5 Reasons TGL Could Fall Flat

Last week, I wrote about how TGL—a simulator league that will feature PGA Tour players—has some space to grab the attention of golf fans in 2025.

Running from January through March, TGL has a lot going for it. That includes a valuable time slot on ESPN and the fact Tiger Woods is going to be a consistent player in the league despite his lack of competitive involvement in Tour golf at this stage in his career.

The format and technology, which you can read about here, is also intriguing. There will be matches featuring three players on each four-man roster, eventually leading to a team playoff. That structure could also make for fertile gambling ground, a space golf hasn’t properly explored to this point.

@TGL preseason warmup✅@commongolf @Keegan_Bradley pic.twitter.com/ZaWlyXO7vI

— Rory McIlroy (@McIlroyRory) December 12, 2024

My opinion on TGL is that it could be a great thing for golf. The TV product should be better than a traditional broadcast and being on ESPN is a huge boost to drawn in casual viewers. Will it revolutionize golf? I’m not willing to go there but I am optimistic that it could be very beneficial for a sport stuck in the mud.

However, there are a few concerning aspects of TGL that could hold it back. If it were to struggle, these elements would likely be the culprits.

In no particular order, here are five reasons TGL might not resonate with people.

1. The teams have no meaning

This one is a head-scratcher, especially after LIV just made the exact same mistake.

The TGL teams are completely arbitrary. Players are representing major cities but most of the players are not from that city. The foursomes have no relationship to each other beyond the fact that everyone is a Tour player. Why is each player on each team? Nobody knows.

And there won’t be home or road games; everything takes place at SoFi Arena in South Florida. So why should these players be representing a city in the first place?

One of LIV’s downfalls is that its teams came together arbitrarily. Players are traded randomly. There is no structure for why a player should be on a certain team.

Why wouldn’t TGL set it up differently? Take your six most popular players and have them be the team captains who draft their own guys: Team Tiger, Team McIlroy, Team Morikawa, etc.

Now we have context. Team Tiger has Justin Thomas on it because Tiger drafted him instead of Max Homa. Then what if the last guy picked plays well? What if the first guy picked plays poorly?

In Season Two, the worst team could draft a player who isn’t competing in TGL—maybe someone who had a breakout year on Tour. Talent comes in and out. There is some intrigue over who keeps their spot and who stays.

The way TGL set it up, there is little reason to root for a specific team. It’s not region-specific because the players don’t identify with that team in the first place. It’s not draft-specific. We don’t know why it came together that way. Why should I root for Tom Kim on Tiger’s team? The only reason is that he’s on the team for reasons nobody understands.

2. The players might not have the personality to make it entertaining

The premise of TGL is that we’ll have full access to the players throughout each match. They will be mic’d up and (hopefully) jawing back and forth to make a more informal and interactive atmosphere.

That is what we regularly see with YouTube golf as great personalities shine through the camera. People are watching to be entertained by jokes as they (sometimes) enjoy good golf along with it.

But what about these players will make them entertaining?

All of these guys play serious golf for a living. They train to be the best players in the world. This isn’t Fat Perez cracking jokes on screen—it’s golfers who are programmed to concentrate and win.

Are any of these players funny? Will it come through on screen? It’s tough for professional athletes to all of a sudden turn on the charm in front of a camera for two hours and there apparently won’t be much in the way of color commentating as the match is happening.

There should be some trash talk and lightheartedness to this game. It’s not real golf and there is nothing meaningful at stake. We should be hearing from the players about what kind of shot they are trying to hit and get their instant reactions. The players need to be less robotic and more expressive.

Having Scott Van Pelt and Marty Smith interviewing the players is promising—those guys are funny and witty—but will the players match that energy each week?

I’m skeptical about that which naturally leads me to the next point.

3. TGL could be way more serious than necessary

Look, TGL will find success if it veers more into the absurd and comedic. This should look absolutely nothing like Tour golf or exhibition golf. It needs to be the opposite of traditional.

There is a structure to the competition, which is fine, but we need more than that. This needs to venture more into Saturday Night Live territory—slapstick comedy with barbs going back and forth. And when it’s not funny, it should be guys trying to pull off crazy shots and reacting expressively.

Kevin Kisner is a full-time NBC announcer and he’s playing in this league. This is not a serious competition and shouldn’t be treated like one.

The winner of this league doesn’t get anything meaningful. It’s not important to win. This is purely for entertainment.

It would be nice to avoid treating this like every shot matters. This is where LIV got caught—it is too similar to normal golf. It’s just a worse version of the normal Tour.

We should watch the first night of TGL and agree that it’s wildly different from the staid Tour vibe. I’m cynical about them getting this right, largely because …

4. The people running this are a part of the establishment

Who is behind TGL?

TGL is being produced by TMRW Sports, a company founded by Woods, McIlroy and NBC Sports executive Mike McCarley. But it’s also being being produced in partnership with the PGA Tour.

Woods and McIlroy are the frontmen but this largely comes down to McCarley and others in the established golf world. McCarley led the NBC Sports golf efforts from 2011-2021 and initiatives like the subscription-based GolfPass and tee-time service GolfNow.

Yeah, I don’t feel great about that.

NBC’s golf coverage has been a total disaster for a long time. Golf Channel, owned by NBC, is in the toilet— just look at their lack of original programming and downright awful morning shows. I’m not sure who uses GolfPass unless you regularly book tee times on GolfNow and want discounts (if you do subscribe, let me know why you like it).

Add in the Tour’s influence here and I’m not exactly expecting this to be “Inside the NBA” from an execution standpoint. It probably won’t be nearly as edgy or funny as it needs to be.

If the people behind TGL were total outsiders to the game, I would feel a lot better about how the telecast will be reimagined. I would also feel better about the TV product if the traditional broadcast was captivating, which is obviously not the case.

Apologies for being scarred by the last few years but I have trouble trusting any pro golf decision-maker at this point.

5. Is this just another cash redistribution mechanism?

Ah, of course, we have to talk about money.

Is the TGL just a thinly veiled attempt to get the top Tour players more money? Is it just a consolation prize to pump up their wallets after they didn’t get the ludicrous sums offered by LIV?

Honestly, I think the answer is yes. At least partially. The Tour has been frantically scrambling to make sure its talent stays in-house and I’m assuming TGL is another play to satisfy players financially.

That worries me on a couple fronts. Are the players here to make a genuine entertaining product for the fans? Or are they here to cash checks and move on with their lives?

The players are going to be responsible for whether this works or not. They have to turn on the charm and act like they are playing with their buddies back home.

If they aren’t invested in that, TGL could crash and burn.

Do you think the TGL will be successful? Let me know below in the comments.

Top Photo Caption: Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy are driving forces behind TGL. (GETTY IMAGES/Christian Petersen)