Not sure exactly where to post this so I'm just going to post it here and the moderators can relocate it at their discretion.

I want to toy around with golf course design. I did a few searches on Google but they weren't much help. I'm looking for something 3 dimensional that will allow elevation changes and such.

I have no idea how much this software costs but if there's a budget version for regular consumers can someone point me in the right direction?

EDIT: Mods, thanks for relocating. Thought this was where it would go but wasn't sure.

I'd be interested in knowing as well.

I'm an Electrical Engineer, but I have worked in the Irrigation, and specifically the Golf Irrigation industry.

I have doubts as to whether or not any specific software package is devoted entirely to golf course design; there are Landscape Architecture software packages, so those may be what you're looking for.

To start, if you don't know Autocad or drafting for that matter, I would try to learn that and then go from there.

you can download autocad from there website for a free trial for 30 days or something, the program is a grand or so by it self, You can do pretty much everthing you want on that, you just have to know how to do it. Its a pretty hardcore drafting program, So it might take a while to learn

like a career...

There is a free tool to design courses for the Links 2003 computer game here: http://www.fileplanet.com/111849/110000/fi...Course-Designer

Doesn't cover things like irrigation and drainage stuff but everything really needed for looks is there and it's playable on a computer after your course is done.
Design teams like Norman Golf use it quite regularly for visualization purposes.