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Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy's hi-tech indoor golf league is officially live.
The TGL first match took place on January 7 at its dedicated SoFi Center on the campus of Palm Beach State College, Florida, with The Bay Golf Club eventually defeating New York Golf Club 9–2. Its live prime-time broadcast on ESPN averaged 919,000 viewers, according to the network.
Creation of team-centric leagues TMRW SportsA company founded by Woods, McIlroy and former NBC Sports executive Mike McCurley. It was developed in partnership with PGA Tour.
PALM BEACH GARDENS, FLORIDA – JANUARY 07: Rory McIlroy of Boston Common Golf and Tiger Woods of Jupiter Links Golf Club watch before the TGL presented by SoFi match between New York Golf Club and The Bay Golf Club at SoFi Center on January 07, (Mike Ehrman/TGL/TGL Golf via Getty Images/Getty Images)
During the process of running the league, TGL has identified several big-name partners as “founding partners”, including luxury automaker Genesis, consulting firm Businesssolver and consumer electronics retailer Best Buy. It has a total of a dozen official partners, according to a recent press release.
Its matches are “two-hour teams of three players each competing Golf Tournament“Offers a new approach to sports with a focus on technology, innovation, and fan engagement,” TGL explains on its website. Two of the league's six teams go against each other in one match.
The TGL's regular season consists of 15 matches, all played at the So-Fi Center, named after the digital finance company that signed a multi-year deal to be its presenting sponsor.
The venue spans around 250,000 square feet. Inside, competitors — all the big names in golf — play their way through 15 holes in a high-tech space “roughly the size of a football field” that includes a “screenzone” and a “greenzone.”
PALM BEACH GARDENS, FLORIDA – JANUARY 07: A fan cheers in the stands during play on the ninth hole during the TGL of the SOFI Match between New York Golf Club and The Bay Golf Club at the SOFI Center on January 07, 2025 in Palm Beach Gardens. (Mike Ehrman/TGL/TGL Golf via Getty Images/Getty Images)
a huge 64-by-53-foot simulator screen The “screenzone” created by full swing plays a key role in the match
PALM BEACH GARDENS, FLORIDA – JANUARY 07: Shane Lowry of Bay Golf Club plays a shot on the seventh hole during the Sophie match against New York Golf Club at the Sophie Center on January 07, 2025 in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. (Ph (Mike Ehrman/TGL/TGL Golf via Getty Images/Getty Images)
Meanwhile, the “GreenZone” serves as a dedicated area for the short game, featuring a giant rotating turntable green that “uses hundreds of actuators to change the slope of the green, creating a variety of play on each hole,” says TGL.
The league uses a triples format for nine holes and singles for six holes. About 1,500 people per high-tech golf league can watch in person at the SoFi Center from seats surrounding the playing area.
PALM BEACH GARDENS, FLORIDA – JANUARY 07: A general view of players from New York Golf Club and The Bay Golf Club on the green during their TGL presented by SoFi Match at SoFi Center on January 07, 2025 in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. (Photo by Cliff Hawke (Cliff Hawkins/TGL/TGL Golf via Getty Images/Getty Images)
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The inaugural season of TGL was planned to be played in 2024. However, in November 2023 “the dome collapsed due to a failure of the temporary power system and backup system” and caused some damage, prompting the league to make the change earlier this year. A TGL press release from that time.
Now, with one match under its belt, the TGL will hold the rest of its regular season games over the next few months, with two rounds of postseason to follow. The team that wins the championship title will receive $9 million out of a total of $21 million in prize money for the season. According to Golf.com.
The six four-player teams include Home Depot co-founder Arthur Blank's Atlanta Drive GC; Avenue Sports Fund and NBA star Stephen Curry's The Bay Golf Club; Fenway Sports Group's Boston Common Golf; TGR Ventures and businessman David Blitzer's Jupiter Links Golf Club; Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian and former tennis star Serena Venus Williams' Los Angeles Golf Club; and hedge fund founder Steven Cohen's New York golf club, per TGL.
The company aims to revolutionize the older women's golf apparel industry
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