The idea will make the "purists" turn up their noses but in the United States they are convinced: the future of golf is indoors, in a stadium with spectators-fans and a video simulator. This is the TGL Golf League (Technological League) which - far from being the announcement of a whim - kicks off on January 7 in Palm Beach (with a year's delay on the schedule due to an organizational problem) and sees among its "godfathers" the legendary Tiger Woods.
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Tiger Woods, results
In the eyes of a European who in golf - in addition to club changes, pars and holes - glimpses tranquility, bucolic landscapes and contact with nature it seems like an "American thing". But their creators and financiers who have invested millions of dollars in the project do not think so. The tournament was created by Mike McCarley, former president of the TV channel Golf Channel, who created the new League together with Tiger Woods and another great champion like Rory Mcllroy. They were then joined by Ryan Dotters, the CEO of a company that creates "Full Swing" golf simulators, i.e. equipment that uses cameras, sensors and video screens to allow professionals and practitioners to train and improve indoors.
The playing field is located inside a stadium and is the size of four basketball courts: in the center of the dome there is a pitch where players can hit the ball with the club and give input to the computer sensors while in the background a huge screen projects the images of the shot. Obviously the holes can be of any type: from references to historic courses to more imaginative scenarios such as volcanoes, temples or canyons.
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In short, a huge video game where the player can physically hit the ball and the public can watch the match comfortably on the screen at the stadium or at home. "Like an NBA game", explain the organizers. The business idea is in fact to pique the interest of the public who have no intention of reaching an outdoor golf course and perhaps prefer to follow their champions sitting in the stands with a bag of popcorn in their hands.
The new League includes six teams: Atlanta Drive, Boston Common, Jupiter Links, Los Angeles, New York and The Bay Club. The game is played three-on-three on six holes in team competitions or one-on-one on nine holes.
The proposal with a strong commercial connotation meets the increase in the average age of potential spectators and the change in attitude of young people, less and less attracted to the sport played and closer to the world of video games. This is not the first experiment in "modernizing" a sport.
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The success of padel sets a precedent: widespread diffusion without taking away players from tennis. Even more similar is the experience of the King's League which combines video games and football. The future will tell who is right. Golf has reached the Olympics but its diffusion is still relegated to a few states.
Who knows, maybe the new "version" will open up new scenarios.
The new League does not intend to compete with the PGA Tour. The project has gathered many investors made in the USA, and not only. The organizers have leaked the names of "celebrities" such as NBA champions Stephen Curry, Andre Iguodala, Shaquille O'Neal, Dwyane Wade, Kevin Durant or Formula 1 star Lewis Hamilton. Among the financiers there are also baseball players Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout and former tennis player Serena Williams. Singer Justin Timberlake is also said to be involved in the project. On January 7, as mentioned, the first match. The experiment has started
