A Presidents’ Day tripleheader took place Monday in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, as TGL took over the airwaves with three fun-filled matches. Both Atlanta Drive and The Bay Golf Club pulled double duty, while Los Angeles Golf Club and Boston Common Golf both made appearances as well.
The first match showcased the full TGL experience — the new hammer rule (which grants each team three hammers to use throughout the match), a comeback for the ages and another overtime session. In the end, Justin Thomas, Billy Horschel and Patrick Cantlay of Atlanta eked out a 6-5 win over Sahith Theegala, Justin Rose and Tommy Fleetwood (despite his heroics) of Los Angeles.
Atlanta sat Horschel in the second match making room for Lucas Glover’s TGL debut. This trio squared off against Wyndham Clark, Ludvig Åberg and Min Woo Lee of The Bay Golf Club, who got off to a fast start and never looked back. While the match was tied late, Clark came up clutch and won both his holes in singles to grab a 6-5 victory and take care of Atlanta.
The primetime match was brimming with energy following two close matches as The Bay tried to keep its undefeated record in tact against Rory McIlroy’s Boston Common Golf. Just like the first two, the final match needed all 15 holes to determine a winner with Clark capturing the moment and sealing the team’s third straight victory with a closing eagle.
Let’s revisit each match along with takeaways from the in-person experience as I attended my first TGL match taking in the perspective of a spectator.
Match 1 — ATL: 6 | LAGC: 5
The man a couple seats down from me stated multiple times, “This is the greatest match in league history” — unironically. To be fair, he was right, and I don’t think he’ll be proven wrong for quite some time. Los Angeles took the opening sessions of triples 3-2 and looked like it was going to run away with the match by grabbing the first two points of singles.
Down by three with as many holes to play, Atlanta used a hammer at the onset of the hole (which must be accepted), and it completely flipped the match as Horschel took care of Rose, who made a mess around the greens. Fleetwood held off Cantlay on the penultimate hole, but Thomas took matters into his own hands one hole later when he chipped in to force overtime. While Fleetwood made his pitch shot, which should just win the match (in my opinion), Horschel and Cantlay grabbed the other two points and the victory in the process.
Match 2 — BAY: 6 | ATL: 5
Atlanta’s heady hammer strategy couldn’t make up for the slow start in this one. The Bay took an early 3-0 lead thanks to some short-game theatrics from Lee, who made his league debut and is unsurprisingly made for the arena. Atlanta cut the edge to one by the time triples was over. The Bay’s lead doubled when Clark clipped Cantlay on the opening hole of singles. Thomas once again threw the hammer against Lee, and once again, he tied the match a couple holes later. This one had overtime written all over it, but Clark forced Cantlay’s hand when he used a hammer while holding the advantage and took the deciding point on the third-to-last hole to give Atlanta its first loss of the year.
Match 3 — BAY: 5 | BOS: 4
Looking to Shane Lowry in lieu of Lee, The Bay fell down early when Hideki Matsuyama used the hammer to perfection. The Bay clawed its way back and led 3-2 at the end of triples before a back-and-forth singles session took place. Bradley bounced one in from the greenside on No. 10 and clipped Lowry in their second go-around to tie it up. Setting the stage for the final match between Clark and Matsuyama, it was the American, who made the most of the moment as he converted his 9-foot eagle putt to push The Bay to 3-0 on the season and atop the standings.
Doing it live
I didn’t necessarily know what to expect attending my first TGL match, particularly when doing so as a spectator. Watching players hit a golf ball into a large screen in person doesn’t sound like it will move the needle at first glance, but I went into it with an open mind ready to take full advantage of the experience.
After taking pictures of my father and his friend — a couple guys in their 60s who are the exact opposite of the intended audience — with a virtual Tiger Woods, we made our way to our seats and waited for the action to get underway. Gameplay was explained, the DJ was introduced, and players made their entrances. It was go time.
Going into the match, I assumed I would miss hearing the players chop it up with each other, but I didn’t. Whether that says more about the players or myself, I’m not sure. What they did do great, however, was interact with the crowd. Walking up to the green, Theegala consistently tried to inject energy into the arena while Horschel and Fleetwood were tossing golf balls to young kids every chance they got — like they were feeding Hungry, Hungry Hippos.
The most surprising aspect may have been just how much some fans were into the action. Notthe kids who flooded the arena thanks to the Presidents’ Day holiday but rather the adults, some of whom got so caught up in the match they started throwing questionable language at players (not kidding!).
Situated in perhaps the best area in the arena — lower level directly in line with the simulator screen and right next to the putting surface, we were able to get up close to shots like Thomas’ chip-in to force overtime, Rose’s kerfuffle that flipped the match and Fleetwood’s flair for the dramatic.
It all reiterated a point I made in the past: Despite being a tech-based golf league with plenty of bright lights that draw oohs and aahs, the best golf still happens in person.
If you can swing it, experience TGL for yourself at least once. The proximity to players and lack of jockeying needed to see some of the world’s best do what they do best is a huge selling point. Their guards are down, they are having fun with it, and it translates not only to the golf but the entire arena.
