Tom Lehman at the Prairie Club: This video was shot in the Spring of 2008 on the day before construction began. I look forward to getting back to Valentine, NE to see how the course has grown in and see if the course plays as well as I thought it would.

Ballyneal: This is the first of three videos that feature Tom Doak’s prairie masterpiece (Front Nine, Back Nine) that I ran on the site. I had the pleasure to be part of this project and it was one of the more enjoyable of my career.

Cypress Point- Back Nine: One of the more magical places on earth is only enhanced by Mackenzie’s amazing course (Front Nine, here).

Common Ground: From the rarefied private playground of the masters of the universe, to the a public course on mundane land. Common Ground is an affordable course that is filled with strategy and architectural subtleties. (For a discussion of holes three and four, see here).

The Old Course: While I did not have the best weather on my trip around the Old Course, I tried to capture the communal nature of the course and what fun it to simply be out on the links.

This was only my third to time around with my sticks, although I have walked it a few other times, and what really jumped out at me was the contour of the greens. I have seen a lot of modern courses with truly wild rolls and dips and I believe many architects would point to the Old Course as precedent. Sure, the contours at the The Old Course are crazy but for the most part they are on the outside edges of the putting surface. The actual area where the pin is most likely located is actually quite tame. I had a case of the lefts that day which left me with lots of long putts from the wrong half of the double greens. It was rare if I had a putt that broke more than six inches. (more commentary and video after the jump)

I know Mark Parsinen and Gil Hanse closely studied this phenomenon and incorporated it on the greens at Castle Stuart. To me it makes perfect sense especially on a site as windy as Castle Stuart where there are worries of balls moving on the greens. It creates interesting recovery shots for errant approaches and rewards stellar shots with makeable putts. Many modern greens are so rumpled that making putts is almost a crap shoot. By keeping the most extreme contour to the front, back and sides an architect can produce greens that are interesting visually and strategically without totally sacrificing playability.

I came across this great site Thanks to twitter. Yes, Punchbowl Golf is on twitter, so feel free to follow along. Andy Brown’s HOMEOFGOLF.TV may be the best thing I have found on twitter and I encourage everyone to go the site and check it out. I have chosen a few episodes that deal with architecture or feature unique images to highlight. Above is a quick episode featuring the Old Course under a blanket of snow. (More videos after the jump)

This video features John Boyne, an Old Course caddie who also runs a golf tour company. He discusses the life of caddie in St. Andrews and tells how to play the famous 17th. Really good stuff.

The final video that I have chosen features aerial shots of the St. Andrews courses. That is one helicopter ride I would love to go on.

Andy Brown has seven other video currently up on the HOMEOFGOLF.TV and he seems to be producing them at a clip of about one every two weeks, so keep checking back for new material. This a great addition to the internet golf scene.