What a difference four years make

East Lake Golf Club can make a strong claim to be considered as hallowed ground.

After all, legend Bobby Jones was a staple at the club, and even attended its opening reception when he was 6-years-old. In 1963, The Ryder Cup was contested there. Ten years ago, the U.S. Amateur was held at the club, located a few miles from downtown Atlanta.

East Lake's reputation, though, took a hit four years ago. Its bentgrass greens sizzled when temperatures consistently reached 90 degrees or above. Ralph Kepple, CGCS (pictured), was on the hot seat, taking the heat for damaged greens. The edges were particularly bad, and many of the greens were thinning and yellowing, an ugly combination as the Tour Championship was coming to town in 2007.

In order to preserve what was left of the greens, players were not allowed to use No.s 2, 13 and 15 greens during Tuesday and Wednesday practice rounds. Golfers and golf analysts criticized Kepple and his staff.

Kepple told me this week that the critics hurt somebody more than him.

"It was harder on my family than me because they heard a lot of it," says Kepple, a 29-year member of GCSAA. "That was difficult."

This week should be much smoother for all of the Kepples.

The Tour Championship is set to begin tomorrow at East Lake Golf Club, where changes have made all the difference for Kepple and his staff. The club converted to MiniVerde bermudagrass greens in 2008, and they have done well, surviving another toasty southern summer.

"This stuff (MiniVerde) likes hot weather," Kepple says. "The greens are really good. It's a much easier scenario for us than it was four years ago. We haven't had to worry about how many guys (crew members) we had to put out there on any given day. This has freed us up to have them do other things. It's all good."

Golfer Justin Rose agrees. Rose, who recorded a victory Sunday at the BMW Championship, said this week that East Lake Golf Club is in top form.

"The course is looking really, really good out there," Rose told the media at the event. "Not as much rough as there was out there last year, but it's in perfect shape. There's not a divot out there; the greens are rolling perfectly."

Rose's words confirm what Kepple knew long before this week.

"We pulled the trigger on the decision to make the change a month-and-a-half after the 2007 event," he says. "It's been a slam-dunk. The greens are better day in and day out. It's probably the best move we've ever made."