Tech entrepreneur and venture capitalist Alexis Ohanian is teaming with his wife and sister-in-law — Serena and Venus Williams, respectively — to buy the first franchise in the upstart TGL.
TGL is the new Monday night golf league backed by Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy. TGL is expected to debut in 2024 and produce two-hour telecasts of competitive golf played on a massive golf simulator.
And on Thursday, Ohanian took to social media to announce that he is leading the partnership that owns the franchise, named the Los Angeles Golf Club.
“We see tremendous opportunities to leverage technology to bring golf closer to its fans and to provide an immersive and interactive experience that will captivate both seasoned golf enthusiasts and new fans,” Ohanian wrote on Twitter.
No financial terms of the transaction were announced. Sportico reported in April that owners of the first six franchises would receive a 3 percent equity stake.
This is not Ohanian’s first foray into sports. He is a co-founder and leading investor at Angel City FC, the National Women’s Soccer League team now in its second season.
In 2009, the Williams sisters bought stakes in the Miami Dolphins.
LAGC holds the geographical rights to the Los Angeles area, though the team will compete in Florida at a custom 135,000-square-foot indoor venue under construction at Palm Beach State College.
Investors in the league include basketball icons Kevin Durant, Shaquille O’Neal and Dwyane Wade.
TGL is partnered with the PGA Tour, which will hold 18 percent of the league’s equity, according to Sportico.
In addition to Woods and McIlroy, a slew of PGA Tour notables — Jon Rahm of Spain, Justin Thomas, Collin Morikawa, Rickie Fowler and Adam Scott of Australia — have signed up to participate. The league plans to run its debut season from January through April 2024.
–Field Level Media