2/26/24

The inaugural season of TGL has gone a lot better than I thought it would. It’s always difficult to judge a new product when there hasn’t been anything like it, especially in a case like this, where there appear to be future seasons of TGL down the road. In five years, we can look back and compare, but for now, we have to take TGL at face value.

For the most part, things have gone pretty well for TGL. The first thing when watching TGL as a hardcore golf fan is you must take into account that this isn’t real golf. It sounds obvious with it being screen golf, but the numerous betting ads want you to think otherwise. TGL is more entertainment than anything, which is totally fine. It’s a very laid-back version of a normally pretentious game, which shows a side of professional golfers we don’t always see. The players, for the most part, have done a great job buying into the fun and laid-back element of TGL. Some players have the personalities of a piece of wood, and they just aren’t going to give you much, regardless of what scenario you put them in.

There have been questions about the technology, and there has only been one shot so far that required a redo. I had the over on redo’s, and have been very satisfied that it’s only occurred once, and bonus points for it not taking place on opening night. Multiple players have given their shots the stink eye, as to say, “That’s not right.” These guys know how far they hit it, down to the very yard, so when they want to hit a shot 150 yards, and it flies 170, they know something is off. However, the technology only blatantly not working for one shot so far, I’d say, is a major positive.

The holes are alright, but there’s nothing special about most of them. It would be fun for season two if we saw some off-the-charts creativity. Add in things that you couldn’t put in real life. With the league being a screen golf league, not a lot of the hole needs to be based on realistic features. It would be unique to see a hole where bouncing it off the cart path could be a strategy rather than a lucky bounce. Not every hole needs to lean heavily into that, but it would be enjoyable to see a couple of the holes get a little wild.

The broadcast does have a lot of positives. Visually, it looks great. The camera angles, the players wearing microphones, and the production have been fantastic. They’ve done a great job on those aspects of TGL. Marty Smith seems out of place at TGL. Smith is a hell of a reporter and is one of the rare on-air talents at ESPN worth a damn, but he doesn’t feel like a natural fit for TGL. Someone like Cara Banks or Amanda Balionis, who conducts interviews for PGA Tour post-round broadcasts on TV, would be a better fit since they work with the players regularly. If Marty Smith were a constant figure at PGA Tour events, surely he’d fit in a lot better. Smith still adds a great personality to everything he’s a part of, but someone who’s more ingrained with PGA Tour events regularly might be a better fit. In a few years, Smith might fit like a glove at TGL, because he’s one of the best at his job, so I’m banking on that.

On the other hand, Matt Barrie needs more help than Apollo 13 returning to Earth. There are multiple comments per broadcast made where he leaves you questioning what in the world is he talking about or what is he trying to say. TGL season two needs either a new voice or someone like Smylie Kaufman or Colt Knost with him in the booth to add both personality and analysis so the non-golf fan can understand the basic strategy behind why the player is hitting a shot the way he is. Scott Van Pelt would be a perfect fit for the booth, but SVP is great for everything. There needs to be a change in the booth one way or another.

TGL has done a great job of getting celebrities in the building and from the opinions of people who have been to TGL, there seems to be a consensus that it’s a fun in-person event. The fans can add an element to the matches, particularly in the close matches, they enhance the product. It’s still outrageous that originally, they were going to play this in a tent in Florida, where a hurricane destroyed the tent (shocker) and forced TGL to push back their season a year. How that slipped the minds of people involved in creating the league is baffling. However, SoFi Center sounds a lot better than SoFi Tent.

Overall, TGL has had a relatively good first season. It’ll be interesting to see what happens in year two, whether players want to jump on board and create an “expansion” team or two. Again, this isn’t serious golf, so it shouldn’t be compared to a PGA Tour event or LIV Golf event. It’s a completely different product, similar to trying to compare arena football to the NFL. It’s somewhat the same game but is largely different, and both are entertaining.

Hats off to Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy for taking the risk of creating TGL, and let’s see where it goes in the future.