1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Out
Brown 458 407 318 443 124 568 381 463 195 3358
Tan 436 352 281 403 114 539 356 382 160 3023
White 322 293 239 319 104 429 302 316 127 2451
Par 4 4 4 4 3 5 4 4 3 35
Hdcp 4 11 15 2 18 5 13 7 9
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 In Total
Brown 568 412 306 155 214 471 412 182 606 3326 6684
Tan 539 358 287 152 197 410 369 134 543 2989 6012
White 443 335 250 110 164 375 311 119 458 2565 5016
Par 5 4 4 3 3 4 4 3 5 35 70
Hdcp 6 10 17 16 8 1 12 14 3
Since this is my first effort at building a course with the Arnold Palmer Course Designer (APCD), I thought it might be interesting to keep notes during the development of it in the odd chance that someone may find it worth reading. Also included are any observations I may have had while using this tool.
[History] [Design] [Inspiration] [Implementation]
[Scorecard] [Pinsheet] [Design] [Splash1] [Splash2] [Early Sketch-1] [Early Sketch-2]
First off, it may be worth noting that this isn't my first attempt to digitally design a golf course. In college [1980], I wrote a golf simulator that was extremely crude. Keep in mind that this was in the days when computer terminals were just starting to be used. Our programming at the time was on punched cards and teletype terminals, so there was no graphics involved whatsoever. All the program had knowledge of was a set of clubs (14 in the bag) and a range of distances they covered and 18 holes that merely had yardage and par. A random number generator produced random distances (within a range) both forward and left/right depending on the club. The 'greens' were simply getting within a certain radius of the ending distance to the 'pin'. It was entertaining to a couple of us as computers were a new experience for us (we had none in high school [1978] or home). That program is long gone now.
Following that, I had a Timex Sinclair ZX-80 (is that the model?). The program I wrote for that was similar with the exception that this computer actually had some graphics! It was quite crude and merely showed the layout of an individual hole. That computer is still at my parents house. It would be entertaining to dig that one out of the cobwebs...
That was the last program I wrote myself. The next opportunity came with a golf simulation program that was available on the Commodore 128 machine [1984-]. (Worldclass Leaderboard) There was no course designer for it, but I managed to reverse engineer the file format by trial and error and found out how the coordinates of the fairways, bunkers, greens, etc. were laid out. I designed several courses with that method using graph paper and transferring the (x,y) coordinates to hexadecimal values using a binary editor on the Commodore (I don't quite remember what that tool was). That kept me very entertained for a couple years. Once I got a Windows(R) PC, that system was given away to the library along with that program, custom courses, and how-to notes I wrote. It's a bit of a shame I didn't keep copies, but I had experienced the early Links release (386) by then and it completely blew away what was available on the Commodore.
It's funny, the primary motivation for getting computer upgrades has primarily been because of the Links series of software. I've been needing to upgrade my current 5+ year old system, but it may be Links 2003 that pushes that decision over the edge. :) It was Links that caused me to replace our Commodore. (I wrote this in October, since then I have purchased 2k3)
I've had Links 2001 since it was released and have been unable to use the APCD due to insufficient RAM in my computer. Lately, though, I've had access to a laptop which has more than enough horsepower/space. (another update: my home system was updated too)
So now I get to do the ultimate(*) in armchair golf course architecture, the APCD! So here goes...
* for now. in 10+ years we'll look back at the crudity of this tool and Links itself. Heck, when is the last time you saw an older (pre-2000) version of Links? It was quite primitive compared to now.
One of the aspects of a well designed user interface is the ability to start using the software without having to do a lot of reading or training beforehand. I must say that the APCD is rather lacking in that regard. I like to take a new piece of software and start playing with it without resorting to the help documentation too heavily. The tutorials and help are good once you are ready for specifics or to learn how to more efficiently use it.
The APCD isn't horrible, it is just that I wasn't getting anywhere without referring to the very helpful tutorials at Links Corner on sportplanet.com.
It may be the case that they (Microsoft) like keeping this software fairly obfuscated to weed out the weaklings. I dunno. Let's just say that actually getting usable golf course is not trivial without a LOT of help. My hats off to the fellows (are there any female designers??) that put together the tutorials. Your input was invaluable.
It seems that one of the hardest things about (real) course design is finding golf holes in the existing terrain. A big benefit to doing digital golf courses is the almost complete freedom to make any kind of terrain you want. The biggest restriction, possibly, is having the textures you need. Not wanting to spend too much time creating custom textures, I'm sticking with what's available from the existing software and downloaded courses.
As for how the course should look and play, well I guess that depends on the likes/dislikes of the designer. As a sidelight, my experience playing this game started back in 1980. 23 years later, I've got over 200 courses under my belt.
Here are some of the things that I listed that I wanted to put in a course based on what I've seen and liked over the years:
First and foremost, my biggest inspiration is the work produced by the many APCD designers. It has only been recently that I've downloaded any of these courses and it is amazing what you guys (any gals?) have done! After downloading over 100 and played most of them, when I go back and play the original, released courses, they pale in comparison! Geez, pat yourself on the back. I only hope the course I come up with will be half as well done.
Here are the sources of the things I was inspired to add to this first effort at an APCD course:
Their first 18 goes completely around a lake. It doesn't really come into play anywhere so I wanted to make mine do so. Some of the best holes on real courses are along a lake or ocean. Like #18 at Pebble Beach, #17/18 at Cabo Del Sol. In the real world there aren't too many places left where courses can be built along bodies of water. Some exceptions are Arcadia Bluffs and Bay Harbour in Michigan. When I first went to the Sandestin Resort in FL, the literature on the Ocean course commented on the fact that many holes ran along the Bay were rare in FL because all the land along the shorelines was already developed. Anyway, my point is that on a digital landscape, I can make as many holes as I want along water. So I did (while still trying to keep it somewhat realistic).
This is kinda unique in real world courses. Normally you would expect sand, but using (deep) grass makes these areas tougher, I think. I haven't seen this feature in any of the APCD courses I've downloaded so it fits in with one of my motivations - to use some feature that is new in these courses. Hopefully, I've done that here.
The back 9 on this course, which hosted the 2002 USGA Amateur Public Links, has done this. I always thought that was pretty cool and I wanted to add this feature on this course in a bad way. I did it in more than one place and on opposite sides of the lake for a bit of symmetry. Also, I went crazy and tried it on 3 adjacent holes. Another course that has mated fairways is Twin Lakes in Rochester, MI. Both of those are some of the nicer places I've played and left a good impression on me.
Having all 18 holes be along the shoreline would be rather strange, so I went with the first few being away from the lake. This also allowed some variety.
This course was designed by Rick Smith to be walking only. Carts were available to those who couldn't play without them. They even provided caddies. Good idea, right? Bzzt. Total failure. There is virtually nobody that walks that course. It's pathetic. Another course: Bandon Dunes/OR. Non-Michiganders do a better job at walking a course.
The lack of cart paths is a reflection of my dislike of carts on a golf course. Besides the tire tracks that ruin the appearance of the course/grass, they totally ruin the rhythm of the game. It wouldn't be so bad if it were a decision the individual could make, but too many courses don't give me that option. I hate that. On a digital landscape it is irrelevant other than I don't want to encourge this as being the norm in golf courses. Too many people will grow up not knowing about the benefits of walking. It is already happening as I rarely see players walking anymore. Even on courses that allow it.
Their 18th (and 9th) greens (both the Old and New courses) are huge. I made a monstrous green on my own 18th to make the hole reachable in two on some occassions and not on others depending on pin position.
While I did draw a basic layout on paper of some holes around a lake, I was anxious to start drawing on the computer and did most of my final hole shape/length decisions on the computer. The Define Hole Path option makes it easy to design basic hole shapes and lengths. Editing them is much easier than using an eraser.
It seems as though I hardly ever use paper and pencil anymore. Like writing these notes. I originally had written comments and drawings on a pad of paper, but it was easier to go straight to digital. Especially since I can type faster than I can write. As a result, my handwriting worsens lessening my desire to write instead of type.
At this point, I had 18 hole paths around a non-existent lake. The lake would come next so I would have the freedom to have the lake come in as close to each hole as I saw fit.
The next step was to design a basic tee shape which I would use on every hole for each of the 3 tees. All of which would be separate from each other and largely at different angles to the fairway/green. How I did it for each hole was mostly arbitrary. Variety was the basic motivation. The yardages for each tee on a hole were roughed in using the measuring tool. I didn't get too fussy on any tee except the back. By the time I had inserted the 2 forward tees into a hole, I found that the yardages were a bit too short and I had to reinsert them further back on a few of the holes. In hindsight, it may have been better to pay more attention to the yardages of all the tee positions. I tend to only play the back tees on Links, but that isn't necessarily the case for everyone else. Besides, one of my intentions was to motivate others to use all 3 tees on this course for variety.
Once I had shapes for the greens, tees, and fairways (that's all for starters - no hazards yet), the next thing was to insert them into each hole. Once they were inserted, I modified the mesh edges so they radiated outward from the tee and green shapes. Also eliminated extra vertices. As in all stages of development, the tutorials were instrumental in giving me any hope of finishing the features.
At this point, I have a playable course. Flat as a pancake. And only the default pin positions. As part of the fiddling with the tees to get the entire course yardages right, I added the 3 tee positions combining the ladies/junior/forward positions in the front one.
The next steps ended up taking a LONG time. This is where knowing the most efficient way to build the tee/fairway/greens would probably save a LOT of work. As this is my first course, I don't mind making some mistakes and having to do too much. This way maybe I can see how not to do it. So, what I did was add mesh rings around each tee and green by adding vertices in the triangles adjacent to the shapes (tee/fw/green) and then turning the appropriate edges. With these I could add the fringe around the greens and tees. Adding a fringe to the tees added a LOT of work. Once this was done on the individual shapes, I removed the shape line the APCD leaves behind. I kept one for the original tee shape as I used it on all 54 (18*3) tee areas in case I had to move a tee later, I would have the original geometry.
After all that, I added the bunkers - both sand and deep grass. The locations of these were added as I felt like it - no advance planning on quantity, location, etc.
One other thing that I did was to change the sharpness of the edges of every tee/fw/green shape. The textures were a little choppy otherwise. This seems to give a nice smooth curve to everything. Not sure if that is what everyone else does.
The fringe + tee area textures were identical, so it was necessary to swipe one from a custom course. There are so many courses (I've downloaded over 100), picking one is a toughie. Doesn't really matter I guess. The European courses are out as mine will have a Michigan/midwest flavor. For now, I'll use the Rough+Fairway+1stCut+Fringe+Green textures in the Arrowhead course. Looks like they pilfered their copy from the Las Brisas course. :)
So, once the greens+fw+tee+fringe areas were defined, the next step is to add in some hazards. Since grass bunkers are a main theme I chose, adding those came next. After that, bunkers. Once those are done, then I can feel free to add in the "1st Cut" areas around the fw/greens. The addition of all this stuff, like the rest of the course, it mostly off the top of my head. Adding all of this stuff is time consuming. I try to keep in mind how I want to elevate the terrain, but (a) I don't know what techniques in the APCD are best yet, and (b) I don't know exactly what I want to do yet other than make #3 (short par 4) downhill, #5 (short par 3) uphill, and have the greens slope towards the lake - which is probably what they would do in real life. After all, natural water drainage will occur towards that lake.
In order to allow the use of every club in the bag, I needed this data:
1w 137-275
2w 130-260
3w 125-250
4w 120-240
5w 112-225
6w 107-215
7w 100-200
1i 115-230
2i 110-220
3i 105-210
4i 100-200
5i 92-185
6i 85-170
7i 80-160
8i 72-145
9i 65-130
pw 60-120
sw 52-105
tw 40-80
20 yards - narrow
25-30 - typical
40-60 - wide
I think 4500-7000 ft^2 is typical. Since area=PI*d, this is roughly a 13 yard diameter range. Again, I'm not restricted to these sizes if I don't want to.
For variety, I chose from:
I went with a single shape and made 3 copies on every hole. The heck with 5 tees, that was too much work. I added alternate angles to the fairway to encourage players to play from different tees. I usually play from the back when I play Links on the computer. The shorter tees are just that. Shorter. However, if the course played differently, I might just choose another set to play from for variety.
Update: I quit taking notes after a while, so I won't comment on the final stages of development of this course. Let's just say all of it is a lot of work. By the time I released it as a BETA course, it was nearly done (except for hole previews, people, and some other things). I have been anxious to finish this and get it outta here! It took me from October 2002 to June 2003 to design this course. That's too long, but probably normal.
Just when I had finished putting all of the crowds in, I found that Links would crash when it would try to load the course. Going back and redoing a Validate and Save seemed to fix that, but at one point the crowds on holes 6 through 15 were gone! For some reason the APCD moved them to some bizarre location - most of it off the boundaries of the course!?!? So, after attempting to restore them and discovering that they would still disappear in random places on me, I said forget it and took them all out.
-Dave, June 2003
Copyright (C) 2003, dh. All rights reserved.
Updated: 14-June-2003
