How does a world-renowned golf course fight against the clock to complete an entire makeover in just 12 months?
Hi! My name is Taylor Harper. I am a Junior at Charles R. Drew Charter School and a member of the Varsity Golf Team. Today, I had the pleasure of becoming a media correspondent for the East Lake Foundation to get a glimpse behind-the-scenes of the TOUR Championship. I started off my day by meeting and interviewing the Director of Agronomy for East Lake Golf Club, Mr. Charlie Aubrey. Here, I got to learn about the different parts of the course restoration and what all goes into a major restoration like this one. I asked Mr. Aubrey to share one of the largest challenges his team faced when trying to complete the renovation. His response? “There are only 24 hours in a day.” He also mentioned that he’s seen “a lot of sunrises and sunsets.” He explained to me that the renovation was a large feat, one that took a lot of early mornings and late nights. I also wondered if the new course affected the mental health of the players and what effect mental health had on the players’ performance. Mr. Aubrey informed me that the agronomy team can do many different things to change the course to be fun for members of the club, but challenging for the Pros. I am fortunate enough to live right across the street from historic East Lake Golf Club, where I got to see the renovation take place firsthand through all 4 seasons. I have also been to countless FedEx Cups in the past, so this experience has allowed me to gain a different “inside the ropes” perspective on the rich history of this beautiful course.
Later on, I had the opportunity to tour some of the NBC, Golf Channel, and PGA Live production trailers. I learned that there are 55 different cameras all around the course. These cameras are responsible for catching replays, which is what we see on television. I got to see how production adds title cards, transitions, and even how they capture social media posts in real time to add to the broadcast. When I stepped outside, I got to meet Michael Collins – former professional caddie, host of America’s Caddie, and PGA Live host. Seeing Mr. Collins was amazing because I met him in the past while he was filming his show, mentioned before. I got to talk to him about his week so far, and he took me into a trailer where I got to see the different mics and audio equipment that reporters use. I also took the time to record some social media content and post pictures and videos.
Finally, I met up with Michael Collins again, this time on the course, to assist him on the air as he followed Rory McIlroy and Justin Thomas to report on their performance live. I got to go inside the ropes and watch the players up close while they determined what to do for their next shots. I really enjoyed hearing Mr. Collins improvise his lines and use real time information to add humor to the broadcast. Overall, my experience here at East Lake Golf Club has been one to remember. I am very grateful to have learned more about the course restoration and finally figure out how the staff here beat the clock to host yet another FedEx Cup.
By Taylor Harper, Drew Charter School Junior and Varsity Golf Team Member
