Tom Cousins, a towering figure in both Georgia’s business and philanthropic circles, passed away on July 29 at the age of 93. While many may know him for his success as a real estate developer, Georgia golfers and residents alike will remember him for something far more lasting: his transformational impact on East Lake Golf Club and the Atlanta community that surrounds it.
Born in Atlanta on December 7, 1931, and a proud graduate of the University of Georgia, Cousins launched his real estate firm, Cousins Properties, in 1958. Under his leadership, the company helped shape the skylines of cities across the Sun Belt. But Cousins’ legacy stretches well beyond the buildings he developed. It’s found in the lives he changed and the neighborhoods he revitalized.
He founded the East Lake Foundation in 1995, pairing the restoration of East Lake Golf Club with a broader vision for the neighborhood. The results were unprecedented. In collaboration with the Atlanta Housing Authority, Cousins helped create mixed-income housing developments and invested in education and community programs, including the highly regarded Drew Charter School and the East Lake Family YMCA. These efforts didn’t just beautify a golf course, but they helped reduce crime, raise academic achievement, and provide opportunities for generations of families.
Cousins’ model proved so successful that it laid the groundwork for Purpose Built Communities, an organization he co-founded to replicate East Lake’s success in neighborhoods across the country. With backing from other visionary leaders like Warren Buffett and Julian Robertson, Purpose Built Communities now supports dozens of revitalization efforts nationwide that are all rooted in the core belief that every person deserves access to a safe neighborhood, quality education, and opportunity.
Of course, Cousins never forgot the game that inspired it all. In 1998, East Lake Golf Club began hosting the PGA TOUR’s season-ending TOUR Championship, becoming its permanent home in 2004. The tournament has since raised more than $63 million for Atlanta-based nonprofits, many of which serve the very community Cousins set out to uplift. The annual East Lake Cup, one of college golf’s most prestigious events, also calls the club home. Each year, the Tom Cousins Award is presented at the event to student-athletes who exemplify leadership, service, and a commitment to their communities.
For his many contributions to the game, Cousins was inducted into the Georgia Golf Hall of Fame in 2002 and later the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame in 2018. But perhaps his most profound accolade is the living legacy of East Lake itself: a place where golf isn’t just a game, but a catalyst for lasting, meaningful change.
As the TOUR Championship returns to East Lake for its 25th time in 2025, it will do so in the shadow of a man whose vision forever changed the intersection of golf and community in Georgia and beyond. Tom Cousins didn’t just rebuild a golf course. He redefined what it means for the game to give back.
The golf and Atlanta communities mourn the loss of a true visionary, and in celebrating a life well-lived, with impact that will echo for generations.
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