Tiger Woods’ TGL debut tops NBA ratings despite rout

MIAMI – Tiger Woods was routed at his own game on Jan 14, but his defeat was still more appealing to sports fans than the National Basketball Association (NBA).

The golf great’s Tomorrow’s Golf League (TGL) debut was watched by more than one million viewers, up 9 per cent from the league’s first match last week and more than the NBA viewership on TNT.

For the second consecutive week, the TGL produced a one-sided match with Woods’ Jupiter Links Golf Club falling 12-1 to the Los Angeles Golf Club. Albeit in the new virtual golf league, it marked the 15-time Major champion’s first competitive golf event since missing the cut at the British Open in July 2024.

The match peaked at 1.13 million viewers from 8.30pm to 8.45pm Eastern Time, according to the Sports Business Journal. It technically ended at 8.50pm and the telecast ended at 9.18pm.

Head to head, the NBA game between Cleveland Cavaliers and Indiana Pacers on TNT attracted 956,000 viewers, followed by 853,000 tuned in to the Denver Nuggets v Dallas Mavericks game that started at 9.35pm.

Woods’ team absorbed the second consecutive rout to kick off TGL’s inaugural season, following The Bay Golf Club’s 9-2 victory over New York Golf Club on Jan 7. That match drew nearly a million viewers, and eclipsed the audience numbers for any LIV Golf broadcast on the CW Network over the past two years.

Jupiter Links will have a chance for quick redemption when they face Boston Common Golf in the debut for Rory McIlroy’s team on Jan 27.

The 15-match regular season runs until March 4, followed by the play-offs later that month.

Meanwhile, Woods has admitted he has far greater concerns than the status of the Genesis Invitational in February, the PGA Tour event that he has hosted since 2017.

With wildfires ravaging the Los Angeles area, he said that real life carries more weight than the event that is slated to be held at the Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades from Feb 13 to 16.

“It’s just sad,” Woods told reporters at the SoFi Centre after his TGL match.

“Max (Homa) and I have grown up there. We’re SoCal kids. To see what has happened, I’ve known a couple of people who lost everything, so it’s just hard.

“As far as the Genesis, we’re just trying to figure everything out and make sure that everyone is safe and we have meetings scheduled going forward.

“But as of right now, we’re not really focused on the tournament. It’s more about what we can do to help everyone who’s struggling, who has lost homes and had their lives changed.”

Riviera was spared from the fires despite being in the mandatory evacuation zone. The PGA Tour has not made a final decision on whether it will host the tournament.

Homa, Woods’ TGL teammate, also said golf should not be the primary focus right now.

“I know that these natural disasters happen far too often. However, this was the first one I can remember where every news clip, every time someone mentioned an area, I could picture it so well,” he said.

“It was very eerie. Fortunately, all my friends and family are safe. Houses not necessarily still all intact, but it was nice to be able to talk to quite a few people, and I think their perspective has been amazing about, ‘Hey, we’re safe, and that’s what matters most’.”

Collin Morikawa, member of the victorious Los Angeles Golf Club, said of the wildfires: “You think it’s over, but it’s not.

“Winds are picking up. Fires are still going. People are still out there, fighting the fires, protecting their houses, helping their neighbours, helping communities.

“That’s why LA is, to me, such a great city. You see all the people coming together.” REUTERS