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Duine Mara
by Paul Seaman Note: This course contains 1024x1024 textures and can only be played in version 1.07 or later of Links 2003
| Links Corner Course Database ID Number - 2022 |
Release Date |
CRZ Filesize |
Par |
Course Length |
| 2011-06-19 |
0 bytes |
70 |
6999 yards |
| Type |
Style |
CRZ Filename |
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FICTIONAL |
LINKS |
Duine Mara.crz |
| Course ID |
Course Key |
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| COURSE NOTES |
Duine Mara is set in the gorse lands very close to the coast of western Scotland, it does not exist in real life but perhaps it should? The course plays to a par of 70 with five par threes and only three par fives. Set to a yardage of just under seven thousand yards from the Big Tees, it can be a beast to conquer.
Wind always plays a part on the coast and you should set the wind option to a minimum of gusty with the 1.07 mod to get the true play Duine Mara was created for. Course settings should be set to, Green Hardness - Firm (challenging), and Green Speed - Medium (challenging), again with the 1.07 mod, so you can experience fully the nuances of the design.
Using the suggested settings will give you the true feeling the course was designed for, although other combinations can prove fun and challenging.
The course is also designed to be played from any tee or any combination of tees, so the random tee option can and should be used.
All fairways are cut short of the greens, you will find no run up areas on any of the eighteen holes; every single green is surrounded by rough, so hit the target, or compensate for your run up being slowed by hitting into rough. Sometimes this can be an advantage, other times not.
Quite a few people have been involved in the creation of this course, without them as always it would be a far cry from what it is now.
So thanks to.....
Daniel Watson,
Panorama and the exclusive skies that are only available with this download.
Noel Kilner and the team at Animasters.
My ani. Which is also an exclusive to Duine Mara. If you do decide to use it, make sure you set me up left handed, the clothes have been designed to fit that way because I play that way.
Zeke.
Tournament options and the sound file, you'll hear something different on every round, and he has managed to make the crowds subtle, like I wanted; rather than in your face and everywhere.... Great job mate.
Neal Parnell and Jason Thorpe.
Hole previews. Beautifully done,
Jason worked hard and long on the hole previews and did not get one into the design, I am really sorry for this but his hard work deserves recognition.... thanks mate.
Gerry Garlisch
Hole Handicaps.
The Beta Team.
Daniel Watson,
Pete Butcher,
Stewart Parker,
Gerry Garlisch,
Sanzdaddy,
Broomer.
Thanks for your suggestions and help guys; it's a better course because of you....
This course is dedicated to the memory of my friend Big Three, AKA Paul Cirino.
It is the only course I have ever designed without his help, so trying to bear in mind all of the things he would have probably ribbed me about and the things he liked about course design and playability, I have tried to make a course he would have loved. I just hope I have done Paul justice with my interpretations of how I feel his advice would have come across to improve this design.
The added tournament option is designed to be played as a memorial trophy, Please tournament organisers, set this one up. How you run it, what form it takes, and on what dates it is played is entirely up to you, but I would like this course to be used at least at least once a year to celebrate Pauls' life.
One last thing, Paul gave more than most to the Links community, so with that in mind and with respect to him I have left the course unlocked with my express permission to use any textures, plants, etc, you feel you would like in any of your future designs. If you open up the course in APCD and have any questions on how I did what I did or whatever questions really? Please PM me. I will try to explain how I did whatever it is you have a question about or at least help to the best of my ability.
Please though, don't copy the layout, change the textures, then release it under a different name and claim it as your own; you could not do anything more disrespectful.
Be careful out there guys, watch the ditches, the sand, OOB, and the water. Hit them straight, hit them long, and most of all; have fun.
Paul Seaman. |
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CLIPNOTES by Ben Bateson (ousgg) |
Description
Fictional, dunes course |
Location
Western Scotland |
Conditions
A couple of greens are not particularly friendly at F*/F* |
Concept 10/10
Reminiscent of Enniscrone in its dependence on the dune, Duine Mara is quite extraordinary in its combination of innovation, visuals, and of course as a heartfelt tribute to a lynchpin of the Links Community. Even aside from the sentimentality, there is a quite simply heart-stopping creation here, using novel layouts and hazarding, ditches and fences for great effect, and water sparingly but in all the right places. There's very little ostentation about the hole design, which is perhaps its most convincing aspect. A fitting way to remember Paul “Big Three” Cirino indeed. |
Appearance 10/10
The gorse-covered dunes, dark and dense, look unique and eye-catching from the very first. They are supported by a deep, rich texture set often with multiple layers around bunkers and fairways. The panorama is perfectly-fitting and a real thematic anchor for the course. Best of all are the natural hazards: ditches and marshes which have cause designers so many problems in the past. In Paul's careful hands, they not only look right, but feel as they're in the right place, too. |
Playability 9/10
Some intriguing challenges await, especially demanding good position from the tee in order to access some quite remote and well-hazarded small greens. There's no doubt a good all-round game will be required, too, although the hard-to-hit fairways do sometimes tend towards the frustrating. But, with the breakers roaring gently in your ears, there are few courses as immersive as this little treat, and the re-visit quotient is very high. |
Challenge 8/10
Severe stuff with the suggested realistic Gusty conditions; the greens causing more problems than the wind. Finding, avoiding and recovering from the rough will be an over-riding concern here, more so than the bunkers, which are not particularly links-like and often afford a reasonable escape. But there are opportunities to nail greens and some sympathetic lies in the fairway which you will need to take full advantage to score under par. |
Technical 10/10
Delightful, faultless and innovative. It's amazing how Paul continues to turn out these quality courses with such regularity. |
| Overall |
A glorious tribute course with its own unique layout and style of hazarding. Unmissable. |
47/50 |
Please remember that Clipnote reviews are the opinion of one person and do not constitute an 'Official' Links Corner review of the course. |
This course is available as a FREE download.
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