George Pazin,
My take is a little different.
I think the hole was ignored for years because of golf's consuming obsession with length.
For the last 10-15-20 years much of the focus has been on 600 yard par 5's, or unreachable par 5's, Par 4's of 460, then 480 and finally 500 yards.
Like # 1 at NGLA and GCGC short holes such as # 10 have been widely overlooked.
In addition, over the years TV coverage has been expanded.
It used to be that only the last few finishing holes created the drama and that's what the networks showed, ad naseum.
Then, coverage was expanded to the back nine and eventually to the entire course for the US Open, and now other tournaments are being telecast where the viewer is exposed to more and more golf holes at a given course.
With regard to Riviera, I think # 10 lived largely in the shadow of many other great holes. # 15, # 16 and # 18 are difficult, dramatic and can influence the drama and outcome of the tournament. So # 10 was an orphan of sorts.
Perhaps the frustration with the length issue is also causing more and more people to look toward holes with strategic merit versus back breaking length, and as such, # 10 at Riviera could be the poster boy.
Trends, fads, come and go, perhaps with the length trend being recognized for what it is and does, the trend toward holes such as # 10 will be revitalized.