This article was originally published on The Conversation, an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts. Disclosure information is available on the original site.
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Authors: Joseph Dick, PhD Student in Sport Management, University of Guelph; and Shayne MacDonald, Research Assistant, Department of Management, University of Guelph
Over the past several months, the upstart TGL golf league has tried to establish a foothold among golf fans. The league began its inaugural season in January 2025, fusing advanced technology with golf to offer an innovative product.
TGL was created in partnership with the PGA Tour, featuring its star players in matches to complement rather than compete with the PGA Tour.
In terms of viewership, TGL came out of the gates running, averaging 919,000 viewers on ESPN in its debut. As the season progressed, however, TGL averaged 502,400 viewers per telecast, with the final garnering the fifth highest viewership of the 12 TGL matches.
Some have suggested this decline in viewership indicates TGL may be unsustainable. Will TGL have the staying power to keep fans interested, or will it simply prove to be a passing fad?
With the inaugural season finishing, and the Atlanta Drive golf club capturing the league’s first title, now is the time to consider the outlook for golf’s newest upstart.
Team play
The PGA Tour has cemented itself as the preeminent tour in men’s professional golf, integrating its operations within the major tournaments, feeder leagues and the World Ranking system. The TGL, therefore, hopes to integrate and be an addition to the PGA Tour’s position within the history and traditions central to the sport.
TGL differs from traditional golf as players hit their tee and approach shots into a giant simulator at one end of SoFi Centre in Palm Beach Gardens before proceeding to the opposite end of the playing surface to chip and putt around the green.
Players are mic’d up for condensed rounds with a referee and a shot clock. Additionally, TGL has introduced the dynamics of team play, with six teams representing various cities across the United States.
Sacred to fans
As examined in early graduate research of the lead author of this story, Joseph Dick, golf has become a sport sacred to many of its fans. Winning and getting to the highest level of the sport are highly meaningful.
When an experience or pastime like golf becomes sacred to consumers, it gains a higher level of meaning that requirees it to be treated with the utmost respect. A comparison is a gift from a family member that exemplifies the important relationship you share, giving the gift a high level of meaning.
The golfer’s story, and the progression necessary to make it in professional golf, is central to professional golf. The sport has become sacred through the meaning connected to winning and performing at a high level.
As a result, golf events also become highly sacred, and grow to “matter,” with some fans calling it a “holy experience” to attend.
Does the TGL matter to fans?
Some have reported that fans of the upstart league only “sort of care” about it. Research on fandom in sports suggests that people stop being fans when they experience an ongoing conflict between their values and the values of the sport that cannot be realigned.
If TGL fails to resonate with golf fans who deeply cherish the sport, it risks losing fans when it undermines what they see as sacred aspects of the game.
So what should TGL consider doing going forward to align itself more with the culture of golf? Looking ahead, there is already talk of the league looking to expand to new cities. However, further expansion will result in the inclusion of lower-ranked players, demonstrating the prioritization of revenue generation over elite competition.
This change would likely undermine the tenuous connection TGL currently has with the dedication and perseverance of top golfers, further watering down the intense competition that is central to golf.
Introducing elements like a simulator golf world ranking or yearly promotion and relegation of teams in and out of the league could help to introduce features that more closely align with what fans appreciate about golf while preventing TGL’s shine from wearing off.
Finally, the league must continue to have players buy in, but simultaneously be in the league for the authentic values of perseverance and the pursuit of victory.
Money cannot be viewed by fans as a player’s core motivation as players motivated more by paycheques than their passion and dedication to mastering the sport can erode the sacred, meaningful essence that makes a sport revered by its fans.
If TGL’s organizers are not concerned with creating deep-seeded fandom, then the league may instead simply act as mundane entertainment, with little connection with golf fans. But this position will likely ensure that TGL will matter less within golf’s broader culture — something it should strive to integrate with, at least somewhat.
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The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
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This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Disclosure information is available on the original site. Read the original article: https://theconversation.com/will-tgl-have-staying-power-in-golf-or-is-it-just-a-fad-252607
Joseph Dick, PhD Student in Sport Management, University of Guelph; and Shayne MacDonald, Research Assistant, Department of Management, University of Guelph, The Conversation
