After a small break, TGL was back in action. The sixth day, was a triple match feature with 4 of the 6 TGL teams in action. All three matches proved to be exciting contests, with two matches decided by a point and one match decided in overtime.
The first match saw Atlanta Drive Golf Club take on the Los Angeles Golf Club. The LAGC held a slender 3- 2 lead after the triples section. Victories for Justin Rose and Tommy Fleetwood over Billy Horschel and Patrick Cantlay respectively pushed the lead to 3. However, the Drive staged a miraculous comeback, tying the score at the last hole before clinching the victory in the playoff.
In the second match, the Atlanta Drive was involved again. The thrilling encounter however went to the Bay Golf Club, who edged out the earlier winners by a score of 6-5. Wyndham Clark’s victory over Patrick Cantlay on the 13th hole proved to be the clincher. Bay Golf Club maintained their unbeaten run after claiming victory against Boston Common Golf during the third encounter of the day. Wyndham Clark proved to be the game changer again winning his 15th hole tie against Hideki Matsuyama for a 5-4 victory.
The TGL which was initially lambasted for their boring, one-sided encounters had a remarkable day 6 with three tightly-fought matches. ESPN Radio Host and Anchor Peter Burns unpacked an interesting thought post the festivities on day 6 of TGL. The exciting matches had ESPN Reporter commenting that the TGL is a much more entertaining product than the Saudi fund-backed LIV Golf.
ESPN Reporter blasts LIV Golf’s poor viewership
He explained that the Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy-led endeavor proved to be more thrilling since it’s inception in January compared to LIV Golf’s entire history since starting in 2022 “TGL has provided more of an interesting watch in a month than LIV Golf has in the last 3 years.”
TGL has provided more of an interesting watch in a month than LIV Golf has in the last 3 years.
— Peter Burns (@PeterBurnsESPN) February 18, 2025
Is there any merit to this? Well, in terms of viewership, TGL is proving to be head-and-shoulders ahead of the rivals from Saudi Arabia. During their first five matches, the TGL is averaging nearly 802,000 viewers. The viewership peaked on day 2 when they hit more than 1 million viewers who tuned in to catch the great Tiger Woods in action for his team Jupiter Links Golf Club. Is that a good number? That is way bigger viewership than any LIV Golf broadcast on The CW over the last two years. The Woods and McIlroy face-off on day 4 was also well received with 864,000 people tuning in.
Elsewhere, LIV Golf has struggled with its ratings, despite its deal with Fox Sports. The first day of LIV Riyadh only had 12,000 viewers tune in to watch big names like Brooks Koepka, Bryson DeChambeau, and Jon Rahm. While the ratings did peak on Sunday, the average viewership for the Saudi leg was only 19,000. LIV Adelaide, however, showed great numbers. The event held at Grange Golf Club in Australia, had 114,000 viewers tune in on the first day. The significant increase from the first event to the second event is a great sign for LIV Golf, but it is nowhere near good enough.
TGL’s viewership declined considerably for the 5th match, only registering 544,000 viewers. But that number is expected to peak for day 6 which had three exciting encounters. The upcoming Day 7 also promises to be an exciting one.
TGL day 7 promises to be an exciting encounter
Day 7 will feature Tiger Woods‘s Jupiter Links Golf Club against Rickie Fowler and the New York Golf Club. Woods has confirmed his participation in the event, which will be the first time he will be competing in any form after the tragic passing of his mother Kultida Woods. He is joined by Kevin Kisner and Tom Kim, with Max Homa omitted.
On the other side for New York Golf Club, Xander Schauffele misses the second TGL match in a row. The World No.2 is yet to feature in any competition since the opening day of TGL and in his stead joining Rickie Fowler are Matt Fitzpatrick and Cameron Young. The New York Golf Club is yet to win after losing their first two matches and currently are at the bottom of the table.
The Jupiter Links Golf Club, on the other hand, has one win and one loss from their first two matches. Tiger Woods and Co. would be looking to make a statement and push harder to move higher up the table. Do you think Jupiter Links Golf Club will get their second win in a row? Or will the New York Golf Club surprise the field?
The post ESPN Reporter Burns Brooks Koepka, Bryson DeChambeau With a Harsh LIV Golf-TGL Comparison appeared first on EssentiallySports.
