The par at East Lake Golf Club, home of the PGA Tour's season-ending Tour Championship, is a formidable Par 70. This number sets the stage for one of golf's most demanding tests, especially with the FedExCup on the line. This article will break down exactly what that Par 70 means, give you a hole-by-hole look at the demanding layout the professionals face, and provide strategic insights you can apply to your own game.
Before we walk the fairways of East Lake, let's get a handle on "par." In simple terms, par is the predetermined number of strokes a highly skilled golfer should need to complete a hole or a full course. It dictates the rhythm and strategy of a round.
Every hole is assigned a par based on its length and the expected number of shots to reach the green:
Most standard championship golf courses are Par 72. This layout usually consists of four Par 3s, four Par 5s, and ten Par 4s. So, when a famous course like East Lake is designated a Par 70, it signals a significant increase in difficulty. This usually means that two holes that an average golfer might play as Par 5s are converted into punishingly long Par 4s for the professionals, removing two of their best scoring opportunities.
Here's a small secret about East Lake during the Tour Championship: the pros don't play the course in the same order as the members. To create a more dramatic finish, the PGA Tour reverses the nines. The pros play the member's back nine as their front nine, culminating on the member's difficult par-3 9th. Their back nine is the member's front nine, which finishes on a long Par-5, providing a final opportunity for heroic eagle chances and heartbreaking mistakes.
Let's take a look at the layout the world's best face when chasing the FedExCup.
(This is holes #10-18 for members)
(This is holes #1-9 for members)
The par number alone doesn't tell the whole story. Several factors combine to make East Lake such a respected and difficult venue, especially in late summer for the Tour Championship.
East Lake's Zoysia fairways are like a carpet, but if you miss them, you're in deep trouble. The Bermuda rough is famously thick, gnarly, and unpredictable. When the ball sinks down, it's nearly impossible to control the distance or spin on the next shot. Players aren't just trying to advance the ball, they're guessing how it will "jump" out of the lie. This places an immense premium on finding the fairway, even if it means sacrificing distance.
The greens at East Lake are often elevated and guarded by deep, penalizing bunkers. Missing a green doesn't just leave a simple chip, it often leaves a difficult shot from a tight lie to a putting surface running away from you. Shot-shaping and precise distance control on approach shots are fundamental to scoring here.
No tournament has a format like the Tour Championship. Players start with a staggered score based on their FedExCup ranking. The leader might begin at -10 while players at the bottom of the field start at even par. Chasing or protecting a lead from the very first tee shot creates a unique and intense psychological battle that sits on top of an already difficult golf course.
Watching the pros tackle a Par 70 can teach us a lot. As a coach, I always tell amateurs to stop measuring themselves against the scorecard's par and start thinking about their own par.
If you're a 20-handicap aiming to break 90, your goal isn't to make par on every hole. Your goal is to average closer to a bogey. For you, on a Par-4, a 5 is a good score - that’s your personal par. Framing it this way removes the pressure of feeling like a failure every time you don't make a 4. It turns a round into a game of strategy, not a quest for perfection.
Just as the pros see holes #6 and #18 at East Lake as their green-light opportunities, you should look at your home course and identify the holes where you have the best chance to make your personal par, or even better. Is there a short Par 4? A Par 5 you can reach in three easily? These are the holes to be aggressive on.
Conversely, identify the disaster holes - maybe it's a long par 4 over water, just like #14 is for the pros at East Lake. On these holes, your goal shouldn't be your personal par. Your goal is damage control. The mission is to avoid a double or triple bogey. Hitting three safe shots to get on the green for a manageable bogey-putt is a huge win. Accept the 5 or 6, walk to the next tee, and put it behind you.
East Lake's Par 70 is more than a number, it is a declaration of the course's intent to test every facet of a player's game, from their power and precision to their strategic mind and mental grit. By understanding the hole-by-hole layout and what makes it so challenging, you can appreciate the incredible skill on display at the Tour Championship.
As you manage your way around your own course, thinking strategically about scoring opportunities versus damage control is a pro-level skill. When you're standing over a shot with a weird lie or facing a blind tee shot, it helps to have an expert opinion in your pocket. At Caddie AI, we’ve built a tool that does just that, offering real-time course strategy and shot advice. You can even take a photo of your ball's lie, and we’ll give you a simple plan for how to play it, helping you make smarter, more confident decisions on every hole.
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