Tiger Woods is poised to return to competitive golf in a blockbuster showdown against Rory McIlroy for TGL’s comeback.
Woods suffered an achilles rupture in March, sidelining him from the Masters and virtually every tournament since. The 15-time major champion emerged in September and was spotted hitting balls in an encouraging injury development.
ESPN has now revealed the Season 2 TGL schedule and he will clash with McIlroy on March 1. It comes after Woods was snubbed in proposals for the next USA Ryder Cup captain.
McIlroy and Woods are both co-founders of TGL, and will battle each other in TGL’s inaugural primetime Sunday night encounter following the wrap-up of the PGA Tour’s Cognizant Classic. McIlroy competes for Boston Common Golf and Woods plays for Jupiter Links.
The network premiere on ABC will be a repeat of last season’s exciting finals between Atlanta Drive GC and second-place New York Golf Club, where both championship matches were decided by a single point.
Mike McCarley, a Founder and CEO of TMRW Sports and TGL says that it “returns for Season 2 with an elevated experience for fans at SoFi Center and those watching at home.
“We worked with our partner at ESPN on an enhanced schedule for our second season that includes TGL’s broadcast network debut on ABC,” he said.
In the fourth contest of the season, Woods and Jupiter Links will meet Season 1 second-place finishers New York Golf Club. Last season, New York mounted an amazing turnaround as they secured a playoff spot and advanced to the Finals after beginning with two defeats.
New York features Cameron Young, Xander Schauffele, and Matt Fitzpatrick, while Woods will team up with Max Homa, Tom Kim, and Kevin Kisner.
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During the previous campaign, New York crushed Jupiter to secure their inaugural triumph after revamping their entrance music and ultimately prevailing 10-3. Woods, Kisner, and Kim failed to find their rhythm in the early stages.
TGL showcases six squads comprised of elite PGA Tour professionals and features a 15-match regular season that incorporates seven contests in nine days, representing almost half of the regular season schedule. The leading four squads advance to the TGL playoffs, which culminate in a best-of-three Finals on Monday, March 23.
ESPN executive Rosalyn Durant stated that TGL “delivered everything we had hoped for in its first season: an innovative new sports product, good competition among the stars of the PGA Tour and a strong audience.”
The campaign will span from December 28 to March 3, with the premier teams progressing to the playoffs at the conclusion of March. During the season, matches will broadcast in the U.S. on ABC, ESPN, ESPN2 and the ESPN App.
