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2023 Champion

Viktor Hovland

Viktor Hovland played the best golf of his life in the final two weeks of the PGA TOUR season, and it paid off Sunday with the biggest trophy of his career -- a FedExCup title along with the $18 million bonus.

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East Lake Golf Club

Located in Atlanta, Georgia, East Lake Golf Club is the oldest golf course in the city of Atlanta and where legendary golfer Bobby Jones learned the game. The Club is not only historic, but philanthropic as well. Proceeds from Club operations support several charitable partners, including the East Lake Foundation, which has helped transform one of the nation’s worst public housing projects into a thriving community. Since 2005, East Lake has been the permanent home of the TOUR Championship, the culminating event of the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedEx Cup.

A legendary golf course

Established in 1904, East Lake was originally designed by architect Tom Bendelow. His design, which took three years to complete, was short lived. In 1913, the Club hired Donald Ross to completely rework the Bendelow design. Over the years, Ross’ routing remained basically intact. George Cobb did some work in 1959 in preparation for the Club to host the Ryder Cup in 1963. After years of neglect, Rees Jones restored East Lake in 1993. In 2023, architect Andrew Green will lead a complete renovation of the course, using previously unknown photos as design inspiration.

The Tour Championship

August 28 - September 1, 2024

East Lake Golf Club has been the permanent home of the TOUR Championship since 2005. The tournament was first played at East Lake in 1998 and has been held at East Lake 23 times since then. The TOUR Championship is the culminating event of the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedEx Cup, with only the top 30 players on the points list qualifying each year. The 2023 TOUR Championship and FedEx Cup Champion is Viktor Hovland.

Contact the TOUR Championship Office: 404-378-8687 or [email protected]

“Golf is the closest game to the game we call life. You get bad breaks from good shots; you get good breaks from bad shots – but you have to play the ball where it lies.”

– Bobby Jones

Tour Championship Leaderboard And Final Round Live Updates - Hovland Wins FedEx Cup by Five Shots Over Schauffele

The 2022/23 PGA Tour season comes to a conclusion this evening at East Lake. Who will lift the FedEx Cup and take the $18m bonus?

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Viktor Hovland fought off a spirited fightback from Xander Schauffele to claim back-to-back victories and the FedEx Cup with a five-shot victory at the Tour Championship.

Starting the day six shots ahead, Hovland started fast, making four birdies in his first six holes either side of a rain delay but was unable to shake off the challenge of Schauffele.

The American, who has never finished below seventh in his six appearances so far at East Lake, also made four birdies in his first six holes and continued to battle away, at one point reducing Hovland's lead down to just three after three birdies in five holes around the turn.

As the rest of the field was left behind, the final pairing offered up something of a prelude for next month's Ryder Cup over the back nine, going blow for blow over the final holes.

The turning point would arrive on the 14th, where Hovland responded from a poor chip to drain a crucial par putt and retain his three-shot advantage. From there, the 25-year-old found three birdies in his final three holes to finish on -27, securing back-to-back wins alongside the $18m winner cheque.

After Schauffele on -22, Wyndham Clark was the next best back at -16. Solid final rounds from Rory McIlroy and Patrick Cantlay saw the pair round out the top five at -14 and -13 respectively. World No.1 Scottie Scheffler finished at T6 on -11.

Relive all the action from the final round of the Tour Championship below:

TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP LEADERBOARD

• -27: HOVLAND
• -22: SCHAUFFELE
• -14: MCILROY 
• -13: CANTLAY

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Hello and welcome to Golf Monthly's live coverage of the final round of the Tour Championship. After a stellar round on Saturday, the tournament is really Viktor Hovland's to lose. Fresh of his victory last week, the Norwegian has a six-shot advantage at East Lake heading into the final round. 

It will take something special from the chasing pack to stop him. Will that happen? Tune in to find out...

FINAL ROUND TEE TIMES

We've got a few early starters out on the course, but here's a look at when the big contenders get underway for their final round.

Times listed in EDT (BST):

• 12.56pm (5.56pm) -  Adam Schenk, Rory McIlroy
• 1.07pm (6.07pm) -  Scottie Scheffler, Patrick Cantlay
• 1.18pm (6.18pm) -  Wyndham Clark, Jon Rahm
• 1.29pm (6.29pm) -  Keegan Bradley, Collin Morikawa
• 1.40pm (6.40pm) -  Viktor Hovland, Xander Schauffele

DIFFICULT EARLY SCORING

Scoring was tricky yesterday and the early signs from those already on the course is that we could be in for similarly tricky scorings.

14 players are out on the course but just two are under par currently for their rounds...

IS XANDER THE MAN TO CHASE DOWN HOVLAND?

If you could have picked someone charged with catching Viktor Hovland, Xander Schauffele may just be that person.

The American has five top-ten finishes and one victory at this course in his six appearances at the tournament. As well as that, he's yet to shoot over par at East Lake. 

Could he cause a shock here today? A reminder that Scottie Scheffler led by this exact amount heading into the final round last year...and ended up falling short to an electric round from Rory McIlroy.

BIG PAYDAY FOR THE WINNER

It's the biggest purse on the PGA Tour, so here's a quick reminder of the eye-watering sums of money that the top-ten players are set to take home today:

• 1 - $18,000,000
• 2 - $6,500,000
• 3 - $5,000,000
• 4 - $4,000,000
• 5 - $3,000,000
• 6 - $2,500,000
• 7 - $2,000,000
• 8 - $1,500,000
• 9 - $1,250,000
• 10 - $1,000,000

RYDER CUP PICKS TO PLAY FOR

Another strand to today's action is next month's Ryder Cup. Two names in the top five, in particular, will be looking to force the hand of US Captain Zach Johnson ahead of Marco Simone.

Collin Morikawa looks likely to get a captain's pick already but he'll be after one more big round just to make that sure.

The other is Keegan Bradley who it feels like is on the outside looking in at the minute. He's already won twice this season but may well need a big final-round showing at East Lake to make the case to Johnson for one of those six picks.

RORY MCILROY UNDERWAY

He's been struggling with a back injury all week has Rory and currently sits 11 shots back of the lead. He pulled off something magnificent this time last year but 11 shots feels even beyond his best.

He gets underway with Adam Schenk, finding the right rough with his first tee shot.

EARLY BOGEY FOR RORY

The Northern Irishman is blocked off by trees after his opening drive and can't reach the green in two. From the fairway he can't get up and down to save his par and he drops back to -8.

It's a lovely birdie, though, for his playing partner Schenk who moves into solo eighth at -10. What a season he is putting together. 

GLOVER AND HOMA INTO THE TOP TEN

A nice start for the American duo early into their final rounds. Two birdies for Glover, one for Max and the pair are both at T9 on -9.

OPENING BIRDIE FOR SCHEFFLER

Where was any of that yesterday, Scottie? The World No.1 was birdie-shy almost the entirety of Saturday but gets underway at the first on Sunday with a lovely iron approach.

He's got ten feet for birdie and this time makes no mistake. Up to -12 but plenty of work still to do. 

SCHENK HOLES OUT FROM THE FAIRWAY

Wow! What a start from Adam Schenk. It's rare that Rory McIlroy is overshadowed in a pairing but it's happening right now.

A birdie on the first is met by eagle on the third as he holes out from 137 yards on the fairway. Up to -12 and into a share of fifth for him.

He's still yet to win on the PGA Tour and that's probably unlikely to change today, but his breakthrough season continues to go from strength to strength.

6 years ago today, Adam received his PGA Tour card. Today, he is playing in the final round of the Tour Championship. I have a slew of words to share but I’ll spare you all: I’m wearing waterproof mascara today. pic.twitter.com/QuMdBmcJN7 August 27, 2023

LEADER UNDERWAY

A bit of drama before he starts as Viktor Hovland and his caddie appear to take a wrong turn and have to lightly jog to make the first tee on time.

All's well that ends well, though, as he finds the fairway with his drive. Schauffele, too, finds the short stuff as he looks to chase down the Norwegian. 

EARLY BIRDIES FLOWING

Well, I thought it might be similar to yesterday conditions-wise but perhaps not. Scheffler rolls in another birdie - his second of the round - to get to -13 and he's joined there by Adam Schenk whose marvellous front nine gets even better with a 31-foot birdie to move four under thru four.

Morikawa gets off and running with birdie at the first to move to -14 but Keegan Bradley doesn't appear to have got the memo as he makes an opening-hole bogey to drop back to -12.

HOVLAND MAKES AN EARLY MOVE

Just relentless golf from Viktor Hovland who pours in a 15-footer on the first for a birdie to move to -21. He's going to be difficult to catch if he keeps making birdies look as easy as that.

But credit to Schauffele. A beauty of an iron into the green for the American who also makes birdie to keep some sort of pressure on the leader. Up to -15 for him.

PLAY SUSPENDED

Well, not the news we were hoping for. Just as we were getting started, play has been suspended due to "inclement weather." Looks like storms are projected in the area but hopefully East Lake can avoid the worst of it.

The final round of the TOUR Championship was suspended at 1:57 p.m. ET due to inclement weather. August 27, 2023

Some thunder being picked up by the TV cameras. It looks like this delay could be a bit lengthier than anyone initially anticipated. 

Anyway, lets take the opportunity to look back on what golf we have seen so far today and the story right now is Adam Schenk. Five holes, three birdies, one eagle. Not bad. 

Here's a look at that eagle - a hole-out from the fairway:

A post shared by PGA TOUR (@pgatour) A photo posted by on

RAIN BEGINNING TO CLEAR

No news as of yet regards a restart but signs the rain and clouds appear to be slowing moving away from East Lake. 

There's not a lot of wind out on the course so it may take it's time but hopefully we aren't too far away from getting the golfers back on the course. 

OVER IN EUROPE...

A few signs of fans but still no signs of players so lets take another look back at some other action from today which happened in Europe at the Czech Masters on the DP World Tour.

If today is a big day for the likes of Bradley and Morikawa to force their way into a US captain's pick for the Ryder Cup, then it was no different over in Prague.

A host of big names such as Ludvig Aberg, Nicolai Hojgaard, Adrian Meronk, Yannik Paul and Bob MacIntyre were in contention as they looked to make their case to Luke Donald for a captain's pick onto Team Europe. 

Click here to find out how they got on.

PLAY TO RESUME AT 15:50 ET (20:50 BST)

Finally some good news and a time for the resumption of play. Given the length of the delay, the players are being allowed some time on the range first but it looks like we are looking at a 3:50pm ET restart. 

For the folks in the UK, that's 20:50pm so just over half an hour away.

Update from Atlanta: the range is opening at 3:15 and play expected to resume at 3:50 pm ET. August 27, 2023

PLAY TO RESUME - HOVLAND LEADS BY SIX

We're about 15 minutes away from play resuming so a small reminder of how things stand:

Hovland remains six shots ahead on -21 after a first-hole birdie but faces a putt to save his par on the second. His closest chaser, Schauffele, also made birdie on the first and has a look at birdie on 2 to move up to -15. 

Further back on -14 is Morikawa, while Schenk and Scheffler have each started excellently with the pair sat on -13 and -4 and -2 for their final rounds respectively so far.

PLAY BACK UNDERWAY

The horn goes and we're back just under two hours later! 

A big putt first up for Hovland to save his par on the second...right in the heart of it. No signs of rust from the Norwegian after the time waiting around. Schauffele pushes his birdie putt right off the hole and walks of for a par. 

There was a chance of a two-shot swing there but, in the end, it all remains the same. Hovland leads by six.

CLOSE SHAVE FOR SCHEFFLER

Scottie was getting hot before the weather interval and his iron's are dialled right out the gates with a nice approach into the fifth. From ten feet, though, he can't convert and he remains eight back at -13. 

SCHAUFFELE CUTS LEAD TO FIVE

He just loves this course, does Xander. Another sterling iron into the third green gives him a look at birdie and the American makes no mistake.

He's up to -16 and now just five back of Hovland after he misses his look at birdie. No cause for concern...yet.

SCHENK INTO THE TOP THREE

Not even the near two-hour rain delay has dampened Adam Schenk's spirits today as his magical front nine just keeps getting better. Another birdie pours into the hole at 6 and he's now -5 for his round, 14-under-par for the tournament and into a tie for third! 

BIRDIES FOR HOVLAND AND SCHAUFFELE

The rain from earlier may have made these greens slightly more receptive, and the final pair are putting that two the test. Schauffele's approach into the fourth is great. Hovland's is even better, almost threatening to slam dunk into the hole. 

It's two relatively short birdie efforts...and they both convert. We started the day with a few in contention but this is fast becoming a two horse race - Schauffele hunting down Hovland. 

Elsewhere, there is a bogey for Morikawa who drops back to -13 and leaves Schenk in solo third. That's a tasty payday if he can stay there.

KEEGAN BRADLEY DROPS BACK 

Not the round the American would have wanted to put together today. His second bogey of the day on the front nine and he's now two-over-par for his round and back at -11.

MORE PUTTING WOES FOR SCHEFFLER 

A couple of missed opportunities early in the round for the American and he's now in trouble on the seventh with his ball running through to the back of the green. It's a tricky two-putt but that becomes all the more difficult when the World No.1's first effort comes up way short before drifting down the slope and away from the hole.

In the end, it's a three-putt bogey and he's now ten back of Hovland at -12.

HOVLAND RESTORES SIX SHOT LEAD

It's difficult to put into words the level of ball striking Hovland is displaying right now. The greens are receptive, sure, but, he's got another great look at birdie after a sumptuous iron into the fifth. 

No problem for the Norwegian, who rolls it in for back-to-back birdies to get to -23. 

And the pressure tells on Schauffele who misses his birdie putt just prior. He's been great so far today as well but he's back to how he started the day - six back of the leader. 

PLENTY FALLING BY THE WAYSIDE

This truly has become a two-horse race now. A bogey for Rahm after finding the greenside bunker. A bogey for Morikawa after a short miss. And a bogey, too, for Schenk after a clumsy three putts.

Schauffele the only one standing, trying to chase down Hovland.

DOUBLE BOGEY FOR SCHEFFLER 

Well Scottie wasn't likely to win today but he's now just losing money quickly on these greens. 

The first putt on the eighth is tricky - slow at first before picking up speed - and Scheffler races it by. The par putt is missed...and so is the even shorter bogey putt. Double-bogey six and the World No. 10 is back to -10 where he started the tournament. 

MORE BIRDIES FOR HOVLAND AND SCHAUFFELE

The two players in the final group find the exact same greenside bunker left of the green with their approaches in. 

The rain we've had earlier in the day makes this a far less intimidating proposition for these two on the par-five sixth and they make no mistake, up and down for a pair of birdies and on they go, storming further ahead of the field. 

BOGEYS FOR SCHENK AND RAHM

Schauffele and Hovland look like they are playing a different course at the minute as more players drop shots around them. Rahm gets himself in trouble off the tee and can only hack out of the fairway bunker. In the end, he does well to just drop one shot. 

Schenk, too, drops one as he makes the turn after another three putt on the tenth. 

SCHAUFFELE BACK WITHIN FIVE

Everyone else has vacated from the chase but Xander Schauffele is going nowhere. An aggressive tee shot allows him a wedge into the green and he makes no mistake with the birdie putt. He's -5 thru eight holes and up to -19.

Hovland taps in for his part to remain at -24, but his lead now drops back to five.

MORIKAWA MAKES THE TURN WITH BIRDIE 

He's no longer fighting for the overall title, but there's plenty of money on offer for any of the players that can make a move up the leaderboard. After a quiet few holes, Morikawa bounces back with birdie on the par-three ninth to move alongside Clark on -13.

And he's joined back on 13-under-par by Adam Schenk who pours in another birdie from over 20 feet. He's back into a tie for third. 

HOVLAND SAVES PAR AS FINAL PAIR MAKE THE TURN 

Plenty of work to do for Hovland as his tee shot into the ninth comes up right at the bottom of a huge slope. It's 50ft long but with about 40ft worth of left-to-right break. 

The Norwegian gives it a good go but his effort comes up just short. It's a slightly testy downhiller for par...but he makes no mistake. Schauffele gives his putt a great roll but it just evades the hole. A great effort but the lead remains at five for Hovland. 

CLARK MAKING A MOVE

He wasn't particularly in contention at the start of the day but a three-under-par round has this year's US Open champion up into solo third at -14. 

That could be worth a few dollars if he can stay there come the end of play. 

DOUBLE BOGEY FOR SCHENK

Oooh, that's not ideal. Adam Schenk goes from bunker to bunker on the 14th before a costly three-putt leaves him with a double-bogey six! From a tie for fourth down into seventh at -11 for the American. 

SCHAUFFELE CUTS LEAD TO FOUR 

Xander is running out of holes but by no means giving up the chase. He hits a solid iron into the 11th but is under pressure as Hovland stuffs one in close.

No nerves from the American, though, as he gets the perfect roll on his right-to-left putt, sending it right into the heart of the cup for his eighth birdie of the day. He's up to -20 now.

Hovland with a chance to maintain his five-shot lead...but he can't. Perhaps the first signs of nerves from the Norwegian? Seven holes to go but his lead is now four. 

RORY MAKING A MOVE

Even a bad back can't deter the Northern Irishman. He loves it here at East Lake and is finishing in style here on Sunday. A divine tee shot into the 15th brings him his third birdie in four holes and up to T4 at -13.

Schenk, his playing partner, bounces back nicely after that double bogey with a birdie, too, while Clark further improves his position in third with another birdie to get to -15.

BACK-TO-BACK BIRDIES FOR SCHAUFFELE, LEAD NOW JUST THREE

Hovland is in a small spot of bother off the 12th tee as his ball settles into the fairway bunker. Not to worry, he simply sticks it in close and gives himself another look at birdie. 

Schauffele ramps up the pressure with another stellar iron into the green just inside Hovland's effort. And the pressure tells.

Hovland's effort goes by while Schauffele's putt drops for another birdie. In an instant, the hole is now three. 

Some late drama perhaps?

BOGEYS FOR CLARK AND MCILROY 

These two spent the final day at LACC battling it out for the US Open a few months back and they deservedly have their names right up at the top of the leaderboard after a pair of fine seasons. 

They've both made nice moves today but now Clark and McIlroy falter somewhat with bogeys, moving them back to -14 and -12 respectively.

HOVLAND PAR KEEPS HIM THREE AHEAD

Problems off the tee for Schauffele who goes way left over the trees. He recovers nicely to make a par but it's advantage Hovland after he sticks one in close on 13.

It's a good roll...but just catches the lip and rolls by quite some distance! Not the tap-in he would have wanted but it's calmy negotiated by the Norwegian back up the slope to make par and remain three ahead. 

We're supposed to still have a month until the Ryder Cup but this feels like a proper Sunday matchplay singles classic. Hovland 3UP with five to play.

BIRDIE FOR RORY, BOGEY FOR COLLIN 

The two swap places with McIlroy moving into solo fourth after a bounce-back birdie on the penultimate hole. Morikawa, meanwhile, serves up a three-putt at just the wrong time to drop back to -12 and a tie for fifth alongside Cantlay.

Schenk was at -12 but he's now further back at -10 after his second double bogey in four holes at 17.

HUGE PAR SAVE FROM HOVLAND ON 14

The first real sign of emotion from Hovland all day as he lets out an almighty fist pump having saved par! His second shot came up short and the chip onto the green was poor, but the putt...nerveless.

He maintains his three-shot lead with Schauffele making par and that feels like a big moment in this closing stretch. 

What a putt!Viktor Hovland comes up clutch to save par @TOURChamp 💪He leads by 3 with 4 to play. pic.twitter.com/LGGFxLRAUb August 27, 2023

DOUBLE BOGEY FOR MORIKAWA 

The American isn't closing in style and a mistake out of the greenside bunker from the par-three 15th leads to a double bogey and three dropped shots in his last two holes. 

Three-over-par today. Not his finest golf. 

HOVLAND LEADS BY THREE WITH THREE TO PLAY

The par-three 15th next for the final pair and they both safely carry it beyond the flag to give themselves outside looks for birdie. 

Hovland is further away, and it's a big right-to-lefter which he nurses down to the hole nicely. A solid par for him. Schauffele needs to be aggressive and try steal one here...but it's on the wrong line right from the start. 

No harm with a par but he's only got three holes left now and still trails by three. 

MCILROY IN THE CLUBHOUSE

Rory ends with a birdie on the par-five last to get up to -14 for the tournament and safely inside the top-five after a four-under-par 66. That's a great performance given the problems with his back that plagued his first two rounds. 

A great end to another remarkably consistent season for him. His playing partner, Schenk misses out on a birdie and currently sits at T8 which also represents a fantastic season for the up-and-coming American.

Rory McIlroy: 10 consecutive top-10 finishes, the longest streak of his PGA Tour career August 27, 2023

HOVLAND MAKES BIRDIE TO GO FOUR AHEAD WITH TWO REMAINING

What a couple of holes from Viktor Hovland. A huge par save on the previous hole is followed by a superb iron shot into the 16th green to give him a great look at birdie.

Schauffele has a go for birdie before that but his effort comes up short and Hovland takes full advantage, rolling his 10-foot putt down the slope and into the cup for his first birdie of the back nine to move to -25.

He now leads by four with two left and that, should be that.

BACK-TO-BACK BIRDIES AS HOVLAND EXTENDS LEAD TO FIVE

Simply relentless. It looked at one stage that this might go right down to the wire. 

Not any more. 

Hovland rolls in another birdie on the 17th and now, he heads the 18th tee with almost the same size lead as he started the day with. Schauffele sees his effort roll past and he settles for a par. 

He's played his part and made this final round a real test for the Norwegian, but the task was just too much and he's ran out of steam on these final holes. 

UP THE LAST THEY GO...

Safely on the fairway for Hovland on the par-five 18th and he can now enjoy this final work. His work is done and he will surely be your 2023 FedEx Cup champion.

VIKTOR HOVLAND WINS THE TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP!

Schauffele second comes up short of the green but it's a lovely up and down to find yet another birdie. A final-round 62 is some achievement and he's pushed Hovland all the way today.

The Norwegian's second shot also comes up short, rolling back into the sand. Can he get up and down for a final birdie?

You bet he can. Remarkable golf from Hovland who himself shots a seven-under-par 63 to win the Tour Championship by five shots and claim the FedEx Cup for the first time! 

Viktor Hovland is the 2023 #FedExCup champion!This win @TOURChamp is his third victory of the season 🏆 pic.twitter.com/GRuHFLzDqT August 27, 2023

Simply remarkable golf from Hovland today. We saw last year from Scottie Scheffler how tricky it can be to close out these tournaments but the Norwegian was simply faultless and refused to take a backwards step.

A lot of credit, too, must go to Xander Schauffele who continues his magnificent record here with a final-round 62. He fell five shots short in the end but it felt and was a lot closer than that for large parts of the final round.

THANKS FOR TUNING IN!

Well, what a way to end the season. I didn't expect as entertaining a final round as that but thanks to Schauffele and Hovland we were treated to a real thriller.

Thanks for tuning in, until next time!

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Viktor Hovland stays hot, wins Tour Championship, FedEx Cup

• Senior college football writer
• Author of seven books on college football
• Graduate of the University of Georgia

ATLANTA -- When Oklahoma State golf coach Alan Bratton was recruiting Viktor Hovland in 2015, he remembers Hovland telling him that he couldn't wait to get to the United States and hit balls off grass.

"I remember thinking that was a phrase I'd never burped out of my mouth," Bratton said. "I couldn't relate to it."

Bratton didn't grow up trying to play an outdoor sport in Oslo, Norway.

The Scandinavian country known more for downhill skiing and snowboarding is now home to the hottest golfer on the planet after Hovland won the Tour Championship by 5 strokes over Xander Schauffele at East Lake Golf Club on Sunday. Hovland carded a 7-under 63 in the final round.

Hovland started the staggered-scoring event at 8 under and shot 19 under on his own to finish 27 under. He was 11 shots better than U.S. Open winner Wyndham Clark , who finished third, and 13 better than Rory McIlroy , who was fourth.

It was Hovland's second straight victory after he captured the BMW Championship at Olympia Fields, Illinois, last week. His latest victory came with the FedEx Cup and an $18 million bonus. Hovland, 24, earned $21.6 million over the past two weeks.

"It's been a great year," Hovland said. "I feel like I've taken a lot of steps this season, contending in more major championships. I finally won in the U.S. I won a big tournament, Jack [Nicklaus '] event. And honestly, after that, I felt like I've gotten so much better, and it was very pleasing to see. Obviously, the last couple weeks have just superseded that. It's been pretty surreal.

"Obviously, you dream about it, but these things happen when you don't really expect them."

Hovland joins the likes of past FedEx Cup champions McIlroy, Tiger Woods , Jordan Spieth and Dustin Johnson .

Hovland's path to East Lake Golf Club was one of the most unlikely. He didn't start playing golf until he was 11. His father, Harald, worked as an engineer for one year in St. Louis and brought his son home a set of clubs.

Hovland practiced at an indoor golf facility and played outdoors when there wasn't snow on the ground. There are about six to eight hours of daylight during the winter months, and Hovland passed time by watching instructional swing lessons on YouTube. The good news: There are about 18 to 19 hours of daylight during the height of the summer. Hovland didn't leave the golf course until after 10 p.m. on most summer days.

"I would take every single day very seriously because every day I had home in the summer I couldn't just waste away the day, because in a couple months, it's winter, and I can't play outside," Hovland said. "So every single day I tried to get its most out of, and I think that really helped me."

Bratton got his first look at Hovland while he was watching future Oklahoma State player Kristoffer Ventura competing in the European Boys' Team Championships in Scotland in 2013. Hovland was two years younger and wasn't one of Norway's best players.

Bratton saw enough talent in Hovland to offer him a scholarship in 2015, and Hovland signed with the Cowboys shortly after visiting campus. In 2018, Hovland helped the Cowboys win a team national championship. That summer, he won the U.S. Amateur at Pebble Beach Golf Links.

Hovland was the low amateur in the 2019 Masters then the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach Golf Links in his final tournament as an amateur. His 4-under total of 280 over 72 holes broke Nicklaus' U.S. Open scoring total for an amateur set at Cherry Hills in 1960.

Less than a year later, after earning his PGA Tour card through the Korn Ferry Tour, Hovland picked up his first victory at the 2020 Puerto Rico Open, making a 30-foot birdie on the final hole to win. He became the first player from Norway to win on the PGA Tour. Less than 10 months later, he made a 12-foot birdie to defeat Aaron Wise in the Mayakoba Golf Classic.

Hovland's victory at Puerto Rico taught him something else about his game: He needed to develop a better short game.

"I suck at chipping," Hovland said at the time. "That's something I know I'm going to have to improve if I want to play my best at this level."

Since bursting on tour, Hovland has been regarded as one of the best ball strikers in the world.

"He's just so straight. He's just so accurate," England's Matt Fitzpatrick said. "Tee to green is phenomenal. Every time he hits a shot -- it just stupid as sounds -- the ball's always going forward. There's not really much shape on it. It's just always going forward, and I think that's impressive."

But what wasn't impressive until recently was Hovland's short game. During the 2020-21 season, he ranked in the top 10 on tour in strokes gained: tee to green, off the tee and total. He was 124th in strokes: gained around the green. Hovland was 191st in that statistic last season.

"His short game [trouble] was overblown," Bratton said. "When he was younger and during his time here, his short game wasn't awful. It wasn't his strength. It got exposed a little bit out there on the PGA Tour. He was never very good from the rough. Going against the best players in the world, you can't afford to have a weakness. When that's all anyone wants to talk about, then it can become something bigger than it needs to be."

To Hovland's credit, he devoted more time to chipping. He has been working with short-game specialist Joe Mayo. Hovland has been using the AimPoint putting technique to help him read greens better since 2020; developed by Mark Sweeney, it uses physics to help players read the slope of greens.

"He's been awesome," Hovland said of Mayo. "I like just picking people's brains, and he's an interesting brain to pick. He might be one of the only golf instructors that never watches golf. So when he came on board, he had no idea how I played, what I was doing, what it looked like. So he kind of had a fresh set of eyes. Yeah, he's just brought a lot of math and physics to my golf game, and we've just applied that, put a lot of hours in -- and funny enough, it works."

Hovland won twice more this season, at the Memorial in June when he beat Denny McCarthy in a playoff in a designated event then last week's playoff event. He also has won twice on the DP World Tour. Since 2020, only Jon Rahm has won more times combined on both tours with 10 victories.

At East Lake Golf Club, everything came together for Hovland. He led the field in strokes gained: off the tee (4.814), was fifth in approach (4.730), 11th around the green (1.103) and fourth in putting (3.387).

When did Hovland realize winning a Tour Championship might be possible?

"When I start to see the short game kind of come around and I believe I have all the shots," Hovland said. "I just saw the shots that I was able to pull off in tournaments and in highly stressful situations. I coupled that with the course management stuff and just the attitude, just handling bad bounces, handling bogeys, handling bad shots. Just those three aspects combined, when I started to see that, I wasn't stressed when I showed up to a golf tournament or a golf course. It was like, 'OK, whatever happens, happens. I might play bad, and that's OK.'

"Even today, it wasn't like, 'Man, I hope the double cross with the driver doesn't show up today. I hope I don't three-putt today. I hope I don't chunk the chips today.' You know, that might happen, but it's OK. I think just as soon as I made that mindset change, everything started to kind of come together."

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2022 Tour Championship leaderboard, winner: Rory McIlroy comes from behind to win $18M payout, third FedEx Cup

Mcilroy battled from 10 back to pick up his biggest win since the 2019 players championship.

One could not discuss the future of the PGA Tour this season without Rory McIlroy's name being on their lips. On Sunday at the 2022 Tour Championship, McIlroy reminded he's just as integral in the present. Despite trailing by as many as 10 shots at East Lake Golf Club in the final event of the FedEx Cup Playoffs, McIlroy (-21) rallied Sunday to usurp world No. 1-ranked golfer Scottie Scheffler, become the first three-time winner in the history of the FedEx Cup and bank the $18 million first-place prize that comes with the trophy.

Unlike some tournaments in which he digs himself into a hole from which he needs to fight out -- which he surely did by kicking off this event with a triple bogey Thursday -- McIlroy was in the conversation from the start at East Lake by posting 67s in consecutive rounds to open play. However, it was the third-round back nine that he concluded early Sunday that made him a true contender as Rory birdied three of his last six holes to card a 63 and claim his spot alongside Scheffler in the final pairing as he put pressure on the 54-hole leader despite a six-stroke deficit.

"I've been in the final group here three of the last five years," said McIlroy. "I didn't give myself much of a chance teeing off today. Six behind, I thought it was going to be really tough to make up. But [between] my good play and Scottie's not-so-great play, it was a ballgame going into the back nine."

McIlroy's fourth round started with a bogey, but he pulled even with Scheffler after the Texan put three bogeys on his scorecard in the initial six holes. With McIlroy converting five birdies across his first 12 holes, the race was officially on as the two came around the turn. Another bogey on the 14th pushed McIlroy back behind Scheffler, but Rory immediately responded with an astounding 31-foot birdie putt on the 15th that sent the crowd into a frenzy and again sat him in a tie atop the leaderboard.

It was the par-4 16th where McIlroy almost came undone. Sitting in a fairway bunker after his second shot, his third flew over the green by nearly 30 yards. However, Rory's ensuing chip dinged the flag pole, Scheffler missed a 9-foot par putt and McIlroy saved par to take the solo lead and become the first golfer to wrestle the top spot away from Scheffler this week.

Leading by a stroke entering the 18th, McIlroy watched as Scheffler found a bunker only to follow by bouncing his own approach off the grandstand into the rough. When Scheffler airmailed the green with his third shot from the bunker, that left McIlroy the option to conservatively play to the middle of the green and two putt for the FedEx Cup crown.

"I feel like Scottie deserves at least half of this today," McIlroy first said after being introduced as champion. "He's had an unbelievable season. I feel sort of bad … but he's a helluva competitor. He's an even better guy. It was an honor and a privilege to battle him today."

Scheffler, a four-time PGA Tour winner this season and the world's top-ranked golfer for nearly the entire year, tied for second alongside Sungjae Im; each took home $5.75 million, splitting the second- and third-place prizes.

McIlroy later mentioned the "battle of Georgia" between the two titans of the game as Scheffler got the better of McIlroy at the 2022 Masters at Augusta National in April. While the bounces went the way of the 26-year-old at the year's first major championship (and for much of the year), on Sunday, the golf gods willed the man from Northern Ireland to victory, making amends for a season that featured four top-10 finishes in the major championships including a heartbreaker (in The Open Championship at St. Andrews) and left sourness in the mouth of McIlroy.

"It means an awful lot [to win the Tour Championship]," said McIlroy. "I believe in the game of golf. I believe in this tour in particular. I believe in the players on this tour. It's the greatest place in the world to play golf, bar none, and I've played all over the world.

"This is an incredibly proud moment for me, but it should also be an incredibly proud moment for the PGA Tour. They've had some hard times this year, but we're getting through it. That was a spectacle out there today -- two of the best players in the world going head-to-head for the biggest prize on the PGA Tour -- and I hope everyone at home enjoyed that."

Becoming the figurehead of the PGA Tour, leading the charge against the upstart LIV Golf Series and still being able to perform on the highest level on the biggest stage, the taste of victory was that much sweeter for McIlroy in Atlanta.

In a week which began with McIlroy and Tiger Woods spearheading efforts off the golf course to ensure the future of the game, it was McIlroy's performance inside the ropes that again proved what the PGA Tour has cannot be recreated.

Here is the breakdown of the rest of the leaderboard at the 2022 Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club.

T2. Scottie Scheffler, Sungjae Im (-20): The stars were aligned for Scheffler to claim history at East Lake. Starting the week with a two-stroke lead, building it to as many as seven and beginning the final round with a six-stroke edge, Scheffler simply let the FedEx Cup slip through his fingers. After playing his final six holes in 4 under to wrap up his third round Sunday morning, it felt inevitable this week would continue in the same fashion as his spring when he captured his four victories. 

With a win, Scheffler would have secured the richest season in the history of the PGA Tour and only the fifth five-win season of the last decade, joining Tiger Woods, Jason Day, Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas. He also would have put a stamp on what has been a breakout campaign. While the $12.25 million difference between the first-place prize and Scheffler's T2 sum may sting, Scheffler will take solace in an astoundingly great season. He is likely to be named your PGA Tour Player of the Year and remains world No. 1, but alas, sometimes even the best fall short when the lights are the brightest.

The adopted son of Atlanta, Im was casually going about his business and tried his damnedest to recover from a major blunder on his back nine Sunday. He had gotten within one stroke of the lead on multiple occasions, but it was a double bogey on the par-4 14th that ultimately took his name out of FedEx Cup contention. With only one victory to his credit on the season, Im's consistency finally paid dividends in the form of a shared second-place check. He entered the postseason with back-to-back runner-up finishes and rode this momentum into three straight top-15 finishes. It's easy to forget Im is only 24, and who is to say a Scheffler-type season is not on the horizon for him as he now hopes to lead the international team to a massive upset in the Presidents Cup in September. 

4. Xander Schauffele (-18): The East Lake savant was one of three players to touch the lead during the Tour Championship, but Schauffele immediately back tracked once he did. Without the Saturday rain delay, perhaps we are discussing a different story, but in the end, the weekend was his eventual undoing. One of only four players to not break par in the third round, Schauffele wasn't able to keep up with his playing competitor, Scheffler, and eventually the rest of the field.

T5. Max Homa, Justin Thomas (-17):  Homa, the man who claimed the first tournament of the 2021-22 campaign, bookended his season in impressive fashion. Playing his final 56 holes in 18 under, Homa was able to climb from the depths of the leaderboard and into a seven-figure paycheck. The self-belief king should only continue this trajectory heading into next year as he has added two victories, a top-five finish at the Tour Championship and (more than likely) an appearance for the United States in the Presidents Cup at Quail Hollow -- the site of his first PGA Tour win -- to his playing résumé. 

T7. Patrick Cantlay, Sepp Straka (-16): This week had all the makings of back-to-back FedEx Cup titles for Cantlay as the reigning PGA Tour Player of the Year was just an adequate putting performance away from claiming the year's top prize. Beginning the week in the second position at 8 under, the Californian was a mainstay on the first page of the leaderboard despite some struggles on the greens. Cantlay was among the leaders in both ball-striking metrics yet uncharacteristically ranked outside the top 25 in strokes gained putting out of just 29 players. He was statistically better than last season, but despite that achievement, the 30-year-old's hardware haul of the Zurich Classic and the BMW Championship feels a smidge light.

Rick Gehman is joined by Kyle Porter, Jonathan Coachman and Greg DuCharme to recap Rory McIlroy's historic victory at the 2022 Tour Championship. Follow & listen to The First Cut on  Apple Podcasts  and  Spotify .

Rory retakes lead after wild 16th

Finding the fairway bunker, McIlroy flew the green with his approach. Hitting the pin off a fiery lie behind the green, the Northern Irishman was able to get up-and-down with a 7-foot par save. Meanwhile Scheffler failed to save par from the greenside bunker giving McIlroy the solo lead at 21 under. Ahead, Im is on No. 18 at 20 under and will look for an eagle-3 to shake things up.

Rory makes a mess of 14

He had to hit a 5-footer to save bogey after blocking his approach shot. Down one with four holes to go. Intensity is cranking up as Scheffler is fist pumping and Rory was on his knees begging for a pitch shot to hurry. Good stuff at East Lake.

Max Homa's rise

In 2017, Homa missed 15 of 17 cuts and made $18,000 for the year on the PGA Tour. Today, he's in position to potentially win $4 million by finishing third at the Tour Championship. He's currently T5 with a few holes to play.

Costly double bogey for Sungjae Im

After getting to within one stroke of the lead, Sungjae Im backtracked in a big way on the difficult par-4 14th. Making double bogey without a penalty stroke, the South Korean has likely taken himself out of contention for the FedEx Cup as he sits alone in third place.

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The week after the TOUR Championship, one of golf’s hottest architects will begin a dramatic East Lake renovation

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The Tuesday after a FedExCup champion is crowned at Atlanta’s East Lake Golf Club, the familiar venue for the TOUR Championship will undergo a dramatic renovation by one of golf’s leading architects.

East Lake Golf Club, founded in 1904 and famous for being the home club of great players from golf’s golden age, will have a new look for next year’s TOUR Championship that harkens back to the club’s history. The project is being led by Andrew Green, who earned praise earlier this year for his renovation of another Donald Ross design, Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, New York, the host of this year’s PGA Championship.

Starting next week, East Lake will be stripped of its grass and undergo a dramatic renovation led by Green, whose work will be influenced by a 1949 aerial photo of the famed club. Like his work at Oak Hill, this will be a renovation that brings a club closer to its roots, harkening back to the days when the great amateurs Bobby Jones and Alexa Stirling called the course home.

“This is truly a case of a golf course having helped create great players,” said Green. “My job will be to present those features in a contemporary way, features that made great players of the past like Stirling and Jones learn to become shotmakers.”

An aerial view from 1949 of East Lake Golf Club. (East Lake Golf Club)

East Lake in its current form has become an aerial test, one that features deep bunkers and perched-up greens, as well as thick bermudagrass rough. The new East Lake promises to require a more diverse array of shots.

Greens are likely to get bigger to accommodate elements of the conjoined putting surfaces that were a feature in the club’s past. Bunkers will be shifted, in some cases dramatically, to recapture their older form while accommodating modern distances. The bunkers are also likely to sport more grass faces, which were seen in some limited, but intriguing, pictorial and film evidence from the 1920s and 1930s.

In those few areas where the landlocked course allows for additional yardage, the distance will be claimed. But the overall intent is not to make the course harder. It’s to make East Lake more interesting and more like it used to be. To that end, there will be more short grass around the greens to encourage a greater diversity of recovery options.

The course has always enjoyed a prominent role in the game’s history. East Lake was the home course of Jones, who electrified the golf world as an amateur in by winning four U.S. Opens, three Open Championships, five U.S. Amateurs and the 1930 Amateur Championship as part of his Grand Slam season.

His running mate in his early days at the club was Stirling (1897-1977), with whom he shared many youthful rounds of golf; she went on to win three consecutive U.S. Women’s Amateurs. Both golfers credited their youthful success to the lessons they learned at East Lake under the guidance of Scottish-born golf professional Stewart Maiden.

East Lake has been home to both champions and championships. Besides the 1963 Ryder Cup – which was won by the U.S., 23-9 – the club has hosted the 2001 U.S. Amateur and the TOUR Championship biennially since 1998 and annually since 2004 (as part of the FedExCup since 2007).

The plan is to redo East Lake’s entire infrastructure, including drainage, irrigation, turfgrass and reconstruct greens, tees and bunkers – and to have it all done in time for next year’s TOUR Championship, which is scheduled for Aug. 28-Sept. 1.

The course, only five miles east of downtown, dates to an original routing by Tom Bendelow. It was substantially altered in routing and features in 1913, with credit given to Donald Ross for the work.

In researching the club’s history, Green stumbled upon a 1922 reference in a Birmingham, Alabama, newspaper referencing Ross’s work at “the East lake course in Atlanta. Perhaps more revealing is a promotional brochure that Ross’ office produced circa 1930 listing his work. “East Lake Country Club 36 holes” is among the projects listed. That refers to the two 18-hole courses at the club (the second layout opened in 1930). Ross’ promotional literature often understates but never overstates the catalog of his completed works.

The Ross routing is virtually identical to today’s in the positioning of tees, fairways and basic green sites – with the considerable exception that, as was customary in the South in those days, there were two sets of greens. The notorious difficulty of maintaining warm-season, bermudagrass greens in the wintertime meant that dual season courses like East Lake – open throughout the year – relied upon grass greens in peak season and a secondary set of sand greens in the winter. Eventually, sometime after World War II, as turfgrass technology improved, it became possible to cultivate playable overseeded putting surfaces in the winter. But the dual green system survived long thereafter.

The 1949 aerial photo of East Lake that Green uncovered shows two sets of greens at play. Interestingly, some of the holes had greens that appeared to be split virtually down the middle, while other holes had more distinctive separation, including several with two separated green complexes. The dual system existed until architect George Cobb’s renovation of East Lake for the 1963 Ryder Cup. That is when he merged the greens into a single surface per hole, though it is not clear on what basis he decided on the specific contours for each putting surface.

That 1949 aerial reveals onto two-dimensional shapes. But the suggestion of some fascinating figures, like the diamond forming the combined second green of the current routing certainly caught Green’s eye. So, too, did the unusual shaping of bunkers – many of them trench-like in linear form, presumably with steep faces redolent of a partially sunken steeplechase. Another revealing feature of the course at the time: it was far more open in terms of interior vistas, with fewer trees than it has today.

After several difficult decades, new life was breathed into East Lake in the early 1990s thanks to the initiative of Atlanta businessman and philanthropist Tom Cousins.

He purchased East Lake with the intent to restore it as a tribute to the club’s great amateur golfers and as a catalyst for revitalizing the surrounding community. Rees Jones was brought in to revive the golf course, and the result drew national acclaim. The club added corporate members to help fund the effort. As a result, the community is thriving.

A par 5 that has been shortened to play as a par 4 for the TOUR Championship, this hole requires that the tee shot be long and to the left side of the fairway to allow players to see the putting surface. The second shot will be a mid-to long-iron into a fairly large green. The green slopes severely from back right to front left, making lag putting from the back a real chore.

Hole 11 <br> Par 3, 197 yards <br> <br> Depending on the wind, the tee shot to the elevated green ranges from a 4- to a 6-iron for most players. The green is 38 yards deep, and the back portion is blind to players on the tee. A large oak tree protects the right side of the green, and the front portion is pinched by a pair of deep, greenside bunkers. Sidehill putts often have 4 or 5 feet of break, and putts from above the hole are surprisingly quick.

Most players will hit fairway woods or long irons off the tee on this downhill par 4. An overhanging tree and deep rough on the left side of the fairway make this hole very tough from the left side. The right center of the fairway is the ideal location, leaving a short iron to the green.

This is a good driving hole. From the championship tee box, players aim just to the right of the fairway bunkers. A left-center fairway position is ideal. Right center is workable, but it means dealing with the right greenside bunker on the approach. Like many others at East Lake, the green is sloped from back to front, making ball position on the green critical.

Old oaks and tall pines make this straight-away par 4 a very tight and demanding driving hole. Longer tee shots could leave a difficult sidehill stance along the right side of the fairway. The two-tiered green is bunkered on both sides, with the green sloping from back to front. Players placing their ball below the hole will have opportunities for birdie.

Three tall pines on the right side of the fairway force players to hit a fade to the best position in the fairway. With a good drive, players can reach this short par 5 in two. A well-bunkered green poses problems if missed long or short. One of the easiest holes at East Lake, a par here will drop a shot to the field.

This picturesque hole provides a commanding view of the Atlanta skyline and East Lake. The fairway narrows to 25 yards in width 278 yards from the tee, making driving accuracy a premium on this long par 4. From here a mid-to long-iron is needed to reach the green. Two large bunkers await errant approaches into a large receptive green that slopes from back to front.

Two bunkers lie to the right of the fairway landing area on this par 4 at East Lake. The approach is played to a large, undulating green that is flanked by a big bunker to the right and one short to the left. A dominant ridge crosses the center of this green, making it tough to get the ball close to back hole locations.

Depending on the wind, players could use anything from a fairway wood to a long iron on this demanding par 3. Deep bunkers left and right of the two-tiered green leave little room for error. Any player leaving the ball above the pin must take extra care, facing one of East Lake's most difficult putts. Sunday afternoon drama awaits.

The drive on the first hole of the back nine requires the player to be on the left side of the fairway to have the best shot at the green. Two bunkers right of the green and one bunker left are ready to capture an errant shot. The deep bunker on the right makes a back right hole location the toughest.

To score well at East Lake, players can't afford to miss greens on the short side of the flagstick. That's particularly true here. This par 3 plays a bit shorter than the yardage, but it's a must to put the ball on the green. The green slopes dramatically from back to front and from left to right and is guarded by bunkers on both sides.

On this short par 4, a fairway wood off the tee should leave players with a short iron to the green. The front of the green is guarded by two large bunkers that are especially difficult if the hole is cut on the right portion of the green. The green slopes from back to front and has several dominating ridges that make it very difficult to read.

On this long, straight par 4, players will want to avoid the two fairway bunkers on the right to set up a mid-iron approach to this green. The green slopes from left to right, making left hole locations most difficult.

The second of two par 5s that have been shortened to play as par 4s for the TOUR Championship, this 520 yard hole will play much shorter than the yardage as the drive will pitch forward on the downslope of the fairway. The second shot will be a long iron from a downhill lie making it tough to get to tight hole locations.

This 209-yard par 3 is an intimidator, especially with the prevailing wind pushing the ball toward the water right of the green. The only bail-out is a bunker on the left which provides another terrifying shot. The most challenging hole location is front right, but back left, behind the bunker, is also tough.

The 16th is a slight dogleg left that demands accuracy off the tee. A fairway bunker along the right side will punish a drive straying in that direction, resulting in a difficult approach shot. The second shot must navigate three deep greenside bunkers in order to find the two-tiered green, blind to players from the fairway.

This par 4 is a dogleg left with bunkers and trees on the left side of the fairway that should deter players from cutting the corner. Although often thought of as a birdie hole, this hole has a relatively small, firm green surrounded by a deep bunker in front and thick rough on all sides. Birdies might not be so plentiful!

ATLANTA, GEORGIA - AUGUST 26: A view of the 18th green and clubhouse during the second round of the TOUR Championship at East Lake Golf Club on August 26, 2022 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Tracy Wilcox/PGA TOUR via Getty Images)

According to the club, the aim of the upcoming project is to continue East Lake’s legacy and “all the amazing things that East Lake stands for,” while reconnecting the club to the legacies of Jones, Stirling and Charlie Yates, the 1938 British Amateur champion.

The project also is intended to harken back to Ross’ design while providing “playability, strategy and tremendous variety” for members. Today’s layout tests the TOUR’s top players but can be difficult for the everyday golfer.

“The club is thrilled with Green’s approach and fully expects him to deliver a quality product that will serve the club well for years to come,” said Chad Parker, East Lake’s president and general manager.

There is good reason for the club’s faith in Green. In addition to his acclaimed work at Oak Hill, he also has led work on historic clubs like Inverness in Toledo, Ohio; Scioto in Columbus, Ohio; Congressional in Bethesda, Maryland and Wannamoisett in Providence, Rhode Island.

He also has proven his ability to provide quality on a value basis at such courses as The Country Club of York in Pennsylvania and the municipally-owned Eisenhower Park Golf Course in Annapolis, Maryland, where he created a bunkerless layout. His current portfolio, beyond East Lake, includes Interlachen in Minneapolis; Big Canyon in Newport Beach, California; Omaha Country Club in Nebraska and both Shoal Creek and The Country Club of Birmingham in Alabama.

Before hanging out his own shingle as a boutique-scale architect in 2015, Green spent 14 years as field coordinator for the golf construction firm of McDonald & Sons, Inc. In his subsequent work he has excelled at historic research, combing through archives and digging up historic images the way an archaeologist sifts through a field dig.

For East Lake, the plan is to accomplish an imaginative recreation of the spirit and sensibility of a historic golf course. Green is particularly excited about the ability to draw upon those diverse greens – combining some elements, strengthening others, and letting the ground evoke the kinds of shot-making demands that East Lake did in past iterations

The work will begin on the front nine, the holes to the east of the clubhouse. The exact configuration of the newly-restored East Lake will be determined, as are all successful projects, in the field.

It will still be East Lake. But now there will be an even closer connection between the club’s great history and the competition for the TOUR’s top prize.

Bradley S. Klein is a veteran golf writer and author of 10 books on course design. A former PGA TOUR caddie, he was architecture editor of Golfweek for over two decades and is now a freelance journalist and course design consultant. Follow Bradley S. Klein on Twitter .

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Tour Championship: Exploring East Lake’s par-5s and key holes that will determine FedEx Cup winner

East Lake Golf Club is a staple on the PGA Tour calendar as it hosts the season ending Tour Championship each year.

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ATLANTA — East Lake Golf Club will undergo an extensive renovation next year. Renowned architect Andrew Green, who recently oversaw the restoration of Oak Hill Country Club’s East Course , will alter East Lake and attempt to bring the course back to its original Donald Ross design.

The bulldozers and the dump trucks arrive next week, but that does not matter much for this year’s Tour Championship .

The players certainly do not care about that either, as their sole focus is on the 7,346-yard layout that will play as a par 70.

East Lake has two par-5s, one on each nine, which will prove to be crucial holes this week.

The par-4 8th and the par-3 15th will also be pivotal, so let’s break them down:

Hole 6 - Par 5, 525 Yards

The 6th hole at East Lake is an uphill, dogleg right par-5 that requires the player to find the fairway off the tee.

Should they miss the fairway, then the gnarly Bermuda rough that lines the fairways here at East Lake will produce inconsistent lies. It may not be deep, but Bermuda grass gets tangled up with the club quite easily.

Alas, three bunkers protect the fairway, with two sitting on the right side. The other lies long and left, about 320 yards from the tee.

Hole 6 at East Lake is a beast of a par 5!⛳ Do you think you could par it? Presented by @Michelobultra #FedExChamp #FedExCup #PGA #PGATour #PlayingThrough pic.twitter.com/OJSbhBZxHQ — Playing Through (@_PlayingThrough) August 23, 2023

Trees line the fairway too, and as Xander Schauffele said during his pre-tournament press conference, pro golfers can do almost anything except hit through trees.

The second shot is all uphill to an elevated green. Players will likely require an extra club because of the elevation change.

They will also need to avoid the two bunkers that guard the green. One sits left of the putting green, while another lies short and right.

As is customary of Ross courses, the green slopes from the back to front, as the putting surface is shaped like an oval lying at a 45-degree angle.

Hole 8 - Par 4, 455 Yards

Perhaps the most beautiful spot on the property, the 8th hole is a brutal par-4 with water all the way down the left side.

The lake comes into play quite easily, as only a couple of yards lie between the fairway and the edge of the water.

It is quite intimidating.

The par 4 8th hole has caused all sorts of trouble over the years! Whoever can stay dry on this hole has a good chance to make par! Presented by @Michelobultra #FedExChamp #FedExCup #PGA #PGATour #PlayingThrough pic.twitter.com/yB0IWNnnOA — Playing Through (@_PlayingThrough) August 24, 2023

Three fairway bunkers sit on the right side, so anything pushed is not good either.

Should players find the fairway, they will find that everything slopes from right to left towards the water. The 29 right-handed players in the field will play their second shots with the ball above their feet. For Brian Harman —the only lefty this week—his second shot at the 8th will be played from below his feet.

Either way, the natural slope of the fairway forces the ball to go toward the water, so players will have to aim farther right than usual.

Up at the green, one bunker guards the front of it while another sits to the right of the putting surface.

Like the fairway, everything on the green slopes towards the water, which, again, very much comes into play.

Hole 15 - Par 3, 211 Yards

A beast of a par-3, the 15th hole at East Lake is almost completely surrounded by water.

The tee shot requires all carry, as any mishit short will find the lake.

Tiger Woods almost suffered this fate at the 2018 Tour Championship, but thankfully for him, his tee shot held up in the Bermuda rough just a couple of feet away from the water’s edge. He went on to make a bogey, but he still won the tournament. Had he knocked it in the water, a different outcome may have presented itself.

Up around the kidney-shaped green, one bunker sits to the left of it and usually receives plenty of action.

The green is somewhat tricky, as it slopes back to front.

Anyone who walks away with a three will be satisfied. Par is a good score, especially when big numbers loom all around.

Whoever leads on Sunday will need to find the green—or at the very least dry land—or else they could potentially lose millions of dollars.

Hole 18 - Par 5, 590 Yards

The most famous hole at East Lake is a dogleg left, downhill par-5 that finishes right in front of the club’s historic Tudor-style clubhouse.

The tee shot is blind and requires a draw off the tee.

It is a downhill tee shot, and finding the fairway is imperative to finishing the round with a good score. Gnarly Bermuda rough and tall Georgia pines line each side of the fairway.

Should players find the short grass, they hope their tee shot reaches the slope roughly 315 yards off the tee. That steep hill will extend drives by at least 40 yards, giving players a long iron into the green for their second shot.

The lake bisects the fairway roughly 200 yards from the green but does not usually come into play.

Should players decide to layup—an easy decision if they missed the fairway—two bunkers sit roughly 100 yards short of the green, one on each side of the fairway.

Up by the green, which slopes severely from back right to front left, two bunkers sit right while another sits long and left. A deep collection area short and left of the green could be difficult up-and-down.

Nevertheless, the 18th is an entertaining and scorable hole. It will produce plenty of drama to close out the championship come Sunday afternoon.

Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko for more golf coverage. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough too.

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Check the yardage book: east lake for the 2023 tour championship, share this article.

East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta – site of the PGA Tour’s 2023 Tour Championship and the finale in the FedEx Cup Playoffs – originally was designed by Tom Bendelow and opened in 1908. Donald Ross redesigned the layout in 1913, and Rees Jones worked on the course in 1994.

Architect Andrew Green will begin another renovation, with a goal of returning many of the Ross features to East Lake, soon after the last putt drops in the Tour Championship.

East Lake ranks No. 5 on Golfweek’s Best 2023 list of top private clubs in Georgia, and it’s No. 92 on the list of top classic courses built before 1960 in the U.S.

The course will play to 7,346 yards and a par of 70 for the Tour Championship. Nos. 1 and 14 normally play as par 5s for members, but they will be listed as par 4s for the Tour Championship with only Nos. 6 and 18 playing as par 5s.

Thanks to yardage books  provided by StrackaLine  – the maker of detailed yardage books for thousands of courses around the world – we can see exactly the challenges the players face this week.

The StrackaLine yardage book for East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, site of the Tour Championship on the PGA Tour (Courtesy of StrackaLine)

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East Lake will undergo significant historical renovation by golf's new hottest architect

A new dawn for East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta will begin following the 2023 Tour Championship.

If there’s been a dominant theme in the world of golf course renovation the last 20 years, it’s the desire of a new generation of club members to hit the "reset" button on their historic courses and return to pre-World War II versions of their architecture. The venerable East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta , host of the annual Tour Championship and the venue Bobby Jones grew up playing, is the latest to reach into the past.

Immediately following the 2023 Tour Championship, East Lake will close to undergo its most significant remodel since 1994. Conducting the alteration will be Andrew Green, whose comprehensive work bringing back the Donald Ross aesthetic and playing character to Oak Hill Country Club’s East Course was on dramatic display earlier this year during the PGA Championship. If Oak Hill is precedent, East Lake will continue to be a formidable course for the world’s best players but will look little like it does now.

RELATED:  How Oak Hill displayed the work of golf’s hottest new architect

East Lake opened in 1908 and was the home of the Atlanta Athletic Club until the organization moved in the late 1960s to its current home in Johns Creek, in the city’s northern suburbs, leaving the club and a portion of its membership behind.

Andrew Green's vision for the long par-4 seventh helped convince East Lake to hire him to remodel the course.

Dave Sansom

Donald Ross remodeled the first Tom Bendelow course in 1913, creating entirely new holes and playing strategies. Rees Jones’ renovation of the course, for developer and philanthropist Tom Cousins in 1994, alluded to certain past features including elongated, grassed-down bunkers (replacing the flash-faced bunkers George Cobb built during a 1959 renovation), but the work was more sympathetic to the demands of the modern game and professional golf than to an originalist view of Ross’s architecture (the Tour Championship was first played at East Lake in 1998). Though its history stretches back 90 years, East Lake’s existing design embodies 1990s choreography requiring straight driving and high aerial shots to elevated greens perched behind deep bunkers and circled in rough.

Three decades of wear and changing attitudes toward vintage architecture inspired a reassessment of that model.

“The previous renovation we’re working off of was in 1994, so we’re pretty deep into the lifecycle of the greens, bunkers and irrigation,” says general manager Chad Parker. “We knew it was time—actually past time—to do something. We used the opportunity to explore what else was possible and what other kind of thinking was out there.”

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What’s out there is a more affirmative embrace of the course Ross designed (the Athletic Club operated a second, adjacent Ross-designed course from 1925 until it was sold and razed in the mid-1960s). After interviewing a number of architects and asking them to express their vision of how the course might meet a series of challenges—to recapture the Ross identity; to improve infrastructure functionality; to address arboreal issues; to continue to be compatible to the Tour Championship while making the course less exacting for members—the committee selected Green, who over the last six years has helped America’s 100 Greatest and Second 100 Greatest Courses like Inverness , Scioto and Wannamoisett (in addition to Oak Hill) rediscover their Ross roots.

“We wanted to see if we could recapture more of the feel of the golden age of East Lake,” says Parker. “That’s where we think Andrew is going to be able to work his magic.”

This 1949 view of East Lake will help direct the renovation. Notice the side-by-side greens on each hole: It was common in the 1940s, 50s and 60s for courses in the Southeast to maintain both warm weather greens (Bermuda grass) and cool weather greens (bentgrass).

The inspiration for the redesign will start with an aerial photograph from 1949 (above). The picture shows a course with broad fairways, fewer and smaller bunkers than exist now and a different bunkering scheme that afforded more room to run balls onto greens. Less is known about the profiles of the putting contours that existed in the 1920s and 30s, or what depths the bunkers were set. East Lake isn’t releasing a great deal of hole-by-hole renovation detail because Green will fine-tune the shape, elevation and edging of the greens and bunkers in the field as he builds them.

It's a good bet the greens will, as a collection, sit lower than they currently do in relation with their surrounds and tie in more intimately with the bunkers. The renovation committee traveled to Wannamoisett in Rhode Island to look at that club’s greens, which Green graded and expanded in 2021, and the club left impressed with the added hole locations recaptured along the edges and corners. They also visited Inverness and Scioto in Ohio to get a feel for Green’s interpretation of Ross’ bunkering. Parker says Wannamoisett’s greens and Inverness’s bunkers will be the template for the East Lake remodel.

As part of the architectural selection process, the East Lake committee asked the three finalists—Green, Rees Jones and Tyler Rae—for proposals on how to reestablish the Ross qualities at three specific holes, seven, eight and nine. While intrigued by each proposal, they were particularly impressed with Green, who in Parker’s words, conducted a “master class” on Ross and the potential of East Lake.

The newly expanded greens at the Ross-designed Wannamoisett C.C. in Rhode Island will be the inspiration for East Lake's remodeled greens.

“We were walking down the seventh fairway with our committee and he was over by himself,” Parker says. “He stopped and snapped a picture of the green from about 150 yards in the fairway, then started to illustrate it on his iPad. He said, ‘Look at this—this view is your Pacific Ocean. The clubhouse is starting to reveal itself, you’ve got the lake in the background, the Atlanta skyline,’ and he just basically drew his vision in front of us.”

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The club will work with the PGA Tour and solicit input when needed, but no significant concessions are being made to the design for the Tour Championship (including no additional tees) aside from upgrades in turf conditions, drainage, vehicle ingress/egress and hospitality areas. The emphasis, smartly, will be on improving member experience.

With its Bermuda rough, hill-climbing holes and insistence on aerial golf, East Lake can be a relentless outing for players who don’t carry single-digit handicaps. The conversion from the cushiony Meyer zoysia fairways to firm Zorro zoysia will help by adding additional yardage via roll-out on drives, meaning golfers will hit shorter clubs into greens. The greens will be converted from Mini-Verde Bermuda to TifEagle Bermuda, and Hydronics tubing will be installed beneath each putting surface to give the maintenance staff the ability to control root temperature (by circulating either warm or cold water through the tubes) to achieve more consistently firm and even green conditions from season to season.

East Lake's bunkers will be modeled on those at Inverness Club in Ohio.

Andy Johnson/The Fried Egg

Several greens will be relocated to improve light and air circulation, including those of the par-3 second and par-3 ninth. Another major alteration will be the filling in of the lake inlet that bisects the fairway of the par-5 18th and separates the driving range from the practice tee. That piece of engineering may eventually pay for itself in the cost of saved range balls that will no longer be chunked into the water.

One of the most intriguing features from the 1949 aerial is what appears to be a long, slender trench bunker diagonally splitting the 17th fairway into two sections. Recreating it would turn what’s currently a fairway metal/hybrid tee shot followed by a wedge or short iron to a tabletop green into hole with tempting options for both tour players and members. Though non-committal about details, Parker says, “You can expect that you might see something inspired by that (bunker) on the new 17th, for sure.”

What we can also expect, in time for the 2024 Tour Championship, is a course that will appear more in sync with its historical roots, perhaps one that looks more provocative and imposing yet plays friendlier to handicap golfers.

The Rees Jones renovation in 1994 launched East Lake onto the Golf Digest 100 Greatest Courses ranking where it resided for 16 years, but it has since slid backward to where it currently sits at 150 (down from No. 61 in 2011-2012). Green’s Ross remodel, channeling the revivalist spirit of the times, has a chance to do the same.

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2023 Tour Championship odds, picks, field, predictions: Golf expert fading Scottie Scheffler at East Lake

Sia nejad reveals his top tour championship 2023 picks, props and sleepers as the 2023 fedex cup playoffs conclude at east lake this week.

The champion of the 2022-23 PGA Tour season will be crowned when the tour's top 30 players square off in the 2023 Tour Championship beginning Thursday at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta. World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler will try to cap off a tremendous season by winning his first FedEx Cup title. Because of the tournament's unique staggered start, he begins the season-ending Tour Championship at 10-under par and with a two-shot lead over Viktor Hovland. Meanwhile, Rory McIlroy looks to win a record fourth FedEx Cup title. He starts the tournament three shots behind Scheffler. 

McIlroy is the +330 second choice in the latest 2023 Tour Championship odds. Scheffler is the +130 favorite, while Hovland (+450), Jon Rahm (+850) and Patrick Cantlay (+1800) round out the top five choices on the PGA odds board. Before locking in any 2023 Tour Championship picks, make sure you  see the PGA Tour predictions and best bets from golf betting and fantasy expert Sia Nejad .

Nejad specializes in betting and DFS in golf, among other sports. He's had incredible success in the outright and first-round leader markets and in betting head-to-head matchups. He also has been on fire on head-to-head matchups since the Charles Schwab Challenge, going 24-15-1 and returning 6.59 units over that span. That's a $659 profit for $100 bettors in the past 13 weeks.

Nejad also nailed 75-1 longshot Wyndham Clark as the outright winner at the Wells Fargo Championship. In 2023, SportsLine debuted "The Early Wedge," and in the first three months of the show, he hit two first-round leaders and three outright winners. Nejad also had a winning head-to-head record in seven of nine weeks. He was up more than 70 units over that three-month span.

Now, Nejad has focused his attention on the 2023 Tour Championship field and has locked in his best bets, top sleepers and favorites to avoid. See who they are at SportsLine .

Top 2023 Tour Championship expert picks

One surprise: Nejad is completely fading Scottie Scheffler, even though he is the +130 favorite to win with starting strokes and starts with a two-shot lead. The 27-year-old Texan is on a remarkable run, having made the cut in 24 straight tournaments – a stretch that dates back to last year's BMW Championship. He also has finished in the top 12 in 20 of 22 tournaments this season.

Scheffler starts the Tour Championship with a two-shot lead over Hovland, but Nejad believes that may work against Scheffler. Nejad thinks that Scheffler being on top will apply even more pressure on his putter, which has been the only weak facet of his game all season. "I'm not comfortable with his short odds relative to those of the rest of the field," Nejad told SportsLine. See all his picks at SportsLine . 

However, Nejad is high on the chances of Sam Burns, who is +4500 to win without starting strokes. The 27-year-old from Louisiana is making his third straight appearance in the Tour Championship. He finished 18th in 2021 and 24th last season.

Nejad likes that Burns seems to have bounced back from a minislump. After missing four cuts in eight starts, he has rebounded with two top-15 finishes in his last three events. "His game is trending in the right direction across a myriad of metrics, including greens in regulation and approach play, and we know he's the type of player who can get hot at any given moment," Nejad told SportsLine.  See whom else to back at SportsLine .

How to make 2023 Tour Championship picks

Nejad has locked in his best bets for the 2023 Tour Championship and is backing several longshots, including one who is priced higher than 50-1. This player "continues to play well" and is a longshot who could surprise. You can see Nejad's PGA Tour picks only at SportsLine .

So which players should you target or avoid for the 2023 Tour Championship, and which player in the Tour Championship 2023 field could bring a huge payday at more than 50-1? Check out the odds below, then visit SportsLine to see Sia Nejad's top picks for Tour Championship 2023 , all from the expert who was up more than 70 units on his recent golf picks.

2023 Tour Championship starting score odds, field

See Nejad's picks, best bets and predictions here .

Scottie Scheffler (-10) +140 Rory McIlroy (-7) +330 Viktor Hovland (-8) +500 Jon Rahm (-6) +800 Patrick Cantlay (-4) +1600 Max Homa (-4) +2800 Xander Schauffele (-3) +3000 Matt Fitzpatrick (-4) +4000 Lucas Glover (-5) +4000 Wyndham Clark (-4) +4500 Tommy Fleetwood (-3) +4500 Brian Harman (-4) +4500 Rickie Fowler (-3) +7000 Russell Henley (-3) +7500 Tom Kim (-2) +11000 Sungjae Im (-2) +11000 Tony Finau (-2) +13000 Keegan Bradley (-3) +13000 Corey Conners (-2) +13000 Colin Morikawa (-1) +13000 Tyrrell Hatton (E) +15000 Si Woo Kim (-2) +18000 Jordan Spieth (E) +18000 Jason Day (-1) +25000 Sam Burns (E) +30000 Taylor Moore (-1) +40000 Sepp Straka (E) +50000 Emiliano Grillo (E) +50000 Adam Schenk (-1) +50000 Nick Taylor (-1) +80000

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