Golf is now also being played indoors in warm Florida. An indoor series is set to attract a new audience.
08.01.2025, 10:27
08.01.2025, 10:38
SDA
The new TGL - quite immodestly the abbreviation for "Tomorrow's Golf League" - led by co-founders Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy celebrated its premiere in Palm Beach Gardens. On the first day of play, the team from the New York Golf Club led by Tokyo Olympic champion Xander Schauffele was clearly defeated by the Bay Golf Club by 2-9 points.
The match was played in a hall built especially for this event on the campus of Palm Beach State College. 1500 spectators were able to watch the debut live in the SoFi Center and created a party atmosphere that the pros rarely encounter. "It's hard to believe that this dream has become a reality and that we can take golf to another stratosphere. It's not traditional golf, but it is golf," said Woods.
Traditional golf is currently on the lookout for new formats and innovations to generate more interest among fans. So now the TGL is set to bring new momentum to the world of golf.
Golf simulator, microphones and lots of stars
In the new league, six teams of four players compete against each other in two-hour matches, which are broadcast in the USA in prime time on the ESPN platform. It is a combination of shots on a large screen of a golf simulator and shots on a huge putting surface made of real grass. The players wear microphones.
The TGL schedule has been designed to fit in with the professional golfers' tour schedule. The top four teams qualify for the playoffs. The winner of the SoFi Cup receives nine million dollars.
Woods and McIlroy also pick up a club
Woods and McIlroy were able to recruit many prominent golfers for the project - 13 of whom are major winners. Woods and his Jupiter Links will start the TGL on January 14. For Northern Ireland's golf icon McIlroy and his team from Boston, the indoor season begins on January 27 with a clash against Woods' team.