Will TGL Save Golf? | The Epoch Times

The newly established golf league is using high-tech advancements and a fast-paced game show style to attract younger players. This innovative approach aims to modernize the sport and cater to the preferences of a new generation of golf enthusiasts.

The usual staid atmosphere of traditional golf was replaced by a pulsating drumbeat.

Well Financed and Partnered

TGL is well financed. The deep-pocketed crowd includes John Henry’s Fenway Sports Group, Steve Cohen, Arthur Blank, Marc Lasry—all members of the Strategic Sport Group that invested $1.5 billion into the PGA Tour a year ago. Other investors include NBA star Steph Curry, retired tennis star Serena Williams, and baseball stars Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout, along with NFL quarterback Josh Allen.

Team golf is not a new development, but only the biennial Ryder Cup matches have lit an intense flame of global fan interest. LIV Golf has included team golf, but that novel addition has yet to generate anything close to a spark of attention.

One of the issues LIV Golf faced when starting was not having a prime media delivery partner for its telecasts. TGL smartly engaged ESPN and the matches will be shown on its various platforms—often in prime time.

The league has been in the works for a few years. The original plan was for it to launch last January, but a roof collapse slowed construction and organizers pushed the debut back to 2025.

All of the matches are scheduled from January through March using the Monday / Tuesday time slot. The timing keeps TGL from conflicting with weekly PGA Tour events and provides avenues for the competing players—many of whom live in the greater Palm Beach area—to compete in both.

Since much of the United States is in winter mode, the timeslot will enhance the likelihood of capturing eyeballs.

Will It Deliver?

Even with all of these aspects in place, will the spectacle of giant-sized simulator golf through TGL really do what it seeks to accomplish?

Will the novelty quickly fade? Can the appearance of Woods entice viewers to watch, given his inability to compete effectively through traditional golf competitions? How will key investors recoup their investment and seek a profit?

Plenty of questions—yes.

Authenticity. It’s the keyword on which all sports are predicated. But failure to adapt as needed can mean a lack of relevance to potentially newer audiences. Golf is now trying to thread the needle—keeping the core game as is by adding more bandwidth for others to join via simulators.

Other ingredients within the sport have been added to stir the golf pot. Topgolf has attempted to shake the staid driving range model. Other golf options have included short courses and those with less than 18 holes.

Attention spans are ever problematic in today’s hectic world. Golf has a dedicated core group of participants but will traditionalists embrace TGL? More importantly, will those under 35 seek out the sport and make it a part of their lifetime recreational pursuits?

Woods was upbeat on the potential.

“It’s not traditional golf, yes. But it is golf. And that’s the main thing,” he said on the ESPN broadcast.

That’s certainly true. And the word golf has as its first two letters—“go”.

One can credit TGL with pushing boundaries. The bridge to a new younger generation of players is now picking up speed. Will younger players hop on for the ride or will they demonstrate a confounding desire to remain mercurial?

That pivotal question remains to be answered.

TGL Teams

• Atlanta Drive Golf Club: Justin Thomas, Patrick Cantlay, Billy Horschel, Lucas Glover

• Boston Common Golf Club: Rory McIlroy, Hideki Matsuyama, Keegan Bradley, Adam Scott

• Jupiter Links Golf Club: Tiger Woods, Max Homa, Tom Kim, Kevin Kisner

• Los Angeles Golf Club: Collin Morikawa, Sahith Theegala, Justin Rose, Tommy Fleetwood

• New York Golf Club: Matt Fitzpatrick, Rickie Fowler, Xander Schauffele, Cameron Young

Could you please rewrite this sentence?

Source link