The first-ever TGL playoffs begin Monday night, marking a significant milestone for the indoor team golf league co-founded by Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy.
While both founders’ teams failed to make the postseason, the four remaining teams will compete for the Season 1 championship. The playoffs arrive just after Woods suffered a ruptured Achilles, adding an unexpected twist to the season’s conclusion.
One of the leading figures in the league, Los Angeles Golf Club (LAGC) owner Alexis Ohanian, shared his insights ahead of his team’s semifinal clash with No. 4 seed New York Golf Club.
Ohanian, best known as the co-founder of Reddit and a venture capitalist, leads a high-profile investment group that includes Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Alex Morgan and Michelle Wie West.
He has drawn parallels between owning LAGC and his previous experience with Angel City FC, an NWSL club, emphasizing his commitment to growing women’s sports.
An exciting project
Reflecting on TGL’s debut season, Ohanian noted his satisfaction with the league’s ability to adapt. He highlighted midseason rule changes, such as adjustments to the “hammer rule,” which he believes have enhanced competition.
He also acknowledged the role of social media in shaping the league’s perception, pointing out how early skeptics have come around as engagement and interest have increased.
“Once I started spending a little time-you get on social media, you’re following Rose Zhang, Nelly Korda, Charlie Hull, you’re just like, oh my god, there’s so much untapped potential here,” he said in an interview for Front Office Sports.
“And for the same reason, that the PGA Tour has tradition, and all the things that restrain the guys from being their whole selves while playing, it’s an even stronger Kryptonite for women, who-at least in my experience with women’s soccer, women’s track, women’s basketball, all these places that I’ve been investing-they so overperform with storytelling.
“And whether it’s on social media, or broadly, they’re just much more compelling. I’m very excited about the prospect of having a women’s team in the TGL, as well as seeing what happens when we can do crossovers.”
On the business front, Ohanian tracks TGL’s success through digital engagement rather than traditional TV ratings, believing that online virality is a stronger indicator of cultural impact. He also stressed that while investment interest in TGL is growing, he is selective about bringing in new limited partners.
Drawing from lessons learned at Angel City FC, he aims to keep LAGC’s ownership streamlined to maintain meaningful involvement from stakeholders.
“We definitely got an uptick of phone calls once the season started,” he added. “It’s been pretty steadily increasing since. And then even from potential limited partners-this was one lesson I learned from Angel City-we are being very, very intentional about folks that we bring into the cap table.
“We’re not going to have 200 people with small checks. We’re being super thoughtful. We’ll probably add a few more LPs, as well, pretty strategically.”
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