East Lake Golf Club offers new look for FedExCup's Tour Championship | Golf Channel | Golf Central

SO IT WILL BE INTERESTING TO GET USED TO IT. THAT'S FOR SURE. >> JOINED BY THE MAN WHO LED THE RESTORATION HERE AT EAST LAKE, ANDREW GREEN. ALSO THE DID OAK HILL, SITE OF THE 2023 PGA CHAMPIONSHIP. SOMETHING OF A DONALD ROSS SPECIALIST. THANK YOU FOR DROPPING BY. LET'S START WITH THE THE INSPIRATION. HOW FAR BACK DID YOU GO? >> OBVIOUSLY, THE PLACE IS GROUBLDED IN SUCH RICH HISTORY. YOU DID A BEAUTIFUL JOB TALKING ABOUT BOBBY JONES. SO MANY PLAYERS CAME FROM THIS PLACE. BUT ALSO THE GOLF COURSE AND THE INTEGRITY OF THAT. SO OUR REAL INTENT WAS TO CONNECT BACK TO THAT. MAKE SURE THAT WE TOLD THE STORY ANY WAY THAT WE COULD. BOBBY JONES, BEST PLAYER TO EVER PLAY IN PART WAS BECAUSE OF THE THE SHOTS THAT WERE PLAYED HERE. SO HOW DO WE UNLOCK THE LANDSCAPE, TRY TO GET MORE VARIETY OUT OF THE GOLF COURSE, A MORE COMPLETE STANCE. A LOT OF THAT REVOLVES AROUND THE HISTORY. >> THAT HISTORY, YOU FOUND QUITE A BIT OF IT STARING RIGHT AT YOU FROM AN OLD PHOTOGRAPH. WHAT YEAR WAS THAT? >> THIS IS FROM 1949, WHICH TYPICALLY IS LATE FOR SOMETHING WE'RE DOING. WE WOULD RATHER HAVE SOMETHING '20s OR '30s. LOOK AT THE RESOLUTION. YOU SEE HINTS OF LAND FORMS AND THINGS. IT REALLY GAVE US A TREMENDOUS BACKBONE TO BUILD FROM. >> WHAT IS THAT LIKE? I PICTURED YOU LOOKING FOR THE ARC OF THE COVENANT. HOW DO YOU FIND THESE PHOTOS? >> IT'S PROBABLY MORE LIKE AN INTERNET STALKER. GOING BACK AND TRYING TO FIND THESE ARCHIVES, ALL THIS HISTORY. THERE'S MULTIPLE PLACES I LOOK IMMEDIATELY FOR THINGS WHEN I'M GOING TO A PROPERTY. I LIKE TO UNDERSTANDS HOW DOES THE PROPERTY EVOLVE. WHAT'S THE STORY? SO WE CAN REALLY UNLOCK THE PIECES OF GOIMPK BACK A LITTLE BIT, BUT MAKING SURE WE AREN'T DOING SOMETHING THAT WASN'T CHANGED FOR A REASON. BUT MOSTLY INTERNET DIGITAL ARCHIVES, WHETHER IT BE GOVERNMENTAL OR OTHER ACADEMICS. >> WHEN YOU FIND A PICTURE LIKE THAT, YOU TAKE IT TO THE MEMBERSHIP, I'M WONDERING WHAT THE BRIEF IS LIKE. IN OTHER WORDS, HOW ARE YOU BALANCING THE DEMANDS OF MEMBERS, THE SUGGESTION OF THE MEMBERS, MAYBE THE SUGGESTIONS OF THE PGA TOUR PLAYERS, AND ALSO HOW TO TEST THE MEMBERS THAT APPROPRIATELY TEST THE BEST PLAYERS OF THE WORLD. HOW DO YOU WALK THAT LINE? >> THAT'S INTERESTING. FOR THE MOST PART, THE TARGET IS THE TARGET. 100 YEARS AGO THE TARGET WORKS PRETTY WELL. SO PUTTING GREENS, GREENSIDE BUNKERS, THE WAY THEY SIT ON THE GROUND, THAT SEEMS TO MAKE A LOT OF SENSE. THEY TRANSLATE WELL FROM YESTERDAY TO TODAY. IT'S FAIRWAY BUNKERS, FAIRWAY WIDTH, THE DYNAMICS OF THE POSITION, THOSE ARE THE THINGS WE CAN REALLY ADJUST AND IT ALLOWS THE GOLF COURSE TO BE PLAYABLE BY GOING FORWARD AND TOUGHER GOING BACK. A LOT OF WHAT WE TRIED TO DO WAS MAKE IT ACCESSIBLE FOR THE MEMBERS. OPEN SOME FRONTS, SOME GREENS, APPROACHES, THERE'S A NUMBER OF FORCED CARRIES INTO THE HOLES BEFORE. WE OPENED THOSE UP, ALLOW THE BALL TO GET ALONG THE GROUND WITH SOME SHORT GRASS. AND THEN CHALLENGE THE BEST PLAYERS IN THE WORLD BY PUTTING THE HAZARDS AT THE APPROPRIATE DISTANCE FOR THE MODERN GAME, MAKE THEM THINK, THEY HAVE BEEN THINKING THIS WEEK, AND JUST TEST YOUR COMPLETE GAME. I THINK IT'S A RECREATIONAL GOLFER, THE GOLF THAT I ENJOY THE MOST IS THE GOLF THAT I REMEMBER AND THE GOLF THAT KIND OFSHOWS ME EVERYTHING THAT I CAN DO WITH MY GOLF BALL. >> THE INTERNAL OUT OF BOUNDS. DID YOU SEE THIS COMING? WHAT DO YOU THINK OF WHAT THEY HAVE DONE? >> I'M NOT SURE THAT THERE'S AN ADVANTAGE TO EITHER PLACE, BUT I UNDERSTAND. AND ALSO UNDERSTAND THE DYNAMICS OF PEOPLE THAT WILL BE EITHER FRUSTRATED OR DISAPPOINTED IN THAT DECISION. BUT IT WAS THE RIGHT DECISION. WE ACTUALLY DID AT OAK HILL 6 INTO 7 THAT WAS A PLACE OF A SIMILAR RULE. IT'S BEEN AN ISSUE. THE U.S. AM, WE RECALL A NUMBER OF THESE THINGS, IT'S HERE FOR THE TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP ON THESE TWO HOLES, WE FELT AND THE PGA TOUR MADE THE EADJUSTMENT IT WA THE RIGHT THING TO DO FOR THIS YEAR. DOES IT MEAN WE WON'T MAKE SOME ADJUSTMENTS GOING INTO NEXT YEAR, MAYBE. 6 INTO 7 HAD ALWAYS BEEN SOMETHING I THOUGHT ABOUT. BUT I STOOD THERE WHERE THE SHOTS WERE SHOWN AND I JUST NOT SURE IT'S A HUGE ADVANTAGE. >> IF YOU AND I WERE OUT HAVING A COUPLE DRINKS, I WOULD ASK YOU THIS QUESTION. YOU'RE UP HERE. I'M OF THE OPINION THAT IT SEEMS LIKE THE WHOLE ARK CHITECTURE WORLD IS OF THE SAME MIND ON TREE REMOVAL. I DON'T KNOW WHETHER IT'S GOOD OR BAD, I JUST KNOW THAT WHEN SOME ORGANIZATION IS ALL OF THE SAME MIND, THERE NEEDS TO BE SOME CORRECTION ON THE OTHER SIDE. SO WHEN I LOOK AT TREE REMOVAL, BROADLY SPEAKING, OF COURSE, I CAN SEE THE ADVANTAGES TO IT FROM THAT ASPECT. OF COURSE, I CAN UNDERSTAND IT PROVIDES ANS ESTHETIC. OF COURSE, I CAN UNDERSTAND A PLAYABILITY FROM A MEMBER STANDPOINT AND MAYBE STRATEGIC ASPECTS OF IT. BUT GENERALLY SPEAKING, AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL, DO TREES NOT OFFER ANESTHETIC OF THEIR OWN AND PROVIDE A STRATEGIC OPTION? YOU THINK ABOUT THE SHOT THAT SERGIO GARCIA HIT IN 1999 AT MEDINAH. IF THE TREES WERE REMOVED, WE WOULDN'T WATCH THE SHOT. BUBBA WATSON AT AUGUSTA NATIONAL, IF THE TREES WERE GONE, IT WOULD HAVE BEEN A NOTHING SHOT. SO IT SEEMS LIKE THE WHOLE OF ARCHITECTURE IS LET'S GET RID OF THE TREES. SO WE END UP WITH SITUATIONS WHERE WE HAVE TO HAVE INTERIOR OUT OF BOUNDS BECAUSE THERE'S NO TREES TO PROTECT AGAINST THE BEST PLAYERS OF THE WORLD ON DOG LEGS. THAT'S WHAT I WOULD SAY IF WE WERE HAVING A NICE CONVERSATION. I'M INTERESTED TO HEAR YOUR COMMENT. >> I COME TO THIS GROUND OFTEN. TREES OUT OF THE WAY, NUMBER ONE. THEN THERE'S ACTUALLY SOME ESTHETICS ONE WAY OR ANOTHER. HERE AT EAST LAKE, BEING ABLE TO SEE ACROSS THE PROPERTY HAS A LOT OF POWER. BUT THE ADJUSTMENTS WHERE THIS INTERNAL OUT OF BOUNDS THING HAS COME FROM IS ACTUALLY A BY-PRODUCT OF OTHER THINGS. THEFIRST ON NUMBER 7, CERTAINLY, WE WANTED TO SEE THE LAKE FROM THE CLUBHOUSE AS YOU WALK DOWN THAT HOLE, BUT THERE'S A MAJESTIC WHITE OAK THAT WE WANT THEED TO GO SHOWCASE. SO THE TREES BELOW THAT WERE IN VERY POOR CONDITION. THEY WERE OVERGROWN. A LOT OF FIRST GROWTH STUFF. BECAUSE WE MADE A MODIFICATION FOR THEIR PRACTICE FACILITY WITH THE LAKE, WE HAD TO ADD ADDITIONAL FLOODPLAIN STORAGE. SO WE DID A RESTORATION AND ADDED STORAGE VOLUME. OVER ON BETWEEN 10 AND 18, THERE WERE SOME TREES IN POOR HEALTH AND THE CART PATH SHIFTED ALONG WITH THE GRADING THAT WE HAD THAT MAKES THE ADJUSTMENTS TO THE LAKE ON THAT SIDE, THE TREES HAD TO COME DOWN. SO UNFORTUNATELY, BOTH OF THESE THINGS WEREN'T A CONSCIOUS DECISION TO OPEN LINES OF PLAY. IT WAS THE RESULT OF THE DYNAMICS. >> IN FAIRNESS TO YOU, OAK HILL, THE TREES ARE STILL THERE. >> THERE'S A LOT OF TREES. THERE ARE. I WAS JUST GOING TO ASK. >> WE'RE GOING TO SEE THE BIG TRENCH ON 17 AS THIS WEEK PLAYS OUT. I'M WONDERING AS YOU HAVE R REWORKED AND RESTORED THIS WHOLE THE GOLF COURSE, WERE THERE A COUPLE HOLES OR ELEMENTS TO HOLES THAT TURNED OUT THAT EVEN SURPRISED YOU THAT YOU WERE PARTICULARLY PROUD OF? >> THE SECOND GREEN IS CERTAINLY A TOPIC OF CONVERSATION. IT'S AN IMAGE I WANTED TO CAPTURE. THE WAY THAT THE FRONT HOLE LOCATION TO THE BACK IS SO DIFFERENT. I REALLY LOVED THAT. AND THEN I THINK SOME OF THE ADJUSTMENTS WE MADE DOWN THE CLOSE, 14 INTO 5, THAT WAS A LATER DECISION. BUT I THINK IT KIND OF OFFSETS SOME OF THE OTHER DYNAMICS THAT WE HAVE SET UP. IF YOU LOOK AT THE SHOTS WE'RE ASKING THE PLAYERS TO PLAY, COMING DOWN THE STRETCH, ALLOWING THEM TO MAKE AN EAGLE THERE AND THEN HAVE TO PLAY THAT 15th GREEN, WHICH IS ACTUALLY BIGGER EVEN THOUGH IT LOOKS SMALLER, I PROMISE IT'S BIGGER. AND THEN 16 WAS THE SHORT GRASS TO THE RIGHT AND 17 AND 18 WITH A LOT OF CHARACTER THAT WE HAVE ADDED, I JUST THINK THE FINISH IS GOING TO BE TREMENDOUSLY EXCITING. >> IN YOUR ESTIMATION, IT'S NOW MORE CHALLENGING THAN IT USED TO BE IN WHAT WAYS? >> I THINKMENT SOME OF IT IS PERCEIVED THAT IT'S MORE CHALLENGING, BUT OBVIOUSLY, THE GREENS ARE FIRM. THEY ARE YOUNG. BUT THEY ARE TREMENDOUS. HIS STAFF HERE HAVE DONE AN AMAZING JOB GETTING THIS GOLF COURSE READY. WE PLANTED THE LAST PIECE OF SOD ON JUNE 15th. I THINK THE PUTTS THAT THE PLAYERS ARE GOING TO PLAY, THEY HAVE NO EXPERIENCE WITH. THEY ARE ALL NEW. THEY ARE GOING TO HAVE TO READ THOSE GREENS. THAT WILL BE DIFFERENT. THE HOLE LOCATIONS WILL ALL BE DIFFERENT. AND THEN THE DYNAMICS OF THE LAND FORMS, THERE WILL BE PLACES WHERE THE PLAYERS GET UNCOMFORTABLE BY