Tiger Woods, arguably the best golfer of all time, just started a new innovative golf league that hosts some of the best golf talents right now. Unlike a regular golf league, this one uses high-tech golf simulators and is indoors. Golfers use the simulator up until they are 50 yards within the hole, and from there, they putt on a green that can move for every hole.
The league hosted its first game on Jan. 7, after being delayed in 2024 for a year because construction was destroyed due to a power failure. People were unsure what tier of players would participate in this league. The deciding factor of top tier players joining was Tiger Woods personally explaining how this league would change the world of golf. This influenced players to join and build a few teams with well known golfers.
I asked a few players on our Alexandria City High School varsity golf team what they thought about the league and how they think it will influence the future of golf.
Senior Henry Gibbs had this to say about the legitimacy of golf simulations: “My friend works at Dick’s Sporting Goods and he can mess with the launch angle which makes it seem like someone has hit it further. Surprisingly enough, a couple people actually bought new clubs as a result of the inflated scores.”
This is a surprising piece of insider information because I didn’t think you could adjust the scale of how you shoot, which may bring legitimacy of results from this league. Gibbs also does not think that the Tomorrow Golf League will have much of an impact on the game of golf, “because golf is such a traditional game. I feel like some traditional values in the sport will never be broken.” Another golfer on the team, junior Claire Williams, said, “I don’t think this league will be influential because we don’t use it to train.”
The way that they play the games are completely different from regular golf leagues, because they play indoors and are on teams of four (but only three people can play in a game). They play nine holes of triples, in which the team can alternate who hits. Then they play six holes of singles, in which each player gets two holes. Each hole is worth one point, ties are worth zero points, and there are no stroke carry-overs. Teams have the option to throw a hammer, a flag that doubles the points for the hole, but either team can gain these doubled points. Once the hammer is thrown, it is given to the other team, and they get the choice to throw it or keep it for a later round.
The teams are also extremely exciting, holding some of the biggest names and best players in the country. The teams who have already played are the Bay Golf Club and the New York Golf Club. They played each other in the first match ever for the league, in which the Bay Golf Club won 9-2. This match was a beat down, but it was still entertaining to watch. The Bay Golf Club has a team of all great players, including Ludvig Aberg, Wyndham Clark, and Shane Lowrey. Ludvig Aberg is one of the best current golfers and consistently places top 10 in the golf tournaments he participates in. But having one good player can’t hoist your team to the win, as the New York Golf Club showed: Xander Shauffele is easily a top golfer right now, but he couldn’t bring his team to the win himself, as the whole team was played poorly the whole game, only winning 2 holes out of 15. However, anything can change as the league goes on, and playoffs start in March.
