Tiger Woods will make his highly-anticipated TGL debut against Collin Morikawa and the Los Angeles Golf Club.
After a successful launch on Jan. 7, which received tremendous acclaim from golf fans, TGL returns on Tuesday with the biggest name in the game.
Tiger Woods, one of the co-founders, will lead his Jupiter Golf Links into battle against the Los Angeles Golf Club, the team headlined by two-time major winner Collin Morikawa.
Sahith Theegala and Justin Rose will join Morikawa, while the fourth member of their team, Tommy Fleetwood, will play in the Hero Dubai Desert Classic this week. Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm, and Tyrrell Hatton are also playing in that event, which has historically been among the most prestigious on the DP World Tour.
Back at the SoFi Center in Florida, Kevin Kisner, a PGA Tour fan favorite turned NBC Sports analyst, and Max Homa, a comedic genius like Kisner, will join Woods in their match against Los Angeles. Hearing these guys talk strategy and throw jabs at one another should be a delight.
Match 2: Jupiter Links Golf Club vs. Los Angeles Golf Club
Key Team Stats for Jupiter Links:
TGL
Average Official World Golf Ranking: 671
- Max Homa: 45
- Kevin Kisner: 832
- Tiger Woods: 1136
Total PGA Tour wins: 92 (Woods with 82)
Major wins: 15 (Woods with 15)
2024 Average of Total Strokes Gained: -1.204 (Would be 173rd on PGA Tour)
- Max Homa: -0.054 (113th on PGA Tour)
- Kevin Kisner: -1.691 (180th)
- Tiger Woods: -1.867 (N/A)
Odds to Win Match via FanDuel Sportsbook: +125
Key Team Stats for Los Angeles:
TGL
Average Official World Golf Ranking: 23.3
- Collin Morikawa: 4
- Sahith Theegala: 13
- Justin Rose: 53
Total PGA Tour wins: 18 (Rose has 11)
Major wins: 3 (Morikawa has 2)
2024 Average of Total Strokes Gained: 0.567 (Would be 43rd on PGA Tour)
- Collin Morikawa: 1.203 (5th)
- Sahith Theegala: 0.944 (16th)
- Justin Rose: -0.445 (152nd)
Odds to Win Match via FanDuel Sportsbook: -163
The Story:
Whenever Tiger Woods is involved, the golf world is intrigued. Look no further than last month’s PNC Championship, where Woods and his son Charlie lost in a playoff to Bernhard and Jason Langer. But the highlight of that event — and likely the highlight of the decade for the Woods family — was Charlie’s incredible ace on the 4th hole. The shot immediately went viral and produced one of the most incredible images of the 2024 golf season.
Fast forward to this week, and Woods is ready to compete again. He had back surgery in September but showed no signs of pain at the PNC Championship. He even walked 18 holes for three straight days, something many did not think he could do, considering his recent operation. Luckily for Woods, he does not have to walk far at the SoFi Center; he will only have to hit shots into the screen and then proceed to the Green Zone occasionally.
How he will fare will be the talk of the sporting world on Tuesday. He missed the cut at the PGA Championship, U.S. Open, and Open Championship last year after finishing dead last at The Masters. His only other start in 2024 came at the Genesis Invitational in February, but he withdrew, citing an illness.
For Woods to now play is a rarity, considering he is 49 years old and is less than a year away from being eligible for the Champions Tour. But he is still the needle, as emphasized by this past year’s Performance Impact Program on the PGA Tour, of which he won again. Hence, Woods playing Tuesday is the biggest story that overshadows every other player. Everyone else is used to that, too, because Woods transcended the sport beyond anyone’s wildest imagination. He also put together the greatest season of all time 25 years ago — one that will never be replicated again. Maybe Woods can invoke some TGL magic in 2025.
The 15-time major winner will be joined by Homa and Kisner, who both had tough 2024 campaigns. Homa had only three top 10s in his 22 events played last year. He most recently tied for 26th at The Sentry to open the 2025 season. Kisner, meanwhile, is on the back nine of his career, as evidenced by his recent deal with NBC Sports. Yet he still played 23 times but missed 17 cuts. His best finish came at the Butterfield Bermuda Championship, where he tied for 29th.
On the flip side lies one of the best players in the world in Morikawa.
The former California Golden Bear had a stellar 2024 season, even though he did not emerge victorious. Scottie Scheffler had something to do with that on several occasions, especially at the Memorial and at East Lake.
Morikawa now arrives at the SoFi Center after posting a 32-under par score at The Sentry, which ranked as the fifth-lowest 72-hole score in PGA Tour history. And yet, Morikawa lost by three to Hideki Matsuyama, who set the PGA Tour scoring record. It’s been that type of stretch for the two-time major winner, but Morikawa is undoubtedly the best player in this week’s match.
Theegala, meanwhile, is the only one to have played at both The Sentry and the Sony Open in Hawaii. He posted a T-36 and a T-37 to begin his 2025 and now arrives in South Florida after a long flight from Honolulu. Hopefully, he feels well-rested.
And then there is Rose, who just led Great Britain and Ireland to a Team Cup victory in Abu Dhabi. Like Theegala, Rose had to travel a long way to get to the SoFi Center, which could lead to a fatigued performance from the Los Angeles Golf Club. Yet, considering they have Morikawa, Los Angeles will tee it up as the favorite over Woods, Kisner, and Homa.
Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Follow him on X @jack_milko.