By Frank Pingue
(Reuters) – Wyndham Clark is no stranger to the big stage but on Wednesday the 2023 U.S. Open champion stepped onto one unlike any other as he helped introduce the venue that will host the tech-infused indoor team golf league founded by Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy.
During a media day at Florida’s purpose-built SoFi Center where all TGL matches will take place, Clark, Rickie Fowler and Billy Horschel were enthusiastically introduced and arrived on the playing surface amid music, smoke and flashing lights.
It was a far cry from the typical player introductions seen at the first tee of events on the PGA Tour, where Clark is a three-time winner, but TGL is entering uncharted territory when it launches on Jan. 7.
“This is something new and innovative that is going to really help grow the game of golf,” said Clark. “It will give people a new perspective of us in a different arena where it’s more intimate and you kind of get to see our personalities.”
Following the player introductions, world number 16 Horschel sent practice shots at the towering screen to show how the ball reacts once the display takes over. He also showed how players will hit from fairway bunkers, greenside bunkers and putt.
After that, Clark faced Fowler in a one-hole match during which they utilised the 40-second shot clock that will be used during TGL play and made birdie that, in real play, would have secured his team – The Bay Golf Club – a point.
TGL, founded in 2022 by Woods and McIlroy’s TMRW Sports in partnership with the PGA Tour, was originally set to launch in January 2024 but was delayed after the dome of the host facility was damaged and later replaced with a steel-supported structure.
Woods, who is a part owner of Jupiter Links Golf Club, is expected to make his TGL debut on Jan. 14. McIlroy is part of the Boston Common Golf team and their first match is Jan. 27 against Woods’ squad.
The primetime golf league will feature six teams of four PGA Tour members competing in a fast-paced form of team golf and see players hit shots at a five-storey-high simulator screen before eventually shifting to an adjustable putting surface.
“We really wanted to keep one foot firmly planted in the traditional game and there’s an element of that if you look at the competition,” said TMRW Sports CEO Mike McCarley.
“But with the other foot we really wanted to try and bring the game more into the future and embrace technology, which from the very early conversations with Tiger and Rory both of them shared that thesis.”
(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto; Editing by Toby Davis)
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