Tiger Woods' new golf league delays start of season by a year after venue collapse

Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy's indoor play league, TGL, has postponed its inaugural play by a twelvemonth until the commencement of 2025, the enactment said Monday.

The determination comes aft the extortion of the caller arena slated to big TGL matches collapsed past week. The league said the powerfulness strategy utilized during operation of the SoFi Center successful Palm Beach Gardens, Florida failed, causing a dome operation to deflate.

The mishap did not origin injuries oregon harm the league's play simulators and different technology, TGL said. But TGL delayed the season, which was expected to commencement successful January, aft speaking to cardinal partners.

"This determination came aft reviewing short-term solutions, imaginable operation timelines, subordinate schedules, and the primetime sports tv calendar," the league said successful a statement. "We are assured that the hold volition lone amended our delivery."

TGL, which counts the PGA Tour arsenic a partner, was founded by McIlroy, Woods and erstwhile NBC enforcement Mike McCarthy. The trio wants to make a primetime indoor play league to pull caller fans to the athletics astatine arsenic the emergence of the Saudi-backed LIV Golf, and past its projected merger with the PGA Tour, near play astatine a crossroads.

Woods was optimistic astir the league's aboriginal contempt the delayed launch.

"Although the events of past week volition unit america to marque adjustments to our timelines, I'm afloat assured that this conception volition beryllium brought to beingness by our large committed players," Woods said successful a connection Monday.

TGL has drawn immoderate of the champion golfers successful the satellite arsenic portion of its lineup. It's unclear however the caller timeline could impact subordinate participation.

The league has besides attracted a fig of high-profile squad owners and investors including hedge funder Steve Cohen, Atlanta Falcons proprietor Arthur Blank, Fenway Sports Group, tech founder Alexis Ohanian and tennis stars Serena and Venus Williams. Other investors successful the league include hoops large Stephen Curry, contention car operator Lewis Hamilton, women's shot subordinate Alex Morgan, vocalist Justin Timberlake and pro football's Tony Romo and Josh Allen.

TGL signed a multi-year media rights woody with ESPN successful October to broadcast its events.

ESPN said it afloat supports the determination to postpone the 2024 season.

"We person believed successful them and their imaginativeness from the beginning, and that has not changed. The further clip to plan, trial and rehearse volition lone marque it better, said Rosalyn Durant, enforcement vice president, programming and acquisitions astatine ESPN.