New York Golf Club (NYGC) has scored its first victory in the new TGL season. They triumphed over Tiger Woods and Jupiter Links Golf Club (JLGC) with a commanding 10-3 win at the SoFi Center in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.
This match saw Rickie Fowler, Cameron Young, and Matt Fitzpatrick guiding NYGC to a strong start. For Woods and his team, which included Tom Kim and Kevin Kisner, it was a tough day. They couldn’t build on their previous win against Boston Common Golf and settled into a 1-2 record.
Tiger Woods was back on the course after the recent loss of his mother. He announced he wouldn’t compete in the Genesis Invitational after her passing on February 4. Though he couldn’t lead his team to victory this time, the event still generated a lot of conversation online.
The match format was exciting. The teams played triples for the first half, alternating shots with drives and iron shots on the simulator, followed by chips and putts on the green. After that, it shifted to six one-hole singles matches. There was also a unique twist called the Hammer rule: each team had three Hammers to use throughout the game. Throwing a Hammer increased the hole’s value by one point, allowing for some strategic plays.
At one point, JLGC found its momentum with the help of a Hammer. Tom Kim sank a putt on the last hole of the triples phase, narrowing the score to 8-2 after NYGC had a strong early lead. Interestingly, before the match, the New York Mets’ star Pete Alonso gave them a pep talk that seemed to energize the NYGC players.
Woods eventually led JLGC to their first singles point with a birdie, but Fowler swiftly countered with one of his own, keeping the match out of reach for JLGC.
One of the evening’s lighter moments occurred when Woods misjudged a distance on the 13th hole. Thinking he was 99 yards away, he used a wedge and fell short by quite a bit, causing laughter among his teammates. Woods later joked during the ESPN broadcast that it was one of his more embarrassing moments, highlighting the fun spirit of TGL.
Despite not winning, JLGC seemed to enjoy the game and the new format, which has drawn attention to golf even on weekdays without major tournaments.
