PALM BEACH GARDENS – (Staff and Wire Service Report by Field Level Media) – The first match of the new TGL was a one-sided affair lacking true suspense. But there wasn’t any disappointment or sad faces to be found after Bay Golf Club rolled to a 9-2 victory over New York Golf Club on Tuesday night in South Florida.
The new venture, which includes Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy as driving forces, was played at SoFi Center, a custom-built 1,500-seat arena. It was certainly much different than what golfers typically experience. And that was just fine by Bay Golf Club’s Ludvig Aberg.
“It was awesome. I always said I was so jealous of basketball and football players because they get to do this a lot and we don’t,” Aberg said. “So this whole stadium-like feel is awesome to be a part of, and it gets you going a little bit differently from a normal golf tournament.”
Bay GC clinched the victory on No. 10 of the 15-hole match that lasted just over two hours. The 15-hole course was custom-designed, and the competition is part virtual and part real life.
The high-tech indoor league features six teams and a 15-match season.
“Just to have the ability to showcase our sport,” Woods said of why he’s excited about the venture. “It’s not traditional golf, but it’s golf — and that’s the main thing.”
Players hit tee and approach shots into a simulated screen that has hole layouts, greens, bunkers and anything else you’d see on a golf course. After the ball lands, the rest of the shots and putts are hit inside the facility.
The fans in attendance were allowed to be vocal — kind of different than the marshal at Augusta holding “quiet” or “no noise” signs.
“You don’t hear that at most events,” Woods said, “but you’ll hear that here.”
Wyndham Clark and Shane Lowry also played for Bay Golf Club, while Min Woo Lee sat out.
“I thought it would be a little bit more of a match,” Clark said. “There wasn’t much trash talk to do because we beat them so bad.”
Lowry liked the atmosphere inside the venue, but he needed some time to adjust.
“It’s quite an intimidating place to play golf because it’s somewhere we’re not used to,” Lowry said.
New York’s team consisted of Xander Schauffele, Rickie Fowler and Matt Fitzpatrick. Cameron Young was inactive.
Schauffele was surprised his team couldn’t give Bay GC more of a match.
“They played pretty well,” Schauffele said. “It seems like every time their ball hit the screen it was going down the middle, and our ball would hit the screen and be 30 to 40 yards to the right … We have nobody else to blame but ourselves.”
A wrinkle the golfers had to get used to was the 40-second shot clock. A violation results in a one-stroke penalty.
“I didn’t feel rushed,” Fitzpatrick said. “I wish that was in real golf as well.”
Teams rotate possession of the hammer. When used, the hammer doubles the point total of a given hole.
Lowry hit the first tee shot in TGL history to get the festivities going.
Bay GC took a 1-0 lead on the first hole (The Plank) when Aberg made a 9-foot birdie putt.
After Fowler hit his tee shot, he professed to be feeling anxiety.
“This is a new environment,” Fowler said. “So this isn’t something we’re fully used to. You feel the nerves a bit.”
On No. 3 (Set in Stone), Bay GC elected to use the hammer and Clark’s ensuing 7-foot, 7-inch putt was good and worth two points to give Bay GC a 3-0 advantage.
On the fourth hole (Boomerang), Lowry’s 3-foot, 8-inch putt boosted Bay GC’s lead to four.
Aberg came up big on the fifth hole (Craic On) by sinking a 32-foot, 1-inch putt to make it 5-0.
New York earned its first point on the ninth hole (The Spear) to trail 6-1 at halftime.
When Bay GC won No. 10 (Serpent), the victory was clinched — but the remaining five holes were still played due to season tiebreaker reasons (most holes won).
The TGL is starting up one year later than initially planned. The original arena roof collapsed during a storm in November 2023.
The four other teams in the league are Atlanta, Boston, Jupiter (Fla.) and Los Angeles.
Next Tuesday, Los Angeles and Woods-led Jupiter square off in the league’s second match.
–Field Level Media