The brains behind Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy’s tech-powered golf league have revealed that there are potential bidders lining up to create an expansion franchise. Meanwhile, Serena Williams’ husband is pushing for the introduction of a women’s division in the league.
TGL, which was conceived by Woods, McIlroy, and their business partner Mike McCarley, surpassed expectations in its debut season. It attracted strong viewership on ESPN from its launch in January through to the finals last month.
Based in Palm Beach, the six-team league features many top PGA Tour stars. However, notable players like Scottie Scheffler and Jordan Spieth did not participate in the inaugural season, indicating potential for expansion in terms of new teams and venues in the future.
At the CAA World Congress of Sports this week, McCarley and other TGL executives discussed the possibility of introducing an expansion team. According to the Sports Business Journal, McCarley expressed his pleasant surprise at the number of potential bidders who have shown interest.
He further stated that the pool of potential investors has been narrowed down to those based in the United States. The expansion process will “start with one [new team] and then it’ll grow from there,” he added.
TGL’s lineup of team owners includes a wealth of billionaires such as Atlanta Falcons head honcho Arthur Blank and Stephen Cohen, the big cheese at the New York Mets. A major player in TGL is Dynasty Equity, and their head honcho Don Cornwell reckons that boosting the betting markets for TGL could “turbocharge” its growth by 2026.
Alexis Ohanian, who founded Los Angeles Golf Club, isn’t just any team owner; he’s got his eye on teeing up the game for the ladies. The Reddit trailblazer, hitched to tennis legend Williams and co-owner of NWSL outfit Angel City FC, is champing at the bit to get moving on an LPGA deal.
“I’ve been bugging these guys about the LPGA deal for a minute,” shared Ohanian. “They have been very interested. It’s just these things take time, and I’m not allowed to make any news.”
TGL big wig McCarley echoed this sentiment: “There’s no secret we’re working on that. Alexis has been a great thought leader for us on that, and I think most of our team owners are right behind them in that area, too.”
In a tale close to his heart, Ohanian highlighted the clout of building brands that catch fans’ eyes and hearts. He lapped back to Reddit’s early days when spotting someone donning the site’s logo inked on their skin set off light bulbs.
“That’s when I knew we were probably onto something,” reflected Ohanian. “We knew the individual athletes had huge followings. We believed in the format, all the other things these folks are saying, but could we actually build a brand that one day someone might want a tattoo on their bodies?”.
