Believe it or not, I have seen worse. When working for Dick Nugent, he visited a CC in Temple, TX that had 3 holes in only 300 or so feet, or 100 foot per hole. Similar deal on a country club somewhere in Kansas (Atchison, maybe?)
That said, this original course was laid out by an engineer and local golf pro. Someone must have told the engineer that fairways were about 40-50 yards wide, and he, not knowing, figured that was all the width they needed. I imagine the pro mentioned that he never missed a fairway, so no safety buffer was needed. Because, of course, we all know a pro is most qualified to design a golf course!