand Hollow is a touch better than Entrada and Coral Canyon, but that gap is much tighter than the gap between Wolf Creek and Sand Hollow.
2. I think the wide fairways are a combination of needing generous playing conditions as a resort course as well as the wind that can rip through that area. The wind was blowing a decent amount the day I played and from what I hear from locals in the area it can really get going at times. Also though, there is certainly strategy in the width offered. For example, on the 2nd hole there is a bunker in the middle of the fairway but enough width is offered to play to either side of it if you wish. On the 487 yard 6th hole, if you play it to the inside portion of the fairway you can shorten you approach distance but take a bunker into play on the approach and a slightly worse angle to the green. At the 516 yard par four 14th there is a more advantage to bombing your drive up the right side of the fairway where balls will bound to the left and well down the fairway and probably gain a 50 yard advantage over a tee shot up the left side of the hole. In the end, I think the wide fairways are more of an accomodation to the wind and playability, but with some of the fairway contours there certainly situations where the width of the fairway is there to deliver some strategic options and rewards/penalties.
3. The greens have more contour to them than the pictures I offered would indicate. I'll post a few more pics that will show some more putting features. In general though there isn't anything severe on the greens which again could reflect that it is a resort course and trying to keep the playability high. Actually, you will find more interesting contours right around the greens than on the putting surfaces themselves. Those contours offer some nice approach possibilities in a variety of wind conditions and fairway firmness as well as some deceit with false fronts, etc.
Sand Hollow 10th green (Par 5):
Sand Hollow 11th hole green (Par 3):
Sand Hollow signature 15th hole green (Par 3):
Sand Hollow 2nd hole approach shot from left side of fairway (Par 5):
Sand Hollow 5th hole green (a short par 4):
