Ludvig Aberg would be the reply to a trivia query: He made the primary birdie in TGL historical past.
And with that, the indoor golf competitors that Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy had envisioned for years was lastly underway.
TGL had its debut match Tuesday evening, with Rickie Fowler, Matt Fitzpatrick and Xander Schauffele of New York Golf Membership taking up Shane Lowry, Wyndham Clark and Aberg of The Bay Golf Membership within the opener. The 15-hole match took just below two hours, which is precisely how TGL envisioned this to work. Remaining rating: The Bay 9, New York 2.
“The final time I’ve had that a lot enjoyable was in all probability final September,” Lowry mentioned, turning towards Clark as he mentioned that — the plain reference being how he and Aberg had been a part of the European Ryder Cup group that beat Clark and the US within the fall of 2023.
Sure, trash discuss is a part of TGL as nicely — even amongst teammates.
“Look, I had an incredible two hours,” Lowry mentioned.
Lowry struck the primary shot at 9:15 p.m (native time). 4 minutes later, the primary gap in TGL historical past was full when Aberg rolled in a 9-footer for the primary level in league play. Sure, it strikes that shortly.
“This was only a dream conjured up,” Woods mentioned on the ESPN broadcast. “Rory and I had been speaking about it; it’s onerous to imagine that dream got here into actuality and we had been in a position to take golf into one other stratosphere, actually.”
Woods and McIlroy — a part of the mind belief that put collectively this enterprise — had been there, as anticipated. DJ Khaled was there too, milling about whereas gamers had been warming up, displaying off his swing with an imaginary membership.
The venue is a 250,000-square-foot facility at Palm Seaside State School. Gamers hit some photographs right into a video display screen, some off actual grass, some off turf, and the bunkers should not simply actual sand — it’s sand from Augusta Nationwide Golf Membership, the identical sand Woods has at his residence observe facility. It’s super-high-tech, with information collected off each shot.
“No person had extra enjoyable than us,” Clark mentioned.
Gamers wore microphones, there have been betting choices and followers surrounded the “course” in an intimate enviornment the place music blared and noise was welcomed.
“A glorified man collapse a method,” Fowler mentioned.
As soon as groups moved inside 50 yards of the pin, they headed to a short-game advanced — with a inexperienced that sits on a 41-yard-wide turntable and has about 600 gadgets beneath to vary the contours. Gamers mentioned it was troublesome to make putts, which is perhaps comprehensible.
Followers cheered. They usually booed — a bit of, anyway. Schauffele heard these after he botched a chip, a part of an evening the place not a lot went proper for his group.
“I in all probability would have booed me too,” Schauffele mentioned.
The gamers appeared to adore it. Lowry had one-liner after one-liner. A few examples:
— “I’m going to be the Scottie Scheffler of indoor golf.”
— “A bit like myself. A bit chunky,” he mentioned after one shot got here up a contact quick.
It ended with a 729-yard par-5 — a reachable 729-yard par-5, if that makes any sense. Handshakes and cheers throughout when it was over, Lowry gave a giant wave to the followers and the evening was achieved.
“A lot enjoyable,” Aberg mentioned.
Woods cherished it when some followers had been, let’s say, not precisely quiet as Clark lined up a putt on one of many early holes.
“You don’t usually hear that at occasions,” Woods mentioned. “You’re going to listen to that right here.”
Woods is predicted to debut for his Jupiter Hyperlinks membership on January 14. McIlroy’s debut could possibly be January 27 when Boston Frequent performs Jupiter Hyperlinks. The common season goes till March 4. There are 24 gamers — six groups of 4 — and the highest 4 groups advance to the playoffs with a best-of-three championship collection two weeks earlier than the Masters.
Every group prompts three gamers for a match, and the 15-hole competitions will likely be achieved in about two hours. It’ll all be proven on ESPN platforms, typically in prime time. The league has been within the works for just a few years; the unique plan was for it to begin final 12 months, however a storm slowed building and organizers pushed the debut again to 2025.
“It’s not conventional golf, sure,” Woods mentioned. “However it’s golf. And that’s the primary factor.”
And, as Fowler identified, the group within the enviornment is one factor, however how tv viewers settle for it is going to be the large take a look at.
“If it does nicely there, the sky’s the restrict with what you are able to do,” Fowler mentioned. “You may put up arenas elsewhere. That is simply the beginning.”