There’s no Scottie-proofing East Lake, but format change will even field

Chad Parker, East Lake’s PGA general manager, said Tour officials not only know which hole locations and distances produce the most birdies, but also how the scores change depending on which direction the wind is blowing. Now that the course has had time to mature, the greens will offer new hole locations that weren’t available last year.

But there’s really no way to change things enough to slow Scheffler, the defending Tour Championship and FedEx Cup champion, who recently won the British Open for his second major of the season and fourth of his career.

“I remember when they tried to start Tiger-proofing golf courses by making them harder,” Urban said. “I was like, he’s the best player. I think we might be making it easier for him, all things considered. So, I don’t think we need to do anything to the golf course to make it hard on Scottie. When Scottie’s on, he’s going to play well. Same with Rory (McIlroy). Same with all these guys.”

But Scheffler has been on a different plane for the second consecutive year.

He got off to a slow start after dealing with a hand injury that caused him to miss the first month of the season. He began to round into shape around the Masters, where he finished fourth, and got his first victory at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson in early May. He has since won three more times, including the PGA Championship and the Open Championship last weekend, and has finished among the top 10 in 11 consecutive events.

The Tour Championship will be the last chance for golf fans in Georgia to see Scheffler up close this year. The event starts Aug. 20 with a practice round, followed by four days of competition Aug. 21-24.

“I’m sure people are excited to come out and watch greatness,” Urban said. “The excellence that he’s able execute the game is like watching an artist. It’s different from watching Tiger. Scottie’s just automatic. He’s just really fun to watch, so having him here is going to be really fun.”

At least this time, the field will start on a level playing field with Scheffler. The Tour Championship has done away with the unpopular and confusing “starting strokes” format, which gave higher-seeded players a head start before the tournament began.

That means Scheffler, who will still likely be the No. 1 player in the FedEx Cup points race by the time the Tour Championship is played, will not begin the tournament at 10 under par and start with an automatic lead. He will open the tournament at even par, just like the other 29 players in the field.

That is good news for the players who will scramble to qualify for the Tour Championship’s top 30 slots. Last year, Justin Thomas made a late surge and got in the field but had no realistic chance to win. That won’t be the case this time.

“Those guys will show up here with just as good a chance to win the Tour Championship as Scottie Scheffler or whoever’s on top,” Urban said. “So, it’ll be really fun.”

The only major course change was the decision to play the 14th hole as a par-4. It was previously a 580-yard par-5. The course will play as a par-70 at 7,440 yards.

Urban said the par-3s are likely to play longer, that the rough will be higher and the areas around the green will be mowed closer to make approaches more susceptible to runoffs.

“Whoever wins is going to have earned it,” Urban said. “We want the winner to feel like they’ve really accomplished something. You have to play well all season to make it here and you have to play well when you show up at East Lake.”