Welcome back. Yes, putting has changed a little, but not that much IMO. It's still the most challenging part of the game by far.
As for creating games, I've found that limiting my player choices to one tier down and above works best. Masters and below do tend to avoid playing Legends, not so much for the competition but more because they aren't comfortable with the green speeds.
And a lot of players just don't want to play the harder courses. If you select Merion or Olympic be prepared to see a lot of join/unjoin. It's just the way it is.
Have fun, and look forward to seeing you on the tee.