Flipping of the nines

Imagine you’re playing the 72nd hole of the TOUR Championship. You’re two shots behind the leader. The FedExCup’s on the line. You need a big finish.

For the first nine years of the FedExCup, that would’ve required the unlikeliest of occurrences – a hole-in-one. After all, the traditional finishing hole at East Lake is a 235-yard par 3 that’s annually one of the most difficult holes on the course.

Not anymore.

The nines have been flipped for this week’s TOUR Championship, meaning the 18th hole will now be the previous 600-yard par 5 ninth that might very well be reachable in two for most of the 30-man field in Sunday’s final round, depending on the course setup. It’s usually been one of the easiest holes on the course – and at least now there’s a realistic shot at eagle, although double bogey is not out of the question too, if you find too much trouble.

It’s all part of a move to create more possibilities – and more drama – down the stretch for the PGA TOUR’s Playoff finale that offers golf’s biggest prize, and biggest bonus of $10 million.

“It will make the finish more exciting,” said Adam Scott, who enters this week ranked No. 3 in points. “It will be a better finish.”

That’s not to say there haven’t been some fantastic moments down the stretch in previous FedExCup Playoffs at East Lake. Jim Furyk had to get up-and-down from the greenside bunker at 18 to win in 2010. And who could forget the next year, when Bill Haas got up and down from the water hazard on the way to a FedExCup title in 2011?

But for the most part, the par-3 finishing hole played long, making birdies were hard to come by and anything worse than bogey was very unlikely. Thus, any sort of big late swing was near impossible.

“The par-3 old 18th just hasn’t brought anything really special,” Scott said. “That may be just circumstance of where everyone was at in the tournament, but now with the par 5 finishing hole, even the thought of someone being in trouble is more in your mind.

“You really didn’t think someone could make a huge mess on the par 3 but on the par 5, there is just so many more things that could happen, good or bad to a player.”

Now, not only do they have a par-5 to make up ground, they must navigate through the new back nine consisting of tough holes balanced by ultra-tempting possibilities. The new par-4 14th is a long hole that then leads into the difficult par-3 15th. From the tips, the 200-yard water carry under the gun is likely to provide plenty of drama.

Course designer Rees Jones, who in 1994 restored Donald Ross’ design, suggests it will become as famous -- or perhaps as infamous -- as the 17th at TPC Sawgrass.

“If you are going to win it all,” Jones said, “you are going to have to earn it under pressure.”

Once players get through the mini-gauntlet there, they have just three holes to make their move. Climb the hill on the 16th in search for a birdie, decide how aggressive to be on the short par-4 17th, and then hit the closing hole knowing it’s time to stand up and deliver when it counts.

The drive down the 18th is downhill, and can go a mile. But be careful as water could be in play. The approach is to a green that climbs back up the hill, with new bunkering in play and some sucker pin options to really entice some hero shots.

Defending TOUR Championship and FedExCup winner Jordan Spieth, said the new 14th and 15th holes will require players to “step up and have to commit to some shots.” He called the new 18th a “fantastic finishing hole … where you see a birdie or eagle more than pars like it has been in the past.”

Overall, Spieth called the flipping of nines “really, really cool. … very interesting.”

And that’s the point – to make things more interesting.

And more exciting.

Time to flip the switch.

INSIGHT FROM THE COURSE DESIGNER

Course designer Rees Jones has performed some brilliant transformations in his time, including in 1994 when he restored East Lake to Donald Ross’ design. He’s hoping some subtle changes made to East Lake, combined with the switching of the nines, catapult the excitement to new heights as the race for the FedExCup concludes.

PGATOUR.COM sat down recently with Jones to get his take.

: What were the main motivations to switch the nines at East Lake?

REES JONES: Well, what Tim Finchem and the TOUR really wanted was a swing hole to finish the TOUR Championship and the race for the FedExCup. Now the old 9th will be a reachable, two-shot par-5 as the 18th. We have designed it so all of the players can get over the hill, we’ve flattened out that area and we put a bunker behind the green, another bunker in the second landing area so if they have the wind in their face that’s something to think about too. Essentially a lot can now happen down the stretch.

: So all players will be able to think eagle if they need it?

JONES: Yes. We have a new tee in the middle. We are trying to make it a two-shot hole for everyone. We are trying to get Zach Johnson down the hill and Dustin Johnson down the hill. There is a new second landing we graded, which should stop the ball. Plus if they really hit it too far from the new forward tees, the big hitters could potentially find the water. Last year when the wind was in their face, they were not getting near the green in two, so we put in the new bunker on the right side of the second landing area also in case the wind changes.

: Where else could players get in trouble on 18?

JONES: The new bunker behind the green combined with building up the back of the green so it goes up, instead of rough. That’s a hard shot. The bunker behind the green on the left might look simple, but it is past the open entrance, so I have asked them to put the pin in front of that bunker on the last day. Hopefully they do because it is a sucker pin. I think that bunker is very deep and it doesn’t necessarily pitch towards the green, so it’s going to be a tough shot. The right side of the green, they are going to be hitting off a down slope instead of an up slope. So these little subtleties will be noticed if they do hit it long.

: So are there other changes to the finishing holes to be aware of also?

JONES: Absolutely. We’ve made some adjustments to the new 16th and 17th. The new 16th will be longer because we have lowered the tee and taken it into the lake. Now the bunker on the right will definitely come into play; they’re not going to be blowing it by there anymore. It will be much more testing. New 17, we have taken the tee all the way back to the fence line, so now the officials will be able to make decisions on where they want to have the tee depending on the wind and conditions. If they play the 15th off the back tees every round except Saturday, which I hope they do, that hole will become as famous a hole in championship golf as the 17th at TPC Sawgrass.

: It’s not quite an island green but it is close. And at 200 yards, you are really asking a lot of questions of the players, aren’t you?

JONES: Well there is no doubt it will be a tougher prospect as hole 15 then it was as hole 6. By this stage you are in contention, you’re running out of holes to correct an error. Like my 17th green at Medinah in the Ryder Cup … the muscles get tense on holes like these when things are close. I expect this to certainly happen in the TOUR Championship, which I believe is what the TOUR, and the fans want to see.

: It’s not like the hole before is any easier. The old 5th, now the 14th, plays pretty hard most years. Are you trying to get carnage?

JONES: Not carnage but just a tough fair test. You’re right -- the 14th is a tough and long par-4 but we let them off a little with the 10th and 12th certainly being birdie holes as they make the turn to head down the stretch. From there, they have to finish it off -- but 16, 17 and 18 could also yield birdies from hot players.

: What other changes should we know about?

JONES: We added a bunker on the right of the new 12th. It used to be too far back, so now we’ve really made them think about whether or not they should hit driver or not. It’s been one of the easier holes on the course but that will at least put thoughts in their minds.

: Bottom line. We should get plenty of action?

JONES: Yes of course. And the other side of the course will still provide highlights. The old 17th, now 8th, will still demand plenty of the players as they steady to make the turn and then those last 9 holes could see plenty of change on the leaderboards. It should be a great event.

FEDEXCUP CHAMPS WEIGH IN

Reaction from a few FedExCup champs when asked about the flipping of the nines at East Lake:

2011 FedExCup champ Bill Haas:

“I think it’s good. I think they’re doing it for the right reasons. They want to see excitement on the last hole, they want to see players have a chance down the stretch. I would like to see that (18th) hole play a little shorter to where everyone can get there in two. If you’re going to make it exciting, give everyone the opportunity to reach it in two.”

2012 FedExCup champ Brandt Snedeker:

“Obviously I’m a fan of it the way it was. I think it was really cool to end on a par 3. But I get where they’re coming from, saying that there wasn’t a lot of excitement the last couple of years – you know, a par 3, not a lot happens, either par or birdie. This time around you’re going to have a par 5 that’s reachable. You’ve got 15 now, a really, really tough par 3. A lot’s going to happen. So it will be interesting to see how it all plays out.”

2015 FedExCup champ Jordan Spieth:

“Nine [now No. 18] makes for a fantastic finishing hole. From five being a monster hole, having to go to six and playing those as No. 14 and 15, and play those two holes really when the pressure is on, that will make you step up and have to commit to some shots. I think it’s very interesting. I think it would make for a finish where you see a birdie or eagle more than pars like it has been in the past.”

-- PGATOUR.COM’s Helen Ross and Vince Shannon also contributed to this report.