Rory McIlroy believes the new Tomorrow's Golf League (TGL), which launches this week and is broadcast live on Sky Sports, is “golf reimagined for the 21st century”.
The indoor simulation league's name comes from TMRW Sports, the company founded by McIlroy, Tiger Woods, and former NBC golf executive Mike McCarley to focus on producing “technology-based projects” in the world of sports and entertainment.
Woods and McIlroy will not participate in the opening match of the inaugural season, as New York Golf Club takes on The Bay Golf Club over 15 holes – in front of 1,500 spectators – in Florida on Tuesday evening (Wednesday 2am UK time).
New York's Rickie Fowler, Matt Fitzpatrick and Xander Schauffele will face off against The Bay's Ludvig Åberg, Shane Lowry and Wyndham Clark in alternating three-putts and singles, with each hole worth one point. If the teams are tied at the end of regulation, a competition closest to the winners will be determined.
Woods will appear in Week 2 for Jupiter Links Golf Club and again in Week 4 against McIlroy's Boston Common Golf Club, with the top four of the six teams qualifying for the playoffs.
“The first thing I would like people to know is that golf, but reimagined, is kind of trying to bring golf into the 21st century,” McIlroy said. “We have teams, and obviously there's a lot of technology involved, trying to bring it into the digital age.
“There are a lot of things we took from other sports like the shot clock, the time limit, things you don't see in regular golf (we're) trying to appeal to that larger sports audience out there.”
Please use Chrome browser for an easily accessible video player
Billy Horschel explains what you can expect from TGL, and why he's excited about its impact and future in golf
Launch delay 'a blessing in disguise'
TGL's late start was caused by the collapse of the venue's roof during a storm that hit Palm Beach County, although Woods called this a “blessing in disguise” because it allowed more time to produce a better product.
“Tiger and I have been a part of this since day one, and whenever you see the concepts and renderings, you think ‘yeah, this looks really cool,'” McIlroy said. espn.
“But until you stand here (SoFi Center) and see what they've been able to do, I think the scale of it is the thing that blows my mind to me.
“Every time I walk in here, I'm blown away by the size of the screen, and the fact that we're able to put something that looks like golf on a stage like this. It's really cool and obviously we're really excited about it within the game of golf.”
“I think a lot of other people outside of the game will see this and hopefully be excited about it as well.”
Players will hit from real grass tee boxes, fairways, rough and sand on tee shots and approach shots on a 64-foot by 53-foot screen. For shots of approximately 50 yards or less, the ball will be placed on the short tee area which includes a modified putting green.
“The playing surfaces are very realistic,” McIlroy added. “When you're hitting it, you have to think about whether you're going to get a flyer; whether it's going to come out soft. There's a lot of things you have to think about on a real golf course.”
Who plays for which team?
Atlanta Drive JC – Patrick Cantlay, Lucas Glover, Billy Horschel, Justin Thomas
Boston Common Golf – Keegan Bradley, Hideki Matsuyama, Rory McIlroy, Adam Scott
Jupiter Links Golf Club – Max Homa, Tom Kim, Kevin Kisner, Tiger Woods
Los Angeles Golf Club – Colin Morikawa, Sahith Thejala, Tommy Fleetwood, Justin Rose
New York Golf Club – Matt Fitzpatrick, Rickie Fowler, Xander Scheufele, Cameron Young
Bay Golf Club – Ludwig Aberg, Wyndham Clark, Min Woo Lee, Shin Lowry
Who will win the inaugural TGL Season and SoFi Cup? Watch every match of the 2025 and 2026 seasons live exclusively on Sky Sports Golf. Stream the PGA Tour, DP World Tour, majors and more now.