I've really tried to think about how well those architectural features are utilized, and also tried to imagine playing the course if I had absolutely no idea who designedit. Even doing so, I'll draw some comparisons to Inniscrone because it'swhere so many of these features are utilized well. - A good example is the second hole that Tom Paul describes above. The deep, gaping bunker at the corner really needs to be challenged, else one is left with a blind, uphill/sidehill lie for the approach to a green that sits dangling on a man-made ledge that serves to repel approaches. Three of us hit very solid drives right into the bunker. Not one was seriously capable of carrying it, although all of us drive the ball a fair ways when we hit it solid. Thus, although the option is there, it's for the Matt Wards and Jamie Slonis gang while the rest of us have to take our lumps and play safe. Move the back tee up 10-15 yards and it becomes a thrilling hole. As it is, only very long drivers even have the option. On a second go round, I wouldn't even consider playing towards the bunker. - Applebrook is much more aerially-oriented than Inniscrone. Almost every approach is best flown all the way to the green, and most holes in fact demand it. Some of the potentially best uses of merging the existing predominant slopes into the green (i.e. 10, 13) in fact do just the opposite. The bailout areas instead repel balls away from the green, which is certainly a viable architectural move, but simply accentuates the focus on the air game. In contrast, holes like 1, 6, 9 and others at Inniscrone do just the opposite, and allow for the run up shot using the existing terrain.- On such a windy site, I think accomodation of the ground game should have been a much bigger consideration.- The par threes as a group are very demanding..penal even..and possibly too much so with three of them occupying narrow shelves falling into serious danger. - The par fives are generally ok, but nothing approaches the brilliance ofsay...15 at Innsicrone, where once again the golfer must use the surrounding terrain to guide the approach. 10 would have been the best possibility for something similar. - Lots of really good par fours, but the focus on throwing too many thingsinto the pot in terms of interesting green surrounds and the forced aerialgame makes the course too one-dimensional when the intent is to be anythingbut. For instance, quite a number of holes featured false fronts, steepsurrounds, penal bunkers, chipping areas, considerable slopes, andsignificant internal contours, ALL at ONCE!. The brilliant subtletyexhibited at Inniscrone is largely missing. - Because of this, and despite the width of the fairways, the course does notplay particularly strategically. Several fairway bunkers seem well out ofplay and I really had to think about their purpose as anything but eye candy,or perhaps directional aids.- The greens seem to me to be overdone. Once again, it's important toremember that we are talking about a windy site. I would have much preferredto see something much more low-profile akin to Garden City, with greens asnatural extensions of the fairways, and the use of slope much more thaninternal contours to create challenge. Applebrook features both, and makesputting challenging..yes...but perhaps to an unfair degree. On many putts,large internal curves need to be considered, but then flatten out near thehole. I'd have rather seen something more lay of the land, but perhapsthat's just personal preference. - I really am not a fan of the whole overdone complex around 9 & 18 greens, or either hole generally (even without considering the waterfall the owner demanded). I think it's the kind of showy thing that any of us might criticize somewhere else. Nine isn't a particularlynoteworthy par three, and I think 18 is just poor in it's present state. Thegreen configuration just doesn't support the length of the shot, and I think a reverse redan where you could aim left and let the contours direct your ball to the right would have been awesome. Instead, the left side of the green directs the ball away from the right, and a shot to the right back from that distance will never hold, instead having to utilize the steep backstop that was built behind that pin position, which is sort of goofy,to be honest. - All that being said, I loved 2,3,4,7,11,12,13,14,15, & 17. However, I think that Applebrook has so many visually pleasing features as well as considerable architectural interest that it's a shame it doesn't all come together as I kept hoping it would. It could have been great, but just misses.