Maple Bluff is unusually hard

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mwmosser
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Maple Bluff is unusually hard

Post by mwmosser » Tue Mar 19, 2013 7:16 pm

I don't want to sound whiny, but I am having zero luck scoring well in some rounds on Maple Bluff. Some of the pin placements appear to be on the edge of cliffs, and the Par 5 14th in C pin position is impossible to get anywhere close. Either the ball rolls all the way back down to the front middle, or it runs off the back and I have to flop shot it close (which never works). My golfer is a level 40, with putting maxed out at 50, and I still can't get it close.

To make matters worse, the computer players are scoring 59s. What gives?

Thanks -

Michael

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Jake
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Re: Maple Bluff is unusually hard

Post by Jake » Wed Mar 20, 2013 8:27 am

Maple bluff is a very challenging course, and isn't meant to have every hole birdied. This is especially true on the hardest difficulty setting with pins C/D. Just like real golf suddenly the golfer has to think between laying up for an easy par, or taking a hard putt at birdie which could possibly lead to a three putt.

Make sure you're using upgraded clubs, and more importantly an upgraded ball. Remember that you lose balls just like in real life, so hitting a generic ball instead of one of the top balls is a very large handicap

Good luck, those last tournaments are tough but doable!
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Re: Maple Bluff is unusually hard

Post by mwmosser » Wed Mar 20, 2013 8:51 pm

Fair points both. I have the clubs maxed out but I've lost all my best balls in the various creeks so I'm down to one mid-range ball. I try to not do in-game purchases and instead rely on skill points to upgrade, but I've hit the limits of my skill, I think. :lol:

I'll keep plugging away!

PS - Where exactly is the real Maple Bluff?

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Re: Maple Bluff is unusually hard

Post by Jake » Wed Mar 20, 2013 10:24 pm

Keep practicing, you'll get it!

Maple Bluff is based off a real course, it's located in Rochester NY and happens to be the one hosting this years fourth major
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Re: Maple Bluff is unusually hard

Post by Deano » Fri Mar 22, 2013 1:50 am

Jake,

Maple Bluff is a fun course to play but some of the greens are punitive. Hitting the ball to the pin can end you up off or nearly off the green on some holes.

However, my problem with Maple Bluff tournaments and tournaments late in the sequence of tournaments is the Wind factor.

I don't mind playing in wind, but the wind factor is often NOT reflected in the scores posted by other players in the tournament I happen to be playing.

I have seven profiles so far, each with varying degrees of skill, but for most of them I win nearly all the tournaments leading up to the final three or four in the sequence. Then they become difficult, which I don't object to.

But while I'm struggling to shoot par or maybe one or two under because of the winds, other players are shooting way under par, maybe -10 or lower. On the tour, when the winds blow all scores tend to go up.

I just finished the Pin Ball Shuffle tournament at -5 (and was lucky to get that) and "failed" the tournament. The winner was -20, and there were a huge number of players well under par and ahead of me (-9, -18, etc.) on the leader board. Those low scores do not reflect the conditions my profile was play in.

Was wondering if you could look into that.

Otherwise, I'm hooked, as you can see. :-)

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Re: Maple Bluff is unusually hard

Post by Jake » Fri Mar 22, 2013 9:10 am

Maybe the penalty increased difficulty isn't high enough. Right now there is a base score for each computer plus a base random value, then blue tees add one stroke and green tees add two, medium difficulty adds one and hard difficulty adds two. Maybe I'll change it a little bit, but those tournaments are intended to be very tough and I know they can be completed! They could shoot a tad better on easy conditions and significantly worse on harder conditions, it would make it much more realistic
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Re: Maple Bluff is unusually hard

Post by Deano » Fri Mar 22, 2013 1:36 pm

Jake,

Thanks for looking at this. I don't mind hard courses and tournaments. They can be frustrating but a true test of how you manage your skill and the course.

And failing to complete a tournament is part of the game. :-)

It's just when you're sweating bullets to shoot well in difficult conditions and it doesn't seem like your computer opponents are playing under the same conditions. :-)

The last Maple Bluff tournament I played, I actually was -10 at the start of the final round (and I think 13th) and the leader was at -18. I shot a +5 (ouch, but the winds were particularly strong and coming at really tough angles). I finished at -5 but it seemed like the whole field pretty much shot under par for that final round, and my -5 finish was well down the 2nd page of scores.

Looking forward to playing the tournament again.

Dean...

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Re: Maple Bluff is unusually hard

Post by mwmosser » Fri Mar 22, 2013 2:48 pm

Dean is far better than me - I haven't yet gotten below a 68 on my Maple Bluff rounds. :)

But I've also noticed the wind doesn't affect the computer players as much as me, so might be something to look into. Otherwise - awesome, challenging, and realistic game!

And yes, I think you did a nice job modeling the course on the real one, at least from what I have seen on TV....

Maybe someday you can model a course based on the one closer to you that's hosted the US Open the most.

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Re: Maple Bluff is unusually hard

Post by Jake » Fri Mar 22, 2013 5:43 pm

I would love to get that course, we already have it in GL Golf but the realism is limited. As for this years championship, I have a Friday ticket so I can't wait to see it in person. I actually lived 15 minutes from the course for years going to college, but you have to know someone pretty special to step foot there usually!
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Re: Maple Bluff is unusually hard

Post by Deano » Fri Mar 22, 2013 6:08 pm

Jake,

I second what mw says about the awesome job you've done with the course and the game.

And that's really cool about the course being based on one hosting a major this year.

I've found under tournament conditions that the stretch of 16, 17 and 18 at Maple Bluff can be a killer if the wind is wrong late in a tournament. And I mean killer in a good way. I just hope I've got enough strokes built up that if I give 2 away it won't hurt so badly. Of course, the last tournament, I gave back 4 strokes on that stretch.

They're very had but great fun if you can make it through with pars, though 17 much of the time has to be played as a par 5 even though it's a 4. :-)

Keep up the good work.

Dean...

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