Golden ages

[David_Elvins]

This is a quote from TEPAUL.

"Again, I see Cypress as the zenith of what man can do architecturally with nature and the fact that it opened in 1928 just preceding the financial crash and that I don't think architecture reached that point either before or since I think is highly ironic!"

Is this really ironic or is it infact logical?

Does anyone want to comment about the link between  economic prosperity and good architecture.  Can any analogies be drawn between tht period and now.  ie. Do people think that the present day is the start of another golden age of architecture?

Sorry, this isn't much of a post, but someone might enjoy thinking about it and expanding on it.

[Dan King]

I've given this some thought now and then.

In the early days there was minimal equipment for earth moving, so course designers found great pieces of land and let nature dictate the course.

When equipment became available, course designers went nuts. They wanted to take advantage of the new tools, and they let the tool decide the course rather than nature. They were showing off. It is similar to how a poster feels here when they first discover how to use the USB code. They go nuts and their post becomes a display of their USB prowess, rather than a message. Eventually, hopefully they get over it, and start using the tool rather than letting the tool use them.

I think is the point we are at now. There are some designers who get it and have figured out the equipment is just tools. Unfortunately there are others who are still showing off.

"A child of five would understand this. Send somebody to fetch a child of five."
 --Groucho Marx (Duck Soup)

[Jim_Kennedy]

David,
I think the number of good to great courses being built is outstanding in our time frame. Think of how many have been identified on this site alone. Whether or not we like everything they have done, the top guys all have courses that are tremendously good. Add to that the number of good to great courses being built by those whose names are not so well known and we are in a great period for golf courses.

The highlight for me is the number of these good courses today that are built for or accessible to the public market.