When he starts on Oct. 6, Bill Robinson will be the third head pro/general manager at Forest Hills Golf Club in the past 39 months.

He follows Scott Allen (2005-07) and David Usry (2007-08) at the Augusta course.

With Robinson's background, Forest Hills officials expect the revolving door to finally stop.

"We feel very pleased and fortunate to get a person of his quality and standing," said Don Grantham, the chairman of the Forest Hills Golf Committee.

Robinson, 51, comes from Highland Country Club, a private club in LaGrange, Ga., where he has been the head pro for the past 19 years.

That's the same kind of experience Red Price had when he came to Forest Hills in 1981 from Thomson's Belle Meade Country Club.

All Price did was stay at Forest Hills for 16 years. Grantham credited Price for turning the club around.

"This guy has the experience and maturity," Grantham said of Robinson, a Cedartown, Ga., native.

Robinson, the Georgia PGA section's merchandiser of the year in 1999 and 2003, was one of "eight or nine" qualified applicants, Grantham said. Three of them were interviewed.

Robinson has never been a general manager of a club, which is what drew him to Forest Hills.

"That's what I'm looking for -- a new challenge," Robinson said. "It's going to be a little bit different for me. Being just a club pro, you see the same faces every day. I'm looking forward to the opportunity to do something different."

Robinson doesn't believe he'll have any problem going from a private club to a public one.

"It's just taking care of people," Robinson said. "People want to see a smile when they come in and feel appreciated when they walk in the door of the golf shop."

He should feel at home at Forest Hills, designed by famed Scottish architect Donald Ross in 1926.

"He (Ross) did our front side (at Highland, in 1922)," Robinson said. "It looks a lot like the course I'm coming from."

Reach David Westin at (706) 823-3224 or david.westin@augustachronicle.com.