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TGL got off to a strong start on Tuesday night at the So-Fi Center in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida – bright lights, music and more – I mean, lots – influential; Introducing WWE-like players; ESPN’s Scott Van Pelt waxed poetic on the show.
And then it was Shane Lowry’s turn to score the first goal in league history.
There was just one problem: he forgot his shirt.
“There was a lot going on,” Lowry said. “Yeah, I was a little nervous.”
Lowry recovered quickly, teaming up with The Bay Golf Club mates Ludwig Aberg and Wyndham Clark to record a 9-2 victory over New York Golf Club in the inaugural match for the indoor golf league backed by Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy, who both were in a crowd at the opening.
Fifteen holes of this innovative golf simulator were played in a 250,000-square-foot arena that features a screen 24 times the size of a regular simulator and a 22,475-square-foot, short-game grass area complete with rotating virtual greens, where Aberg rolled in 15 feet on the opening hole for first birdie in the league.
A hole later, Aberg became the first TGL player to find the penalty area, on the par-5 Pick Yer Plunder (hole of the night?), although Bay still led 6-1 after nine holes of alternative shots for three.
“I’ve always said that I’m so jealous of basketball players and soccer players because they often do it and we don’t,” Aberg said in a post-match interview with Van Pelt. “So this whole ballpark feel … it makes you go a little bit different than a normal golf tournament.
Aberg added: “My heart was pounding, I was sweating… it was a different competitive environment that we’re not really used to, but I think this is the future, this is where the game is going to go, and I love it. ”
Then DJ Khaled stepped in, interrupting the live television interview, to wrap the SportsCenter Top 10 chain around Aberg’s neck. Khaled was featured seconds after the broadcast and was also interviewed by ESPN’s Marty Smith, while Matt Fitzpatrick hit on; Fitzpatrick’s ball also almost rolled off the cliff, as Khaled wandered.
OK, it wasn’t a perfect debut, but there’s a good foundation to build on.
The shot clock, which was “imposed” by NBA referee Derrick Stafford, kept a fast pace. The mugging was solid, especially from mic bests Xander Schauffele, Lowry and Clark, who could be heard chirping at Woods after Woods said during his time in the booth that New York, already big, should drop the hammer double the points (another objection: why is the hammer a flag?).
“Tiger, have you ever played hammer?” Clark shouted. “They went green!”
Schauffele throwing the hammer flag in front of Lowry just before the drive was good theater, as was Rickie Fowler conceding the shot to Lowry before realizing the crowd was unaware; Fowler then told Lowry to play along, and when Lowry hit his shot, Fowler threw the flag stick onto the green to deflect the ball.
She completed the night on the 729-yard par-5, although by then the buzz was smoldering amid The Bay’s blast. The match lasts just under 2 hours, and ends just after 11 PM ET. Two new teams will compete next Tuesday night, as Woods is expected to make his TGL debut with Jupiter Links Golf Club, who will be up against Collin Morikawa and Los Angeles Golf Club.
“This was just a dream come true,” Woods said during the broadcast. “Rory and I talked about it; it’s hard to believe that that dream has come true and that we’ve been able to take golf into another stratosphere, really.”
