I missed this while I was in Tasmania this past week ... but that's a story for another day.
Gary, I believe that the green contours at Crystal Downs are pretty much as designed. (Like other clubs with severe greens, I would guess the front edge has been deliberately built up a bit over the years by topdressing.)
I would much prefer to see them keep the greens slower than to change the contours of the 11th. For one thing, trying to flatten a green built into a similarly steep slope will not end well. For another, it opens up a can of worms -- if you want to change the 11th, why not the 1st or 10th or 13th, all of which are also too severe for high green speeds. (Thirteen is much tougher to play than the others, in my opinion, because you can't just play short of the green and chip to it.)
Ironically, as mentioned above, Mike Morris the superintendent of Crystal Downs just did a two-year USGA-sponsored study of green speeds -- what affects them (height of cut, moisture, etc.). The study also pegged an "optimum speed" based on feedback from a test group of golfers who were questioned throughout the season.
And they said the optimum speed for our greens was 10 1/2!!!
The sad part is, Crystal Downs was one of the ten best courses in the world when the greens were 8 1/2 and 9 on the Stimp. Now it's not, and it's not. But, what do I know, I'm just a member.