Golf icons Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy are set to introduce TGL, a cutting-edge golf league, on 9th January 2024.
The league has attracted a roster of participants that includes 15 of the top 20 current PGA TOUR players, such as Jon Rahm, Scottie Scheffler, and Patrick Cantlay. Naturally, Woods and McIlroy will also be among the participants.
The venture which is run by TMRW Sports, a technology-focused sports company created by Woods and McIlroy in August 2022, will feature six teams of three PGA TOUR players competing across 15 regular season matches followed by the semi-finals and finals.
Each event will see two teams go head-to-head against each other with the winning team earning two points.
The first nine holes will be named “triples,” featuring alternate shot play for the three players, and one point will be awarded to the winning team for each hole. The last six holes will be singles, with each team member taking turns to play two holes.
In the event of a tie at the end of regulation, players will compete against each other until a team successfully hits two shots closer to the pin than their competitors.
After the 15 matches, those teams within the top 4 will qualify for the single-elimination semi-finals with the winners advancing to a “best-of-three” final.
Each event will take place at the Sofi Center in Florida which can accommodate roughly 1,600 spectators, and coverage of these events will be broadcast across ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, and ESPN+.
Up to this point, a total of five teams have been unveiled, each bearing names associated with major U.S. cities, including Atlanta (Atlanta Drive GC), Boston (Boston Common Golf), Los Angeles (Los Angeles Golf Club), New York (TGL New York), and San Francisco (TGL San Francisco).
The league has garnered support from various backers, such as NBA superstar Steph Curry, who is affiliated with the San Francisco team, and tennis icons Serena and Venus Williams, who are backing the Los Angeles squad. Owners of Liverpool Football Club, Fenway Sports Group, are also involved, specifically with the Boston team.
Aspects of TGL that have yet to be finalized include prize money, the owner and name of the sixth and final team, and which golfers will play for which team.