East Lake Golf Club is a private golf club 5 miles east of downtown

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

. Established in 1904, it is the oldest golf course in the city. East Lake was the home course of golfer Bobby Jones and much of its clubhouse serves as a tribute to his accomplishments. Since 2004, East Lake has been the permanent home of

The Tour Championship The Tour Championship (stylized as the TOUR Championship) is a golf tournament that is part of the PGA Tour. It has historically been one of the final events of the PGA Tour season; prior to 2007, its field consisted exclusively of the top 30 ...

, the culminating event of the

PGA Tour The PGA Tour (stylized in all capital letters as PGA TOUR by its officials) is the organizer of professional golf tours in the United States and North America. It organizes most of the events on the flagship annual series of tournaments also ...

Playoffs for the

FedEx Cup The FedEx Cup is a championship trophy for the PGA Tour. Its introduction marked the first time that men's professional golf had a playoff system. Announced in November 2005, it was first awarded in 2007. Rory McIlroy is the 2022 champion. T ...

. The Tour Championship was first played at the course in

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently s ...

. The reigning Tour Championship and FedEx Cup champion is Rory McIlroy. All proceeds from operations at East Lake Golf Club—more than $20 million to date—go to support the

East Lake Foundation The East Lake Foundation is a non-profit organization located within the city of Atlanta, Georgia. The purpose of the Foundation is the revitalization of the East Lake Community. History In the 1960s the East Lake community fell victim to white ...

, which has helped transform one of the nation's worst public housing projects into a thriving community.

History

Early years

The Atlanta Athletic Club (AAC) was formed in 1898 and due to its popularity it gained 700 members in only four years. The director of the club's athletic program was John Heisman, the famous football coach for whom the Heisman Trophy is named. In 1904 the AAC bought property at East Lake to build a country club which included a golf course. Course architect Tom Bendelow was asked to lay out the course. 200px, Bobby Jones age 9 shown playing golf at his home course at East Lake. The course's first holes were built in 1906 and were initially only seven holes, then nine. In the summer of 1907, the course was expanded to 17 holes, and later that year the 18th hole was built to complete it. Also in 1907, the first significant tournament was hosted at East Lake, the

Southern Amateur The Southern Amateur is an amateur golf tournament. It has been played since 1902 and is organized by the Southern Golf Association. From 1902 to 1963, it was played at match play. Since 1964, it has been played at stroke play. In December 2021, ...

, won by Nelson Whitney. In 1908, Tom Bendelow opened his "No. 2" course at East Lake. In 1913, famed golf course architect Donald Ross redesigned the course at East Lake. The new plan provided for each of the nine holes to conclude at the clubhouse. Ross also redesigned the No. 2 course in 1928. A tragic fire destroyed the original clubhouse at East Lake in 1925. Following the fire, famed architect

Philip Shutze Philip Trammell Shutze (August 18, 1890 – October 17, 1982) was an American architect. He became a partner in 1927 of Hentz, Adler & Shutze. He is known for his neo-classical architecture. Designed the HM Patterson & son spring Hill chapel ...

, who is known for constructing the famous Swan House in

Buckhead Buckhead is the uptown commercial and residential district of the city of Atlanta, Georgia, comprising approximately the northernmost fifth of the city. Buckhead is the third largest business district within the Atlanta city limits, behind Downto ...

, was hired by the club to build East Lake's present day two-story

Tudor style Tudor Revival architecture (also known as mock Tudor in the UK) first manifested itself in domestic architecture in the United Kingdom in the latter half of the 19th century. Based on revival of aspects that were perceived as Tudor architecture ...

clubhouse. left, 180px, Stewart Maiden golfing at East Lake Golfer Bobby Jones is said to have played his first and last games of golf at East Lake. Jones won golf's

Grand Slam Grand Slam most often refers to: * Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to: Games and sports * Grand slam, winning category te ...

in 1930, claiming the

U.S. Amateur The United States Amateur Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Amateur, is the leading annual golf tournament in the United States for amateur golfers. It is organized by the United States Golf Association and is currently held each August ov ...

, U.S. Open,

British Amateur The Amateur Championship (sometimes referred to as the British Amateur or British Amateur Championship outside the UK) is a golf tournament which has been held annually in the United Kingdom since 1885 except during the two World Wars, and in 19 ...

and

British Open The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...

titles in the same year. Jones's father, "Colonel" Robert P. Jones, served as the president of East Lake from 1937–42 and as a director for 38 years. Bobby Jones himself also served as president of East Lake from 1946–47. Other notable East Lake players around the same time were amateurs Watts Gunn, Perry Adair, Charlie Yates and Alexa Stirling Fraser many of whom were assisted by East Lake's golf professional Stewart Maiden. In 1963, East Lake hosted the 15th biennial Ryder Cup where

Arnold Palmer Arnold Daniel Palmer (September 10, 1929 – September 25, 2016) was an American professional golfer who is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most charismatic players in the sport's history. Dating back to 1955, he won numerous ev ...

served as the playing captain of the winning US Team.

Redevelopment

East Lake began a downward slope when the surrounding neighborhood deteriorated in the 1960s and became victim to suburban flight. The Atlanta Athletic Club became a part of this when it sold the No. 2 course to developers and moved to its current home in

Johns Creek Johns Creek is a city in Fulton County, Georgia, United States. According to the 2020 census, the population was 82,453. The city is a northeastern suburb of Atlanta. History In the early 19th century, the Johns Creek area was dotted with ...

. The original course and clubhouse were saved by a group of 25 members, led by Atlanta businessman Paul Grigsby, who purchased them and created East Lake Country Club in 1968. In 1970, the East Lake Meadows public housing project was built on the site of the No. 2 golf course and became a center for poverty, drugs and violence. Middle-income homeowners fled the surrounding neighborhood, replaced by low-income renters. By the 1980s, East Lake became a mostly forgotten golf course in a seemingly hopeless neighborhood. This all changed in 1993 when a local charitable foundation headed by

Tom Cousins Tom or TOM may refer to: * Tom (given name), a diminutive of Thomas or Tomás or an independent Aramaic given name (and a list of people with the name) Characters * Tom Anderson, a character in ''Beavis and Butt-Head'' * Tom Beck, a character ...

purchased East Lake with the intent to restore it as a tribute to Bobby Jones and the club's other great amateur golfers. The East Lake Foundation was also created and has used the renovation as a catalyst for revitalizing the surrounding community. In 1994,

Rees Jones Rees Jones (born September 16, 1941) is an American golf course architect. Life and career Born and raised in Montclair, New Jersey, the son of legendary golf course designer Robert Trent Jones and the younger brother of golf course designer R ...

, son of golf course architect

Robert Trent Jones Robert Trent Jones Sr. (June 20, 1906 – June 14, 2000) was a British–American golf course architect who designed or re-designed more than 500 golf courses in 45 U.S. states and 35 countries. In reference to this, Jones took pride in sayi ...

, restored Donald Ross' original golf course design at East Lake to its current layout. In 1998

the Tour Championship The Tour Championship (stylized as the TOUR Championship) is a golf tournament that is part of the PGA Tour. It has historically been one of the final events of the PGA Tour season; prior to 2007, its field consisted exclusively of the top 30 ...

was hosted at East Lake for the first time. In 2005 East Lake was named the permanent home of the Tour Championship. East Lake has hosted the tournament 16 times since 1998.

Today

Golf with a Purpose

All of the profits from East Lake Golf Club go to support the

which in turn helps to support the health, education, safety and productivity of the East Lake neighborhood. Because of this, East Lake Golf Club's motto is "Golf with a Purpose". Based on the success of the East Lake model, a new organization, Purpose Built Communities, was established in 2009 to help fight concentrated segments of poverty in communities throughout the United States. Today, Purpose Built Communities is present in 14 cities in the US.

Charlie Yates Golf Course

In 1998 East Lake's No. 2 golf course was transformed into the Charlie Yates Golf Course, a 9-hole "executive" public course that provides golf education to children living in the city of Atlanta. The course was rated one of the top 10 short range courses in America by Golf Range Magazine and all profits from the course go to benefit the East Lake Foundation. Charlie Yates was an East Lake golfer who won the

at Royal Troon Golf Club in 1938. Charlie grew up on Second Avenue, the street which separated East Lake's main course from its No. 2 course. His boyhood hero was Bobby Jones, whom he knew and played with on the course at East Lake.

The Tour Championship

Since 2004 East Lake Golf Club has been the permanent location of the

Tour Championship The Tour Championship (stylized as the TOUR Championship) is a golf tournament that is part of the PGA Tour. It has historically been one of the final events of the PGA Tour season; prior to 2007, its field consisted exclusively of the top 30 ...

, the finale of the

Playoffs and the

. The Tour Championship is also one of the largest supporters of the East Lake Foundation.

East Lake Cup

In May 2015 it was announced that East Lake would be the site of a new collegiate golf tournament, the East Lake Cup. In partnership with the

Golf Channel Golf Channel (also verbally referred to as simply Golf) is an American sports television network owned by the NBC Sports Group division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. Founded in Birmingham, Alabama, it is currently based out of NBC S ...

the East Lake Cup invites the top men's and women's teams from the previous season to compete in a

match play Match play is a scoring system for golf in which a player, or team, earns a point for each hole in which they have bested their opponents; as opposed to stroke play, in which the total number of strokes is counted over one or more rounds of 18 h ...

championship each November. The tournament is broadcast on the Golf Channel. The inaugural East Lake Cup was played November 2 and 3, 2015. The champions of the first year's tournament were

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...

(men's) and USC (women's). The 2016 the tournament added a day of stroke play to the competition with Illinois winning on the men's side and Duke winning on the women's side. The men's and women's winners of the 2017 East Lake Cup were respectively Vanderbilt University and the University of Southern California. The 2018 winner's were Auburn for the men's side and USC on the women's side.

Course

Course records

*Par 70 –

Zach Johnson Zachary Harris Johnson (born February 24, 1976) is an American professional golfer who has 12 victories on the PGA Tour, including two major championships, the 2007 Masters and the 2015 Open Championship. In 2023, Johnson will captain the U. ...

, 60 (−10) on September 15, 2007, at the

, set at . *Par 72 – Robert "Bullet" Godfrey, 63 (−9) on August 20, 2001 at the

after bogeying the final two holes. The course's length was .

Scorecard

Tournaments hosted

East Lake has hosted many prestigious tournaments including: *

**2022 Rory McIlroy **2021

Patrick Cantlay Patrick Cantlay (born March 17, 1992) is an American professional golfer. He had a successful amateur career and was the number one golfer in the World Amateur Golf Ranking for 55 weeks. He has won eight times on the PGA Tour as well as the 2021 ...

**2020

Dustin Johnson Dustin Hunter Johnson (born June 22, 1984) is an American professional golfer. He has won two major championships, the 2016 U.S. Open at Oakmont Country Club with a 4-under-par score of 276 and the 2020 Masters Tournament with a record scor ...

**2019 Rory McIlroy **2018

Tiger Woods Eldrick Tont "Tiger" Woods (born December 30, 1975) is an American professional golfer. He is tied for first in PGA Tour wins, ranks second in men's major championships, and holds numerous golf records. * * * Woods is widely regarded as ...

**2017

Xander Schauffele Alexander Victor Schauffele (; born October 25, 1993) is an American professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour, having won seven times since turning professional in 2015. Schauffele's best major finish is tied second at both the 2018 Open Ch ...

**2016 Rory McIlroy **2015

Jordan Spieth Jordan Alexander Spieth (born July 27, 1993) is an American professional golfer on the PGA Tour and former world number one in the Official World Golf Ranking. He is a three-time major winner and the 2015 FedEx Cup champion. Spieth's first majo ...

**2014

Billy Horschel William John Horschel (born December 7, 1986) is an American professional golfer who currently plays on the PGA Tour. Early years and amateur career Horschel was born and raised in Grant, Florida. He attended Bayside High School in neighboring ...

**2013 Henrik Stenson **2012

Brandt Snedeker Brandt Newell Snedeker (born December 8, 1980) is an American professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour. He won the 2012 FedEx Cup with a victory in the season-ending Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club. After this victory, he moved into ...

**2011

Bill Haas William Harlan Haas (born May 24, 1982) is an American professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour and won the 2011 FedEx Cup. He is the son of former PGA Tour player Jay Haas. Early life Haas was born in Charlotte, North Carolina, and was r ...

**2010

Jim Furyk James Michael Furyk (born May 12, 1970) is an American professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour and the PGA Tour Champions. In 2010, he was the FedEx Cup champion and PGA Tour Player of the Year. He has won one major championship, the 200 ...

**2009

Phil Mickelson Philip Alfred Mickelson (born June 16, 1970), nicknamed Lefty, is an American professional golfer who plays for LIV Golf. He has won 45 events on the PGA Tour, including six major championships: three Masters titles (2004, 2006, 2010), two ...

**2008

Camilo Villegas Camilo Villegas (; born 7 January 1982) is a Colombian professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour. Early years Villegas was born in Medellín, Colombia, and took up golf as a child. After several different National Junior Championships in ...

**2007

**2006 Adam Scott **2005

Bart Bryant Barton Holan Bryant (November 18, 1962 – May 31, 2022) was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour and PGA Tour Champions. Early life Bryant was born in Gatesville, Texas, the son of a Baptist pastor. He attended New Mexi ...

**2004

Retief Goosen Retief Goosen (born 3 February 1969) is a South African professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour Champions. He has won two U.S. Opens, in 2001 and 2004, headed the European Tour Order of Merit in 2001 and 2002, and was in the top ten of th ...

**2002

Vijay Singh Vijay Singh ( hif, विजय सिंह ; born 22 February 1963), nicknamed "The Big Fijian", is a Fijian professional golfer. He has won 34 events on the PGA Tour, including three major championships: one Masters title (2000) and two ...

**2000

**1998 Hal Sutton *East Lake Cup **2018 Auburn University men and

University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist , established = , accreditation = WSCUC , type = Private research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $8.1 ...

women ***Individual medalists: Viktor Hovland (

Oklahoma State University Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New ...

men) and Albane Valenzuela ( Stanford University women) **2017

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...

men and

women ***Individual medalists: Will Gordon (

men) and Robynn Ree (

women) **2016

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the Univer ...

men and Duke University women ***Individual medalists:

Scottie Scheffler Scott Alexander Scheffler (born June 21, 1996) is an American professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour. From March to October 2022, he was World Number 1 in the Official World Golf Ranking. He won the 2022 Masters Tournament. Early life Sc ...

(

University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

men) and Andrea Lee ( Stanford University women) **2015

men and

women * Ryder Cup **

1963 Events January * January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Co ...

**2001

Bubba Dickerson Benjamin Gordon "Bubba" Dickerson (born May 6, 1981) is an American professional golfer who was previously a PGA Tour member and currently plays on the Nationwide Tour. He is best known for winning the 2001 U.S. Amateur. Dickerson was born in J ...

* U.S. Women's Amateur **1950 Beverly Hanson *

**1907 Nelson Whitney **1910 F.G. Byrd **1915 Charles Dexter **1922 Bobby Jones **1933 Jack Redmond **2002 Lee Williams *Other tournaments **1919 Southern Open won by

Jim Barnes James Martin Barnes (April 8, 1886 – May 24, 1966) was an English golfer and a leading figure in the early years of professional golf in the United States. He is one of three native Britons (with Tommy Armour and Rory McIlroy) to win three di ...

**1920 Southern Open won by J. Douglas Edgar **1927 Southern Open won by Bobby Jones **1997

Western Junior The Western Junior is the oldest national junior golf tournament in the United States. It was founded in 1914 and is organized by the Western Golf Association. It is played at a different course each year, primarily in the midwest. From 1914 to 1 ...

won by Nick Cassini

References

External links

*
Tour Championship coverage
{{Coord, 33.743, -84.303, type:landmark_source:enwiki-googlemaplink, display=title Buildings and structures in DeKalb County, Georgia Golf clubs and courses in Georgia (U.S. state) Golf clubs and courses designed by Donald Ross Ryder Cup venues Sports venues in Atlanta Golf clubs and courses designed by Rees Jones Golf clubs and courses designed by Tom Bendelow Sports venues completed in 1906 1906 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state)