Palm Beach Gardens, Fl – Halfway through the inaugural season of TGL, you could have gotten great odds if you picked New York and Atlanta to face off in the Finals of the new indoor golf league at SoFi Center . . . and yet here we are with a 9pm primetime slot right in the middle of March Madness.
New York began their season 0-2, and they’re “comeback kids” mentality has seen them go 3-0-1 since their slow start. The Atlanta Drive also finished strong, capturing the third seed in the TGL Playoffs, where they took down the mighty Bay Golf Club. After a crucial Hammer decision on the fourteenth knotted the match 5-5 heading to the final hole, the Atlanta Drive Golf Club came up big at the end to pull out a 6-5 win over New York Golf Club in Match 1 of the best-of-three Finals. Atlanta and New York meet again at 7 p.m. Tuesday night in Match 2, where Atlanta can clinch the SoFi Cup title with another victory. If New York takes Match 2, the Finals Series will be decided in Match 3 beginning at 9 p.m. Both matches will be on ESPN and ESPN+.
Match 1 – Birdies and Bogies:
Cam Young started off the evening with a drive into the fairway, Justin Thomas followed by crushing one on an aggressive line on the 535 yard downhill par 4 known as Alpine. Fowler reached safely for NY, as did Billy Horschel for Atlanta. Both teams two putted for par and the hole was tied.
On the 591 yard second, both squads were just off the green in two. Young chipped long, and JT chipped to 4ft. Atlanta tossed the Hammer with the boys from Gotham facing 11 ft for the birdie. NY declined the Hammer – hole conceded and Atlanta took and early 1-0 lead.
Hole 3 the 148 yard one shotter called “Cliffhanger”, Cantlay hit it stiff to 2 ft. Xander stepped up and hit his to 3 ft. Both sides made their putts to tie the hole.
572 yard 4th – Patrick Cantlay cashed in on Billy Ho’s bottom groove 3 iron with an eagle putt to put Atlanta up 2-0.
At the 165 Yard par 3 fifth – Horschel hit his to tee shot to 9 ft, and Rickie Fowler stepped up and stuffed his 4 ft. Cantlay missed for Atlanta Drive, and Xander buried the birdie to get NY on the board, 2-1.
496 yard par 4 sixth, NY was 21 feet from birdie, and Billy Horschel helped them out, skulling his chip to hand NY the hole – knotted at 2.
The ninth, Sidewinder – a 571 yard par 5 saw both Schauffele and Cantlay find the shortgrass in the last hole of triples. Thomas hit his approach on to the fringe, 29 ft for eagle, Cam Young missed the green, but Fowler bailed him out – nearly chipping in. . . birdie. Horschel lagged up for Atlanta’s bird, tied at 2 at the intermission.
Singles: Young vs Thomas. Cam Young hit 190 mph ball speed and a 340 yard tee shot on the 554 yard par 5 tenth. Thomas was significantly shorter, and then flared his approach. Young hit his approach to 9 ft for eagle. Hammer thrown after JT nearly chipped in, but the ball rolled out 6 ft past the hole. Atlanta accepted the challenge, and Young poured in the eagle to the loudest ovation of the night. Two-point play for New York, now up 4-2. There would be even more volatility to come.
Fowler vs Horschel at the 377-yard eleventh, both players in the fairway off the tee. Rickie hit to 18 ft, Horschel faced 12 ft. Fowler missed, Hammer thrown by Cantlay, NY accepts. Billy Ho nails the putt to tie it up again. 4-4 heading to the twelfth. That was a big change in momentum, and the mostly NY raucous crowd knew it…
Xander vs Cantlay at the 194 yard twelfth. Cantlay came up short into the green side sand. Schauffele, the reigning PGA and Open Champ, hit his safely on 30 ft away. Xander lagged to a tap in range, Cantlay splashed out to 6 ft and made the clutch par save. Still tied.
Young vs Thomas part deux at the thirteenth. JT and Cam Young both missed the green on the driveable par 4 (297 yards), and some shortgame follies ensued for both players. JT made bogey, and Young made par, grabbing some much needed momentum – NY up 5-4.
The pivotal decision in the match came at the 135 yard fourteenth, Fowler vs Horschel. Rickie hits first, a beauty to 9 ft above the front hole location. Horschel, who relishes moments like this, stones it to 5ft. Hammer Thrown by Atlanta. After much deliberation, NY declines the Hammer and concedes the point to Atlanta – all tied 5-5 heading to the last.
It was fitting that two of the closest friends in TGL would go mano a mano for the match win . . . Xander vs Cantlay. Both found the fairway on the par 5, and both went for the green in two and missed. Xander 48 ft away faced a tricky chip across the green, Cantlay was 29′ 4″ chipping uphill, advantage Atlanta. Xander chipped to 7 ft, and Cantlay to about the same range. Cantlay made his putt for birdie, applying the heat on Xander to force overtime. Schauffele’s roll lipped out – Atlanta Drive wins 6-5.
Postgame Comments:
The sellout crowd was loud and seemed to be very pro New York, and they were in the ears of the Atlanta team members all night. “It had a little more hostility kind of vibe that I’m sure other athletes deal with on a week-to-week basis,” Thomas said. “We don’t necessarily get that outside of the team events. It was cool. We wanted to show off a bit and quiet the crowd … it was awesome watching these guys make putts and come through in the clutch when we needed to.”
New York couldn’t help but think about what could have been, decisions at the eleventh and fourteenth proved to be the difference. Xander was still mulling over what happened on the former. “That was probably my biggest regret, accepting that Hammer when Billy made that putt,” Schauffele said.
Atlanta will use the same players and same hitting orders for Match 2 and Match 3, if necessary, with Thomas first,
Horschel second and Cantlay third. New York is making one tweak to the order in the event they win Match 2 – they have Young first, Fowler second and Schauffele third for Match 2 and Schauffele first, Fowler second and Young third for Match 3.
This was TGL at its very finest, and what its founders envisioned, and that wasn’t lost on the competitors. “I’m sure tomorrow will be on another level on both sides,” Thomas said. “I know we’re gonna bring it and I’m sure they will too.”
