Rickie Fowler of New York Golf Club plays a shot on the 13th hole of TGL’s inaugural match on January 7.Pictures
TGL made its long-awaited debut last week in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, and while it’s easy to focus on the current season that ends at the end of March, a bigger picture for the league and its parent company , TMRW Sports, is clear. .
Expansion, new sites, new sports? They are all on the list of prospects for Mike McCarley, co-founder of TMRW Sports alongside Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy.
“We live in a world where everything that has ever been produced can be viewed. So how are you going to cope when someone has a choice over everything? McCarley said from a second-floor suite at the SoFi Center, just hours before the league began.
It’s not myopic to think that success could lead to future expansion into more locations. The golf hotbeds of Las Vegas, Scottsdale and Southern California are all considered viable options. In fact, TMRW officials were already making site visits in 2024.
TGL founders Rory McIlroy, Mike McCarley and Tiger Woods are already planning expansion, including into other sports.Pictures
The Ford family (Detroit Lions), the Wilf family (Minnesota Vikings) and John Bitove, the founder of the Toronto Raptors, were all in town to visit the SoFi Center, the league’s 250,000 square foot venue, during from TGL’s opening night.
Expanding beyond the current six teams would mean more players. Only PGA Tour players can compete, but would the TGL be open to participation by LIV players, should there be a provision for this in an agreement between the tour and the Saudi Public Investment Fund?
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Two LIV players – Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton – were set to compete in TGL before joining LIV ahead of the 2024 season.
“I know it’s interesting and I know everyone’s talking about it and I know it’s fun to pontificate about what might or might not be, but we have a job to do,” McCarley said, who estimates he spends 5 to 10 percent of his time. his time on projects beyond season 1 of TGL. “We need to come up with a really compelling product.”
However, McCarley didn’t back down when asked if TGL had a list of potential LIV players in mind.
“Oh yeah. Yes, absolutely,” McCarley joked. “But the reality is we have a good deal in what we have right now.”
Shane Lowry of Bay Golf Club uses the digital caddy to review how he will play the next hole.Pictures
Golf isn’t TMRW’s only focus. Although TGL is his first project, McCarley said from the start that it wouldn’t be his only one.
“Are there any sports that have big, truly global stars that you can lean on and just reimagine or reimagine and do it with the biggest stars in the world? That’s the key,” McCarley said.
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McCarley would not go into detail. These details can be found in his home, on his bedside table, where he says he regularly wakes up in the middle of the night to scribble down new ideas.
“We’ve featured almost every sport from around the world, but there are some that I think are just more interesting. … For me, it’s just about looking at it and digging into it and saying, “OK, if I could change this, if I change that, what would that potentially be?” “, he said.
Asked about a timeline for projects beyond TGL, McCarley said the ideal would be within five years. TGL launched the SoFi Center less than two years ago.
TMRW’s workforce now numbers 80, spread across South Florida and TMRW’s headquarters in Winter Park.