Rank My Courses

[Brad Klein]

Frank Lloyd Wright didn't bother asking his clients about what they thought; he was too busy telling them how great he was, and then if there was any doubt left he managed to convince his clients' wives as well.

[William_G]

Frank Lloyd Wright didn't bother asking his clients about what they thought; he was too busy telling them how great he was, and then if there was any doubt left he managed to convince his clients' wives as well.

[Bob_Garvelink]

Tom,

I'm a Michigan boy so my list is as follows:

1.  Black Forest - A Northern Michigan gem that doesn't always get the credit it deserves.  Although the first few holes are tough there are plenty of opportunities to score later in the round.  When playing Black Forest you feel like your in the middle of nowhere!  Love it!!!

2. Pac Dunes - a true links course with stunning views....what else is left to say???

3.  High Pointe - although I didn't play it I had the opportunity to walk the property.  It's a shame this course never was given a fair shake by management.

4. Lost Dunes - when playing fast and firm it's an amazing course with some unique holes that really gives golfer multiple options from tee to green.

5. Old Mac - another beauty.... Tough to find any flaws with the courses at Bandon.

[Steve Lang]

Tom,

I'm a Michigan boy so my list is as follows:

1.  Black Forest - A Northern Michigan gem that doesn't always get the credit it deserves.  Although the first few holes are tough there are plenty of opportunities to score later in the round.  When playing Black Forest you feel like your in the middle of nowhere!  Love it!!!

2. Pac Dunes - a true links course with stunning views....what else is left to say???

3.  High Pointe - although I didn't play it I had the opportunity to walk the property.  It's a shame this course never was given a fair shake by management.

4. Lost Dunes - when playing fast and firm it's an amazing course with some unique holes that really gives golfer multiple options from tee to green.

5. Old Mac - another beauty.... Tough to find any flaws with the courses at Bandon.

what do you think about the corn growing on the front nine facing M72??  probably stubble by now and ready to be tilled?

[John Crowley]

1. Old Mac - current favorite in U.S.
2. Ballyneal - great fun!!
3. PAC Dunes - quality work great site
4. Stone Eagle - great use of difficult site
5. Lost Dunes - most memorable hole par 4 dog right up to saddle green. Is it hole 10?

Hope to play Rock Creek.

[Paul Jones]

I can't be the only one to play Tumble Creek?

Sheep Ranch
Ballyneal
Pacific Dunes
Streamsong Blue
Barnbougle
Sebonack
Tumble Creek

[Daryl David]

I can't be the only one to play Tumble Creek?

I believe Tom once said Tumble is probably his least seen and played golf course.  Only 8000 rounds a year and mostly by members.

[Rob Miller]

1.  Old Macdonald (just because it's just so damned much fun)
2.  Ballyneal (no weak holes)
3.  Pacific Dunes (location)
4.  Streamsong Blue (the combination of gators and the ground game was a little funky for me)

[Paul Jones]

Put Sheep Ranch as my number 1 if we are including that one...

[Joe Stansell]

1. Pacific Dunes -- great settings matter;
2. Ballyneal -- excellent flow from one fun hole to another
3. Old MacDonald --  3rd, but not a distant third;
4. Dismal Red -- prefer chop hills to sand hills (for now)
5. Tumble Creek -- yes, I've played it; some very fine golf holes can be found there
6. CommonGround -- what every course located on a simple site should aspire to be
7. The Rawls Course -- marred by maintenance that does not promote "firm and fast"; didn't care for the finish with water in play

[Dean Burke]

Ballyneal
Dismal River
Renaissance (pre)
Streamsong
Stonewall  Links (Old)
CommonGround
Stonewall Links (North)

[Connor Dougherty]

I realize I'm late to the party but having seen a bunch of the courses this summer and over time I wanted to throw up my list both because I've seen a lot of them and I think that this list may differ a bit from the others that were listed.

1. Sheep Ranch: One of the most fascinating designs I've ever seen. You can find fascinating holes all over the place (My personal favorite being the Alps-like hole played out to the E green from the C green). The greens are worthy of study from every architect and fan. I've long held the theory that part of the genius of the Old Course comes with the fact that each green was designed to be played into from multiple angles. I think Sheep Ranch is an excellent example of the same phenomenon. It's hard to grade it on a list because of how unique it is, but I can't think of a reason to not put it on the top here.

2. Pacific Dunes: It certainly helps I've seen it several times, but it has everything. The routing goes through several environments, no two holes are alike, but they work cohesively together, and the place is chock-full of world class holes. If I could paraphrase Tom himself in an article I read, "I don't know if Pacific Dunes is a 10, but if it isn't, it's damn close." Well, I certainly think it's a 10.

3. Ballyneal: Ballyneal reaches this spot simply because it has the best greens I've ever seen. They may have been cut a bit fast for the conditions I saw the course in (50 mph winds, 40 degree weather, and the ball was moving all over the place on the greens), but they had some of the best contours I've ever seen. The place epitomizes ball placement. Being on the wrong part of these greens is practically a death sentence when it comes to your score. I was left dying to come back.

4. Cape Kidnappers The epitome of location, location, location. Cape Kidnappers taught me a lot about designing golf holes in perfect locations. Sometimes it's best to simplify the hole and let the land do the talk. We spend a lot of time criticizing "Wow" features because they take away from the golf course, but in the case of natural features, is there ever a case where the "wow" becomes any less incredible? Playing the 15th, the plank hole, is a fine example of that. The inland holes are tremendously interesting, but the holes that occupy the most spectacular parts of land are far more understated in my mind, and that's part of what's so special.

5. Barnbougle Dunes: It's been a while since I made my trip down there, but the place is really something, and much like Pac Dunes, there are plenty of great golf holes here. I can't wait to go back as I know there is so much more to be learned.

6. Dismal River It feels weird putting this so far down at 5, but I guess that's the consequence of building great golf courses. In its current turf conditions (at least what they were at the 5th major) it's really hard to grade. It could move as high as 3 on this list depending on how it plays, as it certainly has that kind of potential. The par 5s are all-world there and may be the best Doak has ever done, and I can't wait to see the place in ideal conditions.

7. The Punchbowl Because, if we're including the Sheep Ranch in this list, why not include it? Congrats Tom, I think this putting green even tops the great Himalayas at St. Andrews!!! In our preview round we played to a few of the cups which weren't used in the routing. There's all sorts of putts you can make and it requires incredible imagination to play. That I rate it above some of Tom's finer courses is a testament to the quality of it, not a knock on the courses themselves.

8. Stonewall Old: The routing isn't perfect, but theres such an understated brilliance to the place that made me a huge fan. It flows with the land as good as any of them and there are several holes that use the flow of the terrain very well. Better yet, the small greens fit the landscape perfectly. In feel, actually reminded me a bit of Crystal Downs in that sense.

9. St. Andrews Beach Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love the place and it's a tremendous golf course, but when we're comparing gems, you nitpick the details. The scale of the place is so huge that the small greens seem a bit out of place. It's worth checking out if you manage to make it to Melbourne after seeing the best the sandbelt has to offer.

10. Old MacDonald While it is the GCA darling, the land just wasn't ideal for a routing, and the bunker finishes, with its rough edges, don't really fit well in my mind with the structure of the templates. A similar issue to the last course I placed on the list.

11. Stonewall (North) A fine golf course with a great set of greens. However, those greens stick out like sore thumbs on that landscape, and I would prefer that the fescue grasses grew to the bunker edges, which would also make them look more natural. The course plays better than it looks, and it certainly accomplishes the task of giving members at Stonewall a different golf course, but when comparing it to the other greats I have a hard time justifying moving it up.

[John Cowden]

I'd like to cop to a three-way tie at first place, but the Jesuits taught me to follow the rules, mostly.

Ballyneal
Stone Eagle
Dismal Red
Sheep Ranch
Pacific Dunes
Old Mac

[Garland Bayley]

"While it is the GCA darling, the land just wasn't ideal for a routing, and the bunker finishes, with its rough edges, don't really fit well in my mind with the structure of the templates. A similar issue to the last course I placed on the list."

WOW!

"the land just wasn't ideal for a routing"??
What does that mean? What land is ideal for a routing? Certainly not Pac Dunes, as it has more forgettable holes for me than Old Mac.

The templates are derived from old holes across the pond. You don't think they had rough edges? You think perhaps they had immaculate Augusta National edges?

Are you another pseudonym that John Kavanaugh thunk up?

[Jud_T]

Anyone who doesn't get the look of Old Mac needs to switch from tighty-whiteys to boxers ASAP.  The aesthetic of the place is one of the best things about it IMNSFHO.  There is something truly exhilarating about golf like this, which harkens back to the days of yore, which wouldn't be the same with hard edges.  Hell, it's supposed to be INSPIRED by Macdonald.  One of the things Tom and Jim do best is transitions.  They could have hired any number of hacks if they wanted a literal recreation.  Perhaps you should relegate yourself to playing Royal Links in Vegas instead....

[Chip Gaskins]

Barnbougle
Ballyneal
Pacific Dunes
Sebonack
Streamsong Blue
CommonGround
Beachtree
Legends Heathland

Chip:  Haven't you played Rock Creek?

Tom-  I have not made it to Rock Creek yet, its not exactly easy to get to (but I suppose Barnbougle isn't either!)

[Connor Dougherty]

"While it is the GCA darling, the land just wasn't ideal for a routing, and the bunker finishes, with its rough edges, don't really fit well in my mind with the structure of the templates. A similar issue to the last course I placed on the list."

WOW!

"the land just wasn't ideal for a routing"??
What does that mean? What land is ideal for a routing? Certainly not Pac Dunes, as it has more forgettable holes for me than Old Mac.

The templates are derived from old holes across the pond. You don't think they had rough edges? You think perhaps they had immaculate Augusta National edges?

GJ,
Perhaps the "the land just wasn't ideal for a routing was poor wording." Let me explain and see if it makes more sense. The two sand ridges that run along the property are in stark contrast to the several holes that run on the flat portion of the property. In my opinion, 3, 7, and 8, while great holes, don't fit in with the rest of the front 9, especially if you start to include 10-14 in that stretch. Don't get me wrong, we're creating a list of very good courses. Old Mac is full of memorable good holes (15 and 16 are two of my favorite holes on the property and 18 green is a great rendition of the punchbowl, and it's also worth mentioning the quality of 4, 7, 10, and 12) but I find that it's difficult to tie those holes together given the stark contrast between the two ridges and the valley. Given the property the transitions are pretty good, but I just don't think the property is as good as each of the courses ahead of it on the list. To help illustrate my point I'll use Blue Mound: it's a very fun course full of great holes, but the holes that use terrain don't seem to fit in with the holes on the flatter pieces of property. It's still a great golf course and a boatload of fun to play, but just because each hole is good, do we start throwing it in the company of Shoreacres/Camargo/Fishers? I wouldn't think so.

As for the bunker edging, no, they were not all engineered in appearance. They weren't creations based on other holes either so I don't really understand how that applies. My point is the holes seem manufactured at Old Mac, and the flashy bunkering does not fit with that.

Pac Dunes was more, to quote Jud T, "IMNSFHO" (I actually had to look that one up, hard to believe the college student doesn't know the shorthand meaning  ) ideal for a routing. It seemed far easier to transition on the land offered at Pacific Dunes than at Old Mac. GJ, if the holes on Pacific Dunes weren't all that memorable then I would think that's more an issue with the specific design of the golf holes than the routing. But, in Pac Dunes defense, I found each hole memorable there, and that's why it's No. 2 on my list here.

Jud,

Did I ever say that the holes should be literal replicas? No (and while we're on that subject, did MacRaynor ever literally recreate? In looking at their courses I felt there was always slight differences between each of the template holes). There are great examples of Tom and Jim taking liberties in the design and being "inspired" by MacDonald rather than a literal recreation at Old Mac (the most obvious being the 7th, a fantastic golf hole). I just feel that the course would look better with a bit more of an engineered look and would have fit in better, much like NGLA.

I love playing Old Mac. That golf course is a blast and each hole is a ton of fun to play. Giving it a Doak number it probably warrants a 7 in my book. We're nitpicking, and I felt that some of the holes were forced on the landscape while the bunkering tried to tie it back in.

At least I'm willing to stick to my guns and provide an opinion that will at least promote some discussion. I'd rather make it more constructive than a bunch of screaming through the computer. Prove me wrong. Rather than hurling insults, change my opinion.

And for the record, only amateurs wear boxers. Boxer-briefs provide both comfort and support.  

[Garland Bayley]

"the holes seem manufactured at Old Mac"

 

You know they are based on templates, so they seem manufactured to you? Give me a break! No one is going to manufacture the sand ridge. No one is going to manufacturer the hogsback. The Eden was already there. No one is going to manufacture the ocean front ridge on 7 and 15. No one is going to manufacture the alps hill. ETC.!

I don't have much opinion of your opinion.

[Jud_T]

Connor,

You're obviously entitled to your opinion.  A lot of people scratch their head vis a vis Old Mac.  Personally I'm glad they didn't take the safe route.  Obviously 7 & 8 were created to get to the Ocean, don't make for the easiest walk and I don't believe were in the first iteration of the routing.  Having said that, seven is a great, unique hole IMO with a wonderful approach.  Judging what club to take given the hill, the wind and the trouble up above is great fun.  Eight is a fantastic updating of the Biarritz concept.  Not sure why the course needs to fit in aesthetically with the others, or that, say, Bandon Trails fits in any more with Bandon Dunes than Old Mac does.  The course is of a piece.  If anything, when on a longer golf trip, I'd prefer something a bit different each day, aesthetically as well as in terms of shot values, wind, etc.

[DMoriarty]

I think by acknowledging the CBM theme Doak/Keiser opened themselves up to criticism no matter how the course turned out.  Some were bound to criticize the course for not being true enough to the supposed templates, others would necessarily critique it for being unoriginal and too bound to the supposed templates (query whether Doak fits in this camp.)  Some (like Connor perhaps) would expect the Raynor aesthetic and be disappointed not to find it.

I think the course might have been better received if it was judged solely on its own merits rather than as a CBM tribute.

Connor,  While the movement wasn't as massive as the ridges, it is not as if the land is flat in the valley, is it?  Eighteen holes of golfing over and back on those ridges seems like it would be a bit much.

[Connor Dougherty]

"the holes seem manufactured at Old Mac"

You know they are based on templates, so they seem manufactured to you? Give me a break! No one is going to manufacture the sand ridge. No one is going to manufacturer the hogsback. The Eden was already there. No one is going to manufacture the ocean front ridge on 7 and 15. No one is going to manufacture the alps hill. ETC.!

So do we draw the line on "manufactured" at creating a 15 ft hill? GJ, just because something is "manufactured" doesn't mean it comes at a large scale. How bout the Road Hole? was the slope behind the green just sitting there the whole time? The mounds to the right of the punchbowl green? Does the fact that these are templates make it easier to realize the holes are manufactured? Sure. How does that change anything though?

I cannot tell what's manufactured and what's natural at Pac Dunes at all. I can't say the same for Old Mac, and that's why I would have liked to see a more structured look (ala NGLA, so not with the extremely manufactured appearance found at places like Camargo but more like that at NGLA) in appearance. It would have fit better. The course would have been more cohesive for me. It's not like I've said Old Mac is a bad course. The courses ahead of it on this list are very, very good, and it's the little things that separate them. For me, it's the lack of cohesiveness between the rugged bunkers and the manufactured features and the okay property (ideal soil but two huge ridges that make the task of tying the holes together difficult) are what put Old Mac lower on the list.

I thought CB Mac was known for adapting template holes to the landscape? Maybe we should be calling his holes natural in appearance.  

Connor,

You're obviously entitled to your opinion.  A lot of people scratch their head vis a vis Old Mac.  Personally I'm glad they didn't take the safe route.  Obviously 7 & 8 were created to get to the Ocean, don't make for the easiest walk and I don't believe were in the first iteration of the routing.  Having said that, seven is a great, unique hole IMO with a wonderful approach.  Judging what club to take given the hill, the wind and the trouble up above is great fun.  Eight is a fantastic updating of the Biarritz concept.  Not sure why the course needs to fit in aesthetically with the others, or that, say, Bandon Trails fits in any more with Bandon Dunes than Old Mac does.  The course is of a piece.  If anything, when on a longer golf trip, I'd prefer something a bit different each day, aesthetically as well as in terms of shot values, wind, etc.

Jud,
I think 7 and 8 are very good holes holes, particularly 7. The golf course is probably better off using that portion of the property, and like you said, 7 is a unique shot. I'm still undecided on how the biarritz plays but as of now I don't have any problems with it. It is worth noting that it plays much differently than the other Biarritz holes. That's not necessarily a good or bad thing, just something of note.

On that piece of property, is it worth playing up the hill for 7 and 8? Yes, I think it is. It makes Old Mac more interesting overall, and 7 and 8 are focal points for the round. It may not blend with the flatter holes but that's okay. It just doesn't make the course as good as the other ones on my list. We're dealing with some pretty damn good courses, and it comes down to picking the little things (like dealing with the ridges at Old Mac) that separates them. As I said, Old Mac is probably a 7 on the Doak scale IMO.

I think the issue is not that the course needs to fit in with the other Bandon courses, it's that they tried to make it fit in too much. It would have created some maintenance issues (different maintenance practices for grass faced bunkers). but I would have liked to have seen more of a MacRaynor look to the course.

[Daryl David]

This discussion reminds me of the two college slackers sitting around watching the first Muppet movie after sampling some plant products that are now legal in several states. They come to the part in the movie where Kermit is riding the bicycle while singing to Miss Piggie. While observing Kermit's spindly legs peddling away, one student says to the other, "Hey, that doesn't look realistic at all. "It looks fake!"  

[Tom_Doak]

I cannot tell what's manufactured and what's natural at Pac Dunes at all. I can't say the same for Old Mac, and that's why I would have liked to see a more structured look (ala NGLA, so not with the extremely manufactured appearance found at places like Camargo but more like that at NGLA) in appearance. It would have fit better. The course would have been more cohesive for me. It's not like I've said Old Mac is a bad course. The courses ahead of it on this list are very, very good, and it's the little things that separate them. For me, it's the lack of cohesiveness between the rugged bunkers and the manufactured features and the okay property (ideal soil but two huge ridges that make the task of tying the holes together difficult) are what put Old Mac lower on the list.

...


I think 7 and 8 are very good holes holes, particularly 7. The golf course is probably better off using that portion of the property, and like you said, 7 is a unique shot. I'm still undecided on how the biarritz plays but as of now I don't have any problems with it. It is worth noting that it plays much differently than the other Biarritz holes. That's not necessarily a good or bad thing, just something of note.

On that piece of property, is it worth playing up the hill for 7 and 8? Yes, I think it is. It makes Old Mac more interesting overall, and 7 and 8 are focal points for the round. It may not blend with the flatter holes but that's okay. It just doesn't make the course as good as the other ones on my list. We're dealing with some pretty damn good courses, and it comes down to picking the little things (like dealing with the ridges at Old Mac) that separates them. As I said, Old Mac is probably a 7 on the Doak scale IMO.

I think the issue is not that the course needs to fit in with the other Bandon courses, it's that they tried to make it fit in too much. It would have created some maintenance issues (different maintenance practices for grass faced bunkers). but I would have liked to have seen more of a MacRaynor look to the course.

Connor:

I appreciate that we are splitting hairs a bit here, if you are giving Old Macdonald a 7 on the Doak scale.  I wouldn't put it in my top 5 or 6 courses, myself, so I'm not bothered by your critique on that level.

What bothers me is that you seem to be grasping for reasons to explain why you didn't like the course.  As David Moriarty said, a lot of people weren't going to like that we used the old templates to build the course -- either because we didn't follow them closely enough, or because we followed them too closely.  That remains your principal beef with the course, and that's fine.  But:

1.  I'm calling your bluff.  Which parts of Old Mac are manufactured, and which aren't?  Which are the 3-4 holes where we moved the most dirt?  And what particular features are created?  [Don't try to go hole by hole, just pick a couple that you are sure of, and I'll tell you if you're right or wrong.]

2.  I don't understand your point about cohesiveness.  The fact that Old Mac has some big ridges and some flat areas makes it no different than NGLA.  CBM did not move a lot more dirt on 7 - 11 - 12 - 13 - 14 - 15 at National to make those holes "cohesive".  Yes, he made his greens more rectangular than we did, but we were pretty cohesive about that, we just did it differently than Raynor.  How does the size of the ridge at #3 require us to build rectangular forms?  Or is that just really your personal preference [and/or Raynor's] being different than ours?  I don't think Raynor built rectangular forms for cohesiveness -- I just think he'd simplified the ideas of the templates to something that was easily replicable, and never thought much about whether rectangles and hard edges were appropriate or not.  I don't remember CBM ever saying anything to explain or defend the sharp edges of his courses; I just think they didn't have much experience with construction when they started out.

3.  The 8th hole plays like one other Biarritz -- the Yale one, that is my absolute favorite of all.  It's not as long, because the green site was there for us [so don't pick that one for question #1], and we couldn't push the tee back as far as we really wanted to, because there was an ocean in the way.  I wish they would use the front of the green for hole locations, but Mr. Keiser doesn't like that part of it, he thinks it is not enough like other Biarritz holes.  Which is why I like it.

4.  Have you been to the UK?  Have you ever seen Raynor-style bunkers on a links course?  We didn't build bunkers like Raynor's because we did not think it the grass faces would work well in the climate at Bandon -- we thought the grass would burn up in the summers due to the droughty conditions and sandy soils.  And we didn't think they would fit visually into the links landscape.  We experimented with a lot of different styles of bunkers in order to make the bunker style different from the other courses at Bandon Dunes, which if you look at old pictures of NGLA, is what Macdonald did there as well.  So, your last statement just circles back to my point -- you "would have liked to see more of a MacRaynor look to the course," and we didn't think that was the right way to go, for a bunch of reasons.

P.S.  I'm not trying to pick on you, I just want to see if there is something more than personal preference at work here.

[Jim Tang]

1.  Pacific Dunes (10 rounds over 3 visits)  A true masterpiece and the course that single handedly changed my mind on what I thought a golf course, and golf in general, should be.  Wonderful setting, options and endless fun.

2.  Ballyneal (20 rounds over 4 visits)  The more world class golf courses I get to see (TOC, Royal County Down, NGLA, Dornoch, Sand Hills) the more I realize just how well Ballyneal holds up.  On each visit I seem to learn more about the sublties of the course and thus, my appreciation for what Tom did at Ballyneal continues to grow.  I used to think Pacific Dunes was a good step ahead of Ballyneal.  Today I think Pacific Dunes may just be a quarter step ahead of Ballyneal.  The greatness of both courses is indisputable.

3.  Old Macdonald (2 rounds over 1 visit)  

4.  Streamsong - Blue (1 round over 1 visit)

5.  Lost Dunes (2 rounds over 1 visit)

I've listed the number of rounds on all courses because I've come to realize that it is impossible to fully absorb what Tom is doing on any of his courses in just a round or two.  I think Ballyneal started to come into focus, for me, around round # 10.  

I am hoping to add Rock Creek to the mix next summer.  I'm excited to see how that course will stack up to the others.

[Connor Dougherty]

Connor:

I appreciate that we are splitting hairs a bit here, if you are giving Old Macdonald a 7 on the Doak scale.  I wouldn't put it in my top 5 or 6 courses, myself, so I'm not bothered by your critique on that level.

What bothers me is that you seem to be grasping for reasons to explain why you didn't like the course.  As David Moriarty said, a lot of people weren't going to like that we used the old templates to build the course -- either because we didn't follow them closely enough, or because we followed them too closely.  That remains your principal beef with the course, and that's fine.

I don't have a beef with how the templates were used, I just don't like how the structure of the templates (say, the back portion of the road) mixes with the rugged feel of the rest of the course. As I said earlier, hole by hole, Old Mac is full of great ones.

1.  I'm calling your bluff.  Which parts of Old Mac are manufactured, and which aren't?  Which are the 3-4 holes where we moved the most dirt?  And what particular features are created?  [Don't try to go hole by hole, just pick a couple that you are sure of, and I'll tell you if you're right or wrong.]

I like the challenge! As I mentioned in a response to GJ earlier, I felt that the biggest issue was not the places where large contours had to be changed, but the minute ones which were done to adapt some of the templates and then having that clash with the rugged hazards (which may fall under the "A lot of people were going to have problems with using the templates too much or not enough category). So while, say, the ridge line had to be cut into for 7 and 8 tee (am I right on that?) the result is quite good and it's hard to discern if any dirt had to be moved. I would imagine it took quite a bit of dirt moving to put the 14th green where it is as well. 18 green would be my last guess for most dirt moved, as I recall the mounds on the right were manufactured to create the punchbowl (which, I may add, I thought was a great rendition of it.

But for features that stick out in my memory, either the front portion of the Redan was brought up or dirt raised for the back portion to soften the slope of the green, and the slope that leads to the "road" (in this case, short grass) on the road hole.

2.  I don't understand your point about cohesiveness.  The fact that Old Mac has some big ridges and some flat areas makes it no different than NGLA.  CBM did not move a lot more dirt on 7 - 11 - 12 - 13 - 14 - 15 at National to make those holes "cohesive".  Yes, he made his greens more rectangular than we did, but we were pretty cohesive about that, we just did it differently than Raynor.  How does the size of the ridge at #3 require us to build rectangular forms?  Or is that just really your personal preference [and/or Raynor's] being different than ours?  I don't think Raynor built rectangular forms for cohesiveness -- I just think he'd simplified the ideas of the templates to something that was easily replicable, and never thought much about whether rectangles and hard edges were appropriate or not.  I don't remember CBM ever saying anything to explain or defend the sharp edges of his courses; I just think they didn't have much experience with construction when they started out.

Some of the examples used at NGLA seem overstated, or perhaps I'm misremembering. The tee shot on 7 is played up a huge hill. 12 descends down toward Peconic Bay. 13 is a par 3 so it's existence on flat ground is less of a factor IMO (much like the eden at Old Mac). 14, as I recall, has a heaving fairway which rises and then descends once again to the green. That only leaves 2 flat holes (11 and 15), much less than the series of flat holes at Old Mac (1, 6, 9, 10, 17 from what I can recall). 

3.  The 8th hole plays like one other Biarritz -- the Yale one, that is my absolute favorite of all.  It's not as long, because the green site was there for us [so don't pick that one for question #1], and we couldn't push the tee back as far as we really wanted to, because there was an ocean in the way.  I wish they would use the front of the green for hole locations, but Mr. Keiser doesn't like that part of it, he thinks it is not enough like other Biarritz holes.  Which is why I like it.

I will have to see it again now that I've seen Yale's (Also my absolute favorite of all) but I didn't make that connection upon seeing Yale's. I haven't played the Biarritz at Old Mac enough to know exactly how it plays but I do like it from what I've seen (as I've mentioned earlier) I will definitely be keeping more of an eye on the front next time I see it. I was also aware of the 8th being natural since I watched the "Creating Old MacDonald" DVD (title?).

4.  Have you been to the UK?  Have you ever seen Raynor-style bunkers on a links course?  We didn't build bunkers like Raynor's because we did not think it the grass faces would work well in the climate at Bandon -- we thought the grass would burn up in the summers due to the droughty conditions and sandy soils.  And we didn't think they would fit visually into the links landscape.  We experimented with a lot of different styles of bunkers in order to make the bunker style different from the other courses at Bandon Dunes, which if you look at old pictures of NGLA, is what Macdonald did there as well.  So, your last statement just circles back to my point -- you "would have liked to see more of a MacRaynor look to the course," and we didn't think that was the right way to go, for a bunch of reasons.

I have been to the UK but have only played the links courses in Scotland, none of the heathland tracks. While the sod faces weren't originally there I can't say I've seen the template holes in their original rugged state. That being said, those holes were originally created for their environment on that landscape. It's different when you're trying to replicate the hole on another piece of land. Once again, Mr. Moriarty's comments may apply here. It makes sense that you used the bunkers that you did, and in the long run, based on what you said, the course is better off for it. But since we're splitting hairs, it falls off.

P.S.  I'm not trying to pick on you, I just want to see if there is something more than personal preference at work here.
No harm done. I really enjoyed this post because for the most part it is constructive. By no means am I a high authority figure on this subject, and it's posts like these which help both shape and change my opinions.

And lastly, for David Moriarty's last comment on the routing using the ridges more/less, yes, I do think you're right. It would be too much of a huff to carry a golf bag up and down the ridges over and over again throughout the course of an 18 hole round. I think the routing at Old Mac is probably as good as it can be. But, as has been mentioned before, we're splitting hairs, and compared to the courses I put above it I don't find the land as interesting as the others listed. Just because Raynor used the land at Blue Mound may have used the land as best as possible doesn't put the course in the same class as Camargo. Both remain wonderful tracks. Just like Old Mac and the courses I put ahead of it.