Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy pictured with TMRW Sports CEO and co-founder Mike McCarley
Tiger and Rory set to launch ‘Monday night’ golf league
While Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy have been rivals on the golf course for many years, they have kindled a strong friendship off the course, and now they have come together to set up a new technology-driven company that aims to focus on “progressive approaches to sports, media and entertainment’.
Their company is called TMRW Sports (pronounced ‘tomorrow’) and former president of NBC Sports’ golf Mike McCarley is a co-founder and will be the company’s chief executive.
TGL will see six three-man teams comprising leading PGA TOUR players compete over a two-hour timescale on Monday nights in the US
It is understood that Woods and McIlroy’s new business will aim to bring together the top golfers in the world to compete against each other in a “non-green grass, stadium environment” that is going by the name of TGL [The Golf League].
Speaking ahead of this week’s Tour Championship, McIlroy said that TMRW Sport’s TGL would be looking to stage 15 events involving six three-man teams competing in a ‘high-tech golf league’ on 15 Monday evenings, starting in January 2024. The events will be over 18 holes and will take just two hours to complete.
Woods said: “I am excited to work with TMRW Sports in bringing people more access to sports. So many athletes, entertainers, and people I meet from all walks of life share our passion for sports, but they also share our desire to build a better future for the next generation of sports fans. Together, we can harness technology to bring fresh approaches to the sports we love.”
The TGL events are designed to bring some of the excitement and game play that will attract non-traditional golf audiences
McIlroy said: “For the last few years off the course, I’ve been focused on helping to lead golf into its digital future. Now, by joining forces with Tiger, Mike, and other TMRW Sports partners, we can shape the way that media and technology improve the sports experience. In a world where technology provides us with so many choices for using our time, we want to make sports more accessible for as many people as possible.”
Both Woods and McIlroy already operate their own businesses, with Woods overseeing TGR Ventures, which includes PopStroke, Full Swing Golf, TGR Design, The Woods Jupiter and Heard; while McIlroy’s company, Symphony Ventures, has an investment portfolio that includes Puttery, GolfPass, GolfNow Compete, Golf Genius, Golf+, Troon Golf, Hyperice and Whoop.
