Featured image credit: TGL
TGL, the new primetime team golf league developed by Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy’s TMRW Sports venture in partnership with the PGA Tour, has awarded its latest franchise to Arthur Blank.
TGL Atlanta will form part of Blank’s AMB Sports and Entertainment (AMBSE) portfolio, joining the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons, Major League Soccer’s Atlanta United, and Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Atlanta is the third TGL team location to be confirmed, with six to be announced in total ahead of the launch of the first season in January 2024. Fenway Sports Group was announced as the owner of a Boston-based team in June, while a Los Angeles-based franchise will be co-owned by tennis legends Serena and Venus Williams alongside the former’s husband, entrepreneur Alexis Ohanian.
Blank and his team already own and operate PGA Tour Superstore, the largest specialty golf retail chain in the world. PGA Tour Superstore will oversee operations of AMBSE’s entry in TGL, with the team name and brand to be unveiled later in the year.
Blank said: “One of the missions of our golf business is to help grow the game and all of AMBSE is oriented toward representing Atlanta as best we can on and off the fields we compete on.
“We are thrilled to partner with TMRW Sports and be a founding owner in TGL. I see this as an investment to grow the game, deliver an innovative product to avid fans while exposing golf to new, younger audiences, and another way for us to compete for championships for Atlanta. We will put our best foot forward in effort to achieve all three goals and to help TGL achieve success in any way we can.”
TGL will be staged in a purpose-built arena in Palm Beach, Florida on the campus of Palm Beach State College. The season will feature 15 regular-season matches followed by semi-finals and finals.
Twelve players have so far committed to playing in TGL: Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm, Justin Thomas, Collin Morikawa, Matt Fitzpatrick, Justin Rose, Adam Scott, Xander Schauffele, Max Homa, Rickie Fowler, and Billy Horschel.
The six teams of three players will face off in head-to-head match play, with the events to include a data-rich virtual course paired with a tech-infused short-game complex. Every shot will be shown live within a two-hour primetime televised match.
TMRW Sports broke ground on its first TGL facility in Palm Beach back in February. The CAA Icon agency has been appointed to oversee the development, design and construction of the venue.
The announcement of the TGL Atlanta team comes as the city’s East Lake Golf Club prepares to host the PGA Tour’s season-closing Tour Championship this weekend.
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