Golf is taking the sport to a new generation with TGL, a sophisticated indoor simulator golf league that kicks off Tuesday night with the first game in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. For television viewers, it will also be broadcast on ESPN.
Tiger Woods is one of the project's earliest and most high-profile backers, along with Rory McIlroy, but TGL does not mean Tiger Golf League.
It stands for Tomorrow Golf League and is made up of six four-a-side teams made up of some of the game's biggest stars.
It will be held in the state-of-the-art 250,000 square foot SoFi Center at Palm Beach State University. TGL was created by TMRW Sports, which was co-founded by Woods, McIlroy and former Golf Channel CEO Mike McCarley and works with the PGA Tour.
To improve the fan experience, players will be microphoned while playing, and banter and trash talk will be part of the entertainment selling point.
All 15 regular season games are played in a custom-built arena that can seat approximately 1,500 spectators, and the league runs from early January to early March.
At the end of the regular season, the top four teams will advance to the semifinals scheduled for March 17th and March 18th. The semifinal winners will then compete in the best-of-three finals for the SoFi Cup. March 24th and March 25th.
format
Each team goes head-to-head in a 15-hole match, with two sessions: a “triple” format, where all three players essentially take turns shooting, and a singles session, where all three players compete one-on-one. It is divided into 2-hole segment.
Scoring consists of teams earning points for holes won, but teams have the opportunity to throw and press the “hammer”, increasing the value of that hole to 2 points.
If the opposing team rejects the hammer, the hole is conceded, but that team controls the application of the next hammer. No points are awarded for tied holes and there is no carryover. If both teams are tied at the end of 15 holes, a near-to-the-pin competition takes place, and the team with the two balls closest to the hole wins the match.
In an NHL-inspired system, the team with the most points at the end of regulation or overtime earns two points in the league standings. The losing team receives one point if the game is forced into overtime, but no points if the team loses by regulation.
Setting the shot clock to 40 seconds adds even more pressure, as shot clock violations carry a one-stroke penalty.
team
New York Golf Club consists of Xander Schauffele, Rickie Fowler, Cam Young and Matthew Fitzpatrick.
Bay Golf Club, which will face New York in Game 1 on Tuesday, has Minwoo Lee, Windham Clark, Ludvig Aberg and Shane Lowry.
Jupiter Links Golf Club is home to Tigers Woods, Tom Kim, Max Homa and Kevin Kisner.
Boston Common Golf has Rory McIlroy, Keegan Bradley, Hideki Matsuyama and Adam Scott.
The Atlanta Drive has Lucas Glover, Patrick Cantlay, Justin Thomas and Billy Horschel.
Los Angeles Golf Club has Sahit Segala, Tommy Fleetwood, Collin Morikawa and Justin Rose.
season
The top four teams at the end of the season advance to the postseason, which consists of a single-elimination semifinal and a best-of-three championship. The semi-finals will be held on March 17-18, and the final will be held on March 24-25.
stadium
The contest will take place on a field divided into two areas: the “Screen Zone” and the “Green Zone”, which take into account the simulator and compositing capabilities.
The screen is 64 feet tall and 53 feet wide. TGL combines 18 full-swing radar devices and 8 top tracer optical cameras to accurately reflect the quality of each shot.
The green zone, on the other hand, is for shots and putts of 50 yards or more. It is set on a 41-yard diameter turntable and features an almost infinite number of contours due to the use of bunkers, seven cup arrangements, and 567 hydraulic jacks underneath.
stake
The winning team takes ownership of the SoFi Cup, with the champion receiving $9 million from a total funding of $21 million.
