Doak always studies deeply the characteristics of the site, even the least noticeable, taking advantage of every detail , even those that are not possible to notice at first sight, such as a particular type of plant, little change in the slope and even wind condition.
They try to use machines only when it adds character to the area that come into play for a golf hole but the surroundings would remain almost untouched.

Tom Doak is not, however, a theoretical purist, there are some examples with particular poor site where he had to move massive quantities of earth to make a great course.
The Rawls Course at Texas Tech University and The Legend Club in South Carolina are evident examples of how minimalism in designing golf courses can be, in the true world, applied just to near-to-perfect natural site, it is like a stylist, when he has to design clothes for models, he does not need to use that much fabric to underline beauty, but to make an ugly woman appear prettier, something more has to be done.