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Gator Lakes Golf Club
by Lacy Gearheart
| Links Corner Course Database ID Number - 113 |
Release Date |
CRZ Filesize |
Par |
Course Length |
| 2001-01-26 |
38,048,793 bytes |
72 |
7468 yards |
| Type |
Style |
CRZ Filename |
|
FICTIONAL |
PARKLAND |
GatorLakes GC V2.crz |
| Course ID |
Course Key |
| a243d302f3ae11d4b01b0000e87e4e35 |
2c1df3bd943933f2e77a61daeecef94a |
|
LINKS CORNER REVIEW |
Reviewed by Pete Dixon
This is the revised edition of what was originally a well received fictional course from the designer of Foxfire G & CC which I have reviewed previously, I cannot comment on the original course as I didn't do the original review.
This course can only be described as, well actually I don't know the exact category, Everglades with plenty of water and alligators, just a few alligators actually, but lots of water.
Let's start with the water, the lakes are awesome, beautifully finished around the edges, good depth, clear and bright, a delight to the eye.
The fairways are very narrow but look good and undulate well, you certainly have to think about club use off the tee as well as what type of shot to hit, because if you get it right for the fairway you can bet there will be a trap of some kind to contend with. I also like the way the fairway is separated from the rough; no sharp edges in sight here and the pathways wind there way happily throughout with good scale and no visible twisting.
The tees are also really well done as they have good placement and the seams are finished off the same as the fairways, my first gripe comes in here though, there are some bunkers placed right next to the tees that can't even come into play apart from the competition tee so they seem a little pointless. Also on the tees are the drinks dispensers and bins that to me spoil the look, they are a bit trashy (excuse the pun) and may look okay on a $5 course but not on one like this.
The bunkers are the usual Lacy standard - How does he get them to look so good? Depth, texture, finish are all first rate.
The planting is also of a very high standard and trees and bushes sit well in the landscape and the choice and variety of plants have also been considerately placed, check out the 16th tee for an example. Buildings are also well placed and to scale you even get the shell fountain at the end of your round.
Finally the greens. They are again beautifully crafted and will give you an extremely stern test as there are some wicked contours, I actually felt they were too tough considering the overall severity of the course and maybe tweaking them down just a fraction might not have been a bad thing (It may keep a few grown men from tears).
Best Hole: Tough choice, all the par 3's are excellent, and to be honest there isn't a bad hole on the course, I was finally torn between the par 4 8th with its stretch of water down the right hand side and a bunker ready for your drive on the left or the wonderfully understated planting of the par 3 16th in it's picturesque surroundings. I can't make my mind up so it will have to be equal favourites.
Overall: A quite stunning course, and superior, in my opinion, to Foxfire, Lacy has designed a course I would love to play in reality. The only niggles I have are the ones outlined above, other than that a course that is a must have for your courses collection.
I think I can sum it up by saying this is a course you will enjoy immediately but one that will take a long time to master.
Links Corner Design Analysis
Gator Lakes revised version 2 is the type of course most will own. The visuals of the course stand out very well, and the hole layouts are something to really think of whilst playing. The mistakes found in the previous version, which didn't amount to a lot, have been corrected. What will stand out, perhaps not considerably, is the cuts of fairway, rough and greens. There will be times when the ball rolling into rough, or around the green, will hit an area that may misdirect the ball. These happen in real life too, but for the purpose of explaining the course, it is completely done this way.
Bunkers are treacherous hazards, with severe lies if playing from within one. The odd texture stretching may be found on a few. Aside from the obvious hazards, playing safe and being cunning from the tee is the order of this course. Sometimes dropping a few clubs can get that crucial shot from the view you seek.
Course Info :
Cameo Screen? Yes
Splash Screen? Yes
Text file?
Hole Previews?
37mb
Reviewed February 2001 |
This course is available as a FREE download.
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