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Ela Mentriwatson
by Chris Upton
| Links Corner Course Database ID Number - 1189 |
Release Date |
CRZ Filesize |
Par |
Course Length |
| 2002-12-15 |
17,604,232 bytes |
72 |
7058 yards |
| Type |
Style |
CRZ Filename |
|
FICTIONAL |
PARKLAND |
Secondgo.crz |
| Course ID |
Course Key |
| f7c812c034c7442bafe0f87d5a24e237 |
f7c812c034c7442bafe0f87d5a24e237 |
|
LINKS CORNER REVIEW |
Reviewed by Rand Herron
January 2003
The clever play on words that form the course title might be the most interesting element of this presentation by novice designer Chris Upton. And so, 'My Dear Watson, shall we investigate?'
Overview:
When standing on the first tee of Ela Mentriwatson, the designer presents a pleasant view over a lake and wide open looking expanse with a large house (or clubhouse) off to the left. There is vegetation in the water and the course's few lakes, which are nicely done, have that manmade look and are lined with rock edges. The course is a nine hole only Fictional/Parkland design with medium-toned standard textures. There are smooth tee areas, smooth fairways, cross-cut greens with smooth fringes, regular rough and patchy yellowish 'My Brush' areas. The plantings are sparse and wide apart across the course. They are also unusual, providing pines and palms in the same area, and small dense clumps of trees. The most unfortunate thing about the course is that it is largely undone, looks and feels incomplete, and really should have been presented as a Beta. It appears from the Readme file (see APCD comments) that the designer had really intended to put the course out there to get help about design problems he had encountered using APCD. Having been released as a nine hole basic design, one gets the feeling the designer simply threw up his arms and lost patience.
Playability:
The nine holes are straightforward and fairly easy with broad fairways, though some fairway bunkers have fall off areas intended to suck-in your ball. The course is a Par 36 and plays 3530 yards - from the back tees. There are three pin positions on each hole. I did like the 7th, a 400 yard Par 4 with those sloped bunkers on the right fairway. (See screen shot 1) But, there are no plantings near the green. The 4th hole, 412 yard par 4, is interesting and has an evil bunker on the front of the fairway. (See screen shot 2) Mostly however, the same theme remains the same throughout the course.
Sounds: None!
Extras: Nice Cameo and Splash Screen, Custom (checkered black/white) Flags, 3D Objects.
Lacking: Hole Previews, Hole Handicaps, Signs, Spectators, Cart or walking pathways, Seam blends and little information in the Readme file.
APCD Comments:
It is always worth pointing out (being a designer myself) the immense effort and time it takes to use APCD. I always appreciate that from any designer. However, it also requires patience, and in many cases, immense patience. This is the entire Readme file provided:
This is my second attempt at APCD, the front nine of a fictitious course. I am posting this in the hope that someone might be able to put me better in the picture concerning 'Mapping'. I must be missing something very basic, because when I map the face of a bunker lip I lose the mapping assigned to all other bunkers which I have mapped with the same mapping, eg; 'Bunkerlip small'. Using the first hole as an example I will map a bunker with a saved mapping called 'Bunkerlip small' and it will look okay. I then map another bunker on the same hole with the same mapping, it looks okay yet when I look at the previous bunker It has lost the mapping I had just assigned to it. I have printed a number of tutorials on the subject and am sure I have followed them to the letter, but I'm at a loss as to what I am doing wrong. Any help and guidance would be greatly appreciated. Feel free to do what you wish with this course, I have tried to make it challenging and rewarding for all levels of players.
The bunkers are indeed overly extruded (see screen shot 3). There are sloppy edges as well (see screen shot 4). The best advice I can give to the designer is to keep your nose to the grindstone, use the Links Corner bulletin boards and Designer's Corner. There are always very generous and talented people there willing to help you with all sorts of problems, including 'mapping' and other issues. And most importantly, don't give up and just release a course as a finished product before you're done. Provide a readme file that fully explains your intentions, provide a theme and better detail. Also, name your course similar to the course name. This course file named 'Secondgo.crz' is confusing and doesn't identify your course.
Overall, the designer shows great promise and I hope he keeps at it and conquers the mapping issues and gains the patience to render a great design. Don't 'settle' for an incomplete design. The potential is there and I hope Chris Upton's next design is a keeper. Good luck Chris!
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