Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy’s TGL golf league tees off in 2024 — from the competitors to the backers and beyond, here’s what you need to know about the new venture.
The PGA Tour and the LIV Golf League announced intentions to merge earlier this year. It may or may not happen. For what it’s worth, due to the regulatory nightmare it promises to be as initially agreed, our money is on no such union being consummated.
That doesn’t mean the PGA Tour isn’t mixing it up with some new collaborators all the same: Welcome to TGL.
The brainchild of TMRW Sports — a sports and entertainment venture co-founded by Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, and media executive Mike McCarley — TGL is a tech- and data-driven league that will hold its competitions on a virtual course inside the under-construction SoFi Center in Lake Worth, Florida just south of West Palm Beach. Six teams will play a 15-match regular season that tees off in January 2024.
We’re still awaiting some key details regarding just how this product will play out and how fans will consume it — but in the meantime, we’ve got plenty to dive into regarding the teams, players, owners, and investors behind this ambitious TGL golf league effort. Let’s dive in.
2023 TGL Teams
Teams with official names and branding
- Los Angeles Golf Club
- Atlanta Drive GC
- Boston Common Golf Club
Teams with confirmed cities but unconfirmed names and branding
- TGL New York
- TGL San Francisco
The league will feature six teams in its inaugural season. The last remaining TGL city has yet to be announced.
Notable Players in TGL Golf
- Tiger Woods
- Rory McIlroy – Boston Common Golf
- Adam Scott – Boston Common Golf
- Keegan Bradley – Boston Common Golf
- Tyrell Hatton – Boston Common Golf
- Justin Thomas – Atlanta Drive GC
- Xander Shauffele
- Collin Morikawa – Los Angeles Golf Club
- Max Homa
- Rickie Fowler
- Tommy Fleetwood
- Billy Horschel
- Shane Lowry
- Tom Kim
- Justin Rose
- Sahith Theegalay
- Cam Young
- Patrick Cantlay
- Wyndham Clark
- Lucas Glover
- Min Woo Lee
- Kevin Kisner
TGL Golf League Owners
League founders
- Tiger Woods
- Rory McIlroy
- Mike McCarley
- The three co-founders created the league through their sports, media, and entertainment venture TMRW Sports.
Atlanta Drive GC
- Majority owner: Arthur Blank
- As founder and Chairman of AMB Sports and Entertainment, Blank holds majority interests in the Atlanta Falcons and Atlanta United FC.
TGL Boston
- Majority owner: Fenway Sports Group
- FSG, whose holdings also include the Boston Red Sox, Liverpool FC, and the Pittsburgh Penguins, is led by co-founders John Henry and Tom Werner. Its list of investment partners includes LeBron James, Maverick Carter, and private equity firms Arctos Partners and RedBird Capital Partners.
⚡️ @TigerWoods + @McIlroyRory + @TMRWSports = TGL, a new tech-infused, team golf league in partnership with the @PGATOUR. Kicking off January 2024.
— TGL (@TGL) August 24, 2022
Learn more: https://t.co/wXLlcLsvdG pic.twitter.com/JJBe7FWylU
Los Angeles Golf Club
- Majority owner: Alexis Ohanian
- Co-owners: Serena Williams, Venus Williams
TGL New York
- Majority owner: Steve Cohen
TGL Bay Area
- Majority owners: Marc Lasry, Stephen Curry
- Co-owners: Klay Thompson, Andre Iguodala
- Lasry’s stake is via his recently launched Avenue Sports Fund. A longtime leader in private equity, he co-owned the Milwaukee Bucks from 2014 to 2023.
Additional TMRW Sports & TGL Investors
A non-exhaustive list of the TGL golf venture’s backers via investment in TMRW Sports includes:
- NFL player Josh Allen and retired players Tony Romo and Larry Fitzgerald
- Current and former basketball stars Stephen Curry, Diana Taurasi, Jayson Tatum, Chris Paul, Shaquille O’Neal, and Steve Nash
- Kevin Durant and Rich Kleiman’s Boardroom Sports Ventures
- Soccer’s Alex Morgan, Gareth Bale, and Jozy Altidore
- Baseball stars Shohei Ohtani, Mike Trout, and Trea Turner
- Formula 1 drivers Lewis Hamilton, Lando Norris, Carlos Sainz, and Alexander Albon
- Singer Justin Timberlake, NHL legend Sidney Crosby, Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin, esports star Ninja, and Liberty Media co-founder Greg Maffei