Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy’s soon-to-be-starting, cutting-edge golf league, TGL, has invested almost $50 million to upgrade its SoFi Center headquarters in Florida.
Initially slated to kick off in January of this year, the star-studded TGL saw golfing greats from the PGA Tour ready to compete in a high-tech simulated setup in West Palm Gardens.
Yet, mere months before the grand opening, unforeseen setbacks struck the league and honchos had to hit pause on the season for a whole year.
The postponement came on the heels of significant damage to the SoFi Center, particularly its inflatable domed roof, throwing a wrench into Woods and McIlroy’s ambitious vision for this unprecedented league.
A release at the time declared: “Following discussions with key partners, including players, our six team ownership groups, PGA TOUR leadership and our commercial partners, SoFi, ESPN and Palm Beach State College, the decision has been made to postpone the start of the TGL season until early 2025.”
“This decision came after reviewing short-term solutions, potential construction timelines, player schedules, and the primetime sports television calendar. Despite this new timeline for the venue, we remain excited about the future of TGL and will continue to build excitement between now and the start of the season with our players, fans and teams.” the Mirror reports.
Nine months later, the delayed launch is fast approaching, and to ensure a smooth rollout, those at the helm have invested in a more permanent structure at their Florida base, according to The Palm Beach Post. However, Woods and McIlroy faced another setback in late 2023.
This setback came when Jon Rahm, one of golf’s biggest names, announced his withdrawal from the roster just weeks before transitioning to LIV Golf. The situation became even more challenging for TGL bosses when Rahm convinced Tyrell Hatton, another member of the innovative league, to make the switch to Saudi Arabia.
As a result, Hatton’s name was removed from the roster, despite already being assigned a spot on one of the six TGL franchises, joining McIlroy, Adam Scott, and Keegan Bradley at Boston Common.
Despite the loss of Rahm and Hatton, the roster has since been filled, with Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama taking the vacant spot alongside McIlroy with the Boston franchise.
Shane Lowry, McIlroy’s teammate from Northern Ireland at the Olympics, also joined the start-up league this year, before the player list was officially completed. Alongside Lowry, the final three spots were taken by Wyndham Clark, Min Woo Lee, and Ludvig Aberg.
These last four players now makeup The Bay Golf Club franchise, representing California.
