TGL Season Recap: 10 Winners and Losers as LA Golf Clinches Top Seed, Tiger Woods’ Team Struggles

As Los Angeles Golf got rolling, they found a way to win late. The momentum factor went a long way as their final two matchups were victories in comeback fashion. Los Angeles trailed 4-0 after 11 holes to New York before winning 5-4 in overtime. Then on Monday, they were down 3-0 after eight holes to win 5-3 against Bay Golf and secure the top seed. Singles action is where LA Golf thrived the most, securing 15 points and winning 13 holes.

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The Boston Common team of Keegan Bradley, Rory McIlroy, Adam Scott, and Hideki Matsuyama struggled throughout the season. In their five matches, they suffered four losses, including one in overtime, and clinched last place in the standings. Boston ranked last in numerous categories, including fairway accuracy, scrambling, and putts inside 10 feet.

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One of the main goals for TGL was the opportunity to have team golf in a match play setting. For the last two years, the PGA Tour no longer has a match-play event. However, in TGL we have seen match play at its finest among the PGA Tour’s best players. Whether it’s professionals helping one another or figuring out how to read the greens, team golf has brought out the best momentum dynamics in match scenarios.

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As teammates help one another, all players are mic’d up. Whether it’s hearing their thoughts on reading the greens or figuring out a shot, having players wear microphones gives viewers insight into what goes through their minds. Additionally, because all of the PGA Tour stars know each other, viewers also get to see the players’ personalities.

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During the Presidents Cup last September, we saw Tom Kim emerge as a showman while representing the International Team. His energy easily translated into TGL competition. Whether taking advantage of the hammer rule or executing a difficult shot, his energy resonated throughout the entire arena. His youthful enthusiasm as a 22-year-old kept his team competitive in matches.

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Despite Tom Kim trying to ride his energy, his teammates — Tiger Woods, Kevin Kisner, and Max Homa — were not able to achieve much success, though they appeared to have a good time. Overall, Jupiter Links went 1-4, with several bad shots that stole the show throughout the season. Already down 10-1 to LA Golf, Kisner found himself in a bunker and shanked the ball in what was probably the worst shot of the season.

A few weeks later, Woods had a 199-yard approach shot. However, Woods only heard “99 yards” instead of “199 yards” from his teammates. In typical Woods legendary fashion, he took out his wedge and hit the ball exactly 99 yards.

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One of the keys to playing in a new environment was how quickly players could adapt to this format. Whether adjusting to the screen, the greens, or the grass around the greens, gameplay adaptability was vital to a team’s success. Bay Golf and LA caught on early, while New York caught on a bit later. The challenge of adapting proved crucial for even the best players in the world. It felt like going back to a player’s rookie season and seeing a course for the first time.

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One of the goals for TGL was to get the PGA Tour’s best players together in primetime on ESPN. However, the viewership numbers outside of primetime did not deliver. On Monday afternoon, the top two teams squared off at 3 p.m. ET on ESPN2. When the ratings were released, only 160,000 viewers watched LA Golf versus Bay Golf, making it the least-watched match of the season. The non-primetime viewership will definitely be something to monitor going into the offseason.

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Bay Golf excelled in the triples format to begin matches, recording 21 points and winning 17 holes. The Bay Golf roster — Ludvig Åberg, Wyndham Clark, Shane Lowry, and Min Woo Lee — led all six teams in fairway accuracy, greens in regulation, scrambling, and putts inside 10 feet. Bay Golf also maintained an impressive 1.9 feet in sand proximity. Clark led all players with 26 points. Bay Golf’s success from tee to green went a long way toward securing a top-two spot in the playoffs.

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The key change as the inaugural season progressed was the hammer rule. TGL modified the hammer rule from a possession-like format to giving each team three hammers for the entire match. As a result, it produced tighter matches and heightened intensity. The first three TGL match scores were 9-2, 12-1, and 4-0, with the latter team not utilizing a hammer. Since the rule change, there have been several close matches, including three one-point matches on February 17.

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