As seen in some of Joe Bausch's articles he posted last year that showed Merion had very little bunkering or other artificial hazards at the time it was awarded the 1916 US Amateur, it's interesting to see how the respective courses were generally viewed four months before the championship in May 1916.
We do know that Hugh Wilson and William Flynn embarked on a very aggressive "toughening" program after the tournament announcement in an effort to challenge the best players in the country.
Still, in those early days, even though it was almost 500 yards shorter, and probably because of the steeper land configurations and smaller greens, the West course seems to have been viewed as equal in challenge, at least until such time as the strengthening of the East was completed. We know Alan Wilson told us that the West was built for the "9 and 90", and it is certainly more forgiving overall in allowing any level of golfer to get around, but it was, and even remains to this day, a course where it is much more difficult to shoot a low medal round than the overall yardage would suggest.
