Why Rory McIlroy believes TGL is beating LIV Golf at its own game

Posted by author December 20, 2024 Golf

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Rory McIlroy believes TGL, the interactive, tech-infused golf league he and Tiger Woods started, has done a better job than LIV Golf with the concept of team golf.

“I think that’s what TGL has done maybe a little bit better to connect with certain fan bases than, say, LIV, for example,” McIlroy said Friday.

McIlroy, a Jupiter resident, spoke with reporters to promote the GolfPass docuseries “unCOMMON: Building a Boston Sports Team,” which has chronicled his TGL team, Boston Common Golf.

He believes tying teams into specific cities, most sports hotbeds, gives fans a reason to connect with the teams.

TGL’s teams include Boston Common, Atlanta Drive GC, Jupiter Links, Los Angeles GC, New York GC and The Bay GC. Each team has four PGA Tour golfers.

The concept is part of LIV Golf, but the Saudi-backed league was able to form a limited number of teams composed of players from the same region, and its teams use generic names like Crushers, Ripper, Smash and RangeGoats among others.

“Team golf has been around since 1927 in the professional game, you go back to a Ryder Cup,” McIlroy said. “But I think the one thing what TGL has done a good job of is trying to locate the different teams in cities or geographies where you can really plug into the wider sports fans of that city.”

McIlroy said Boston Common, which is owned by the Fenway Sports Group, does have the advantage of including Keegan Bradley, a Vermont native who is a passionate Boston sports fan.

“Everyone knowing the intensity in which Boston fans support their teams, trying to plug into that,” McIlroy said. “Plugging into the Red Sox fans and obviously everyone else … the Celtics or the Bruins or the Patriots, I think that to me at least gives you a connection to something, which is great.”

Boston Common also includes Justin Rose and Hideki Matsuyama.

TGL is set to debut Jan. 7 at the SoFi Center in Palm Beach Gardens.

Tom D’Angelo is a senior sports columnist and reporter for The Palm Beach Post. He can be reached at tdangelo@pbpost.com.