TGL - Golf in Prime Time

[cshea]

Posted about this in the PGA Tour thread but it can probably be a stand alone thread. Details are starting to trickle out including rosters and format. It seems a bit hokey to me but they have some serious committment and investments so we'll see how it goes.

Apparently this kicks off January 9th and will be played on Monday's in the winter.

Not all of the rosters have been announced but this is the teams so far:

Boston - Owned by FSG, roster is Rory McIlroy, Tyrrell Hatton, Adam Scott, Keegan Bradley
Atlanta - Owned by Arthur Blank..JT is the only announced player
New York- Owned by Steven Cohen...no players named yet
LA - Owned by Alexis Ohanian. Serena Williams and others...Collin Morikawa is the only player named
San Francisco - Minority owners include Steph Curry, Klay Tompson and Andre Iguodala...no players

Players not named to teams yet: Tiger Woods, Max Homa, Shane Lowry, Matt Fitzpatrick, Patrick Cantlay, Xander Schauffele, Wyndham Clark, Tom Kim, Tommy Fleetwood, Cam Young, Rickie Fowler, Lucas Glover (!?), Sahith Theegala, Justin Rose, Min Woo Lee, Billy Horschel, Kevin Kisner

Of Note: Jon Rahm dropped out recently.

Not sure how they divvy up the players or if there are contracts and what not. There are obvious geographic fits like Keegan in Boston and Morikawa on LA. Maybe FSG had to borrow against the Red Sox payroll to land Rory? (kidding). Maybe they dump Tiger into the New York team as the big market to get this off the ground? or SF with the Warriors/closer to home?

Format

So each night will be 2 teams playing head to head. 3 players from each team compete, 1 sits. The format is:

• 15 holes, comprised of 'Triples' and 'Singles'
• 9 holes of 'Triples' which is 3 player alternate shot. So, using Boston as an example, Rory hits the tee shot, Tyyrrell Hatton hits the approach, Adam Scott putts...until they are holed out.
• 6 holes of 'Singles' which is a head to head single hole match. Players rotate. So Rory would play hole #10 against the other teams #1 player, then for #11 Tyyrell Hatton plays the #2 on the opposing team...and so on. So the 3 team players will play 2 holes each of singles.
• Each hole is worth a point. Team with the most points after the 15 holes gets the win. If there is a tie, they will do a closest to the pin to determine the winner.
• Hockey style standings system...2 points for a regulation win, 2 points for an overtime win, 1 point for overtime loss, 0 points for regulation loss.

How exactly does this work?

They built a stadium in Florida where this will be played every week. It will hold 1,600 fans in person. It's supposed to last 2 hours. For the actual golf, it appears it works like this:

Tee shots will be it from a normal tee box into a massive simulator (20 times the size of a normal one). For approach shots, they have fairway, rough, sand, etc. that players will hit out of into the simulator. Once they are within 50-yards of the green, they transition to a 'Green Zone.' It is apparently a 3,800 square foot green complex that has all sorts of technologies so they can change the slope, speed, undulation of the greens so it's not always the same thing.

It's also unclear if they are going to use traditional golf courses or if it'll be computer designed places. Ditto to things like conditions.

I'm not sure if the plan is to continue playing exclusively in Florida or if they will try to take it on the road and play in the cities. Seems like they would really need to do that to get buy-in from fanbases. I don't know how easy it is to build the simulator and greens complex or if it's something that can travel around. Could they use the Garden or is it something where they'd need to build their own facility? I just think it will be difficult for fans to get much of a connection to the teams if they are just hanging out in Florida.

Anywho, thought it was a worthwhile topic as they are launching soon and the media tours, roster announcements and what not are begging to pick up.

 

[voidfunkt]

Not particularly excited by this, but in the middle of the winter I've got nothing better to watch and there's some novelty factor. If the personalities involved are good maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised?

 

[RedOctober3829]

Is this going to be on linear TV?

 

[cshea]

It'll be on ABC/ESPN/ESPN+

 

[jercra]

Posted about this in the PGA Tour thread but it can probably be a stand alone thread. Details are starting to trickle out including rosters and format. It seems a bit hokey to me but they have some serious committment and investments so we'll see how it goes.

Apparently this kicks off January 9th and will be played on Monday's in the winter.

Not all of the rosters have been announced but this is the teams so far:

Boston - Owned by FSG, roster is Rory McIlroy, Tyrrell Hatton, Adam Scott, Keegan Bradley
Atlanta - Owned by Arthur Blank..JT is the only announced player
New York- Owned by Steven Cohen...no players named yet
LA - Owned by Alexis Ohanian. Serena Williams and others...Collin Morikawa is the only player named
San Francisco - Minority owners include Steph Curry, Klay Tompson and Andre Iguodala...no players

Players not named to teams yet: Tiger Woods, Max Homa, Shane Lowry, Matt Fitzpatrick, Patrick Cantlay, Xander Schauffele, Wyndham Clark, Tom Kim, Tommy Fleetwood, Cam Young, Rickie Fowler, Lucas Glover (!?), Sahith Theegala, Justin Rose, Min Woo Lee, Billy Horschel, Kevin Kisner

Of Note: Jon Rahm dropped out recently.

Not sure how they divvy up the players or if there are contracts and what not. There are obvious geographic fits like Keegan in Boston and Morikawa on LA. Maybe FSG had to borrow against the Red Sox payroll to land Rory? (kidding). Maybe they dump Tiger into the New York team as the big market to get this off the ground? or SF with the Warriors/closer to home?

Format

So each night will be 2 teams playing head to head. 3 players from each team compete, 1 sits. The format is:

• 15 holes, comprised of 'Triples' and 'Singles'
• 9 holes of 'Triples' which is 3 player alternate shot. So, using Boston as an example, Rory hits the tee shot, Tyyrrell Hatton hits the approach, Adam Scott putts...until they are holed out.
• 6 holes of 'Singles' which is a head to head single hole match. Players rotate. So Rory would play hole #10 against the other teams #1 player, then for #11 Tyyrell Hatton plays the #2 on the opposing team...and so on. So the 3 team players will play 2 holes each of singles.
• Each hole is worth a point. Team with the most points after the 15 holes gets the win. If there is a tie, they will do a closest to the pin to determine the winner.
• Hockey style standings system...2 points for a regulation win, 2 points for an overtime win, 1 point for overtime loss, 0 points for regulation loss.

How exactly does this work?

They built a stadium in Florida where this will be played every week. It will hold 1,600 fans in person. It's supposed to last 2 hours. For the actual golf, it appears it works like this:

Tee shots will be it from a normal tee box into a massive simulator (20 times the size of a normal one). For approach shots, they have fairway, rough, sand, etc. that players will hit out of into the simulator. Once they are within 50-yards of the green, they transition to a 'Green Zone.' It is apparently a 3,800 square foot green complex that has all sorts of technologies so they can change the slope, speed, undulation of the greens so it's not always the same thing.

It's also unclear if they are going to use traditional golf courses or if it'll be computer designed places. Ditto to things like conditions.

I'm not sure if the plan is to continue playing exclusively in Florida or if they will try to take it on the road and play in the cities. Seems like they would really need to do that to get buy-in from fanbases. I don't know how easy it is to build the simulator and greens complex or if it's something that can travel around. Could they use the Garden or is it something where they'd need to build their own facility? I just think it will be difficult for fans to get much of a connection to the teams if they are just hanging out in Florida.

Anywho, thought it was a worthwhile topic as they are launching soon and the media tours, roster announcements and what not are begging to pick up.

It is not likely going to the cities any time soon. It's happening in Jupiter because many, many TOUR players either live there or have homes there. It's also a pretty nice place to visit in the winter. Getting the players to commit to going to Boston on a Monday night in January will be a very tough sell. The gear used to put on the production will evolve a lot over the next few years, but as of now, it's not something where there could be sets in each city that could be set up and torn down in different stadiums/arenas on a short timespan between, say, a Celtics and a Bruins game. It will probably get there, but it's not going to be soon.

Also, the green is a really big version of Full Swing's Virtual Green.

 

[Comfortably Lomb]

I guess I wouldn't be opposed to throwing it on for the spectacle if there's nothing else on but it won't be appointment viewing. I already strongly dislike team golf. I definitely don't care about a Boston team or whatever they're trying to make happen there. Initial impression is this sits below whatever the worst regular season tour event is in terms of golf importance. Seems like a solution in search of a problem (well, I guess the problem is they want to make more money and are throwing stuff at the wall).

 

[IdiotKicker]

I'll give it a try to see how the format works on TV. The good news about it being new and basically making up the rules from scratch is that if it sucks, they can adjust it. But I'd love to have some night winter golf to watch for a couple hours.

 

[cshea]

I don't think it's intended to be serious golf and serious competition. They intro'd the Boston team today and Rory was asked why do this and not LIV and he basically said this is intended to be complimentary and additive to the golf scene, not disruptive. It's a hit-and-giggle side gig. We'll see if it ever grows beyond that, but if we're ranking in terms of imporance, this definitely is well below any Tour or KFT event in the golf world.

I do think for the team thing to really take hold the players will need to set foot into their cities beyond an introductory press conference. I also think the team aspect could get interesting if it does grow and roster management like signings and trades becomes part of this.

 

[bostonbeerbelly]

I know I would watch Tiger play mini golf, so this is a step above that and if his team is playing, I will tune in for at least the first few weeks. I think the production is going to be key, are we going to get to know the players better, will there be insight into what goes into each shot, will the banter between the teammates and opponents feel forced or fun. I will take this for what it is, a group of great golfers, doing something fun, it may be utter crap and I will never follow it, but I will give it a chance.

 

[steveluck7]

Am I the only one that’s intrigued and actually really looking forward to this? Being in one location, they could really put on a good production.

 

[voidfunkt]

I'm curious if this is just an experiment in trying to find a way to market and sell golf beyond the traditional 40+ white male demographic (e.g. get the Zoomers interested), but if it is it feels like it's doomed to failed being on cable and filled with older white guys. Why not fold some of the exciting LPGA women into this? Nobody is getting excited to watch Adam Fucking Scott practice in a simulator bay.

 

[RedOctober3829]

Tiger is owning and playing on his own team out of Jupiter, Fl.
https://x.com/tgl/status/1721980897153450261?s=46&t=IVL2VrlFgLlpc3mjGGto8Q

 

[Time to Mo Vaughn]

I don't think it's intended to be serious golf and serious competition. They intro'd the Boston team today and Rory was asked why do this and not LIV and he basically said this is intended to be complimentary and additive to the golf scene, not disruptive. It's a hit-and-giggle side gig. We'll see if it ever grows beyond that, but if we're ranking in terms of imporance, this definitely is well below any Tour or KFT event in the golf world.

I do think for the team thing to really take hold the players will need to set foot into their cities beyond an introductory press conference. I also think the team aspect could get interesting if it does grow and roster management like signings and trades becomes part of this.

I heard an interview with Rory on the radio a day or two ago, so forgive me if a paraphrase a few of his comments incorrectly, but he mentioned that last year was the first time every where more golf shots were hit inside (?) whether that be in simulators or places like Top Golf rather than out on actual courses and this is designed to adapt to some of the different ways that people are getting into the sport. He also called out that the traditional golf atmosphere can be a bit stuffy, so this is designed to make it a bit more casual.

 

[cshea]

Yeah, they are trying to innovate a bit and appeal to a new group of golf fans. The idea is you are going to see the best players (kind of), you'll see every shot they hit and it'll be done in 2 hours. They'll probably have to tinker with the teams/rosters, format and rules as they go to find the sweet spot but in general I think that's what they are going for.

Maybe they get some hooks in people who then dive into traditional golf, but it's not easy to get into traditional golf as it is. It's a massive time commitment and in many ways the product sucks too. This is just an attempt at something different.

 

[cshea]

The venue this is supposed to happen suffered serious damage. Not sure they'll be ready to go in January.

https://twitter.com/NoLayingUp/status/1725533747339018622?s=20

 

[cshea]

And postponed until 2025.

View: https://twitter.com/JoshACarpenter/status/1726634776860442709?s=20