Birthplace of America's Island Green

East Lake Golf Club is not only home to Bobby Jones, but America's oldest island green

To most golf enthusiasts, the term “island green” instantly conjures up images of the 17th hole at TPC Sawgrass, where drama has played out for three decades at the home of THE PLAYERS Championship.

Lesser known, perhaps, is that America’s oldest island green also can be found at one of the most historic stops on the PGA TOUR.

The 15th green at Atlanta’s own East Lake Golf Club, home to the TOUR Championship and legendary amateur Bobby Jones, traces back to the original Tom Bendelow design that opened in 1908. Built as the green for the par-5 7th, a Donald Ross rerouting five years later made it the target for a par-3 on the front nine.

Not that it was any less demanding. If anything, it has become more so.

In 2016, for the first time in tournament history, East Lake Golf Club reversed the front and back nine holes, which provided wire-to-wire drama and the most exciting finish in crowning the 10th winner of the FedExCup.

“Having to go to No. 15 when the pressure is on, it really makes you step up and have to commit to a shot,” Jordan Spieth noted, winner of the 2015 TOUR Championship and FedExCup title.

East Lake’s No. 15 measures 211 yards, entirely over water with the addition of a new back tee in 2004 that was built on the dam of East Lake itself.

“You’re hitting a 4-iron to an island green,” added Brandt Snedeker, who captured the 2012 TOUR Championship and FedExCup title.

Since 2003, there have been 135 tee shots hit in the water.

Bobby Jones, who played his first and last rounds at East Lake, was asked about what he used on this hole. He jokingly answered, “An old ball.”

Last year, 2016 FedExCup Champion Rory McIlroy played No. 15 in a total of 1 under. The best performance by a winner belongs to Phil Mickelson, who birdied the hole on three of four days in 2009.

Overlooking East Lake Golf Club’s signature hole 15th hole sits a triple-decker hospitality venue, one of four structures to ever be produced and installed in the United States. This private, climate-controlled marquee offers multiple viewing points of the back nine to watch the drama unfold at the PGA TOUR’s season-ending event.

For more information on hospitality options and tickets to watch the 30 best players on the planet at East Lake Golf Club, September 20-24, 2017, please visit www.tourchampionship.com.