Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy are the two biggest names in golf and have established themselves as such over the past couple of weeks by leading their peers in an effort to reshape the future of the sport. On Tuesday, the duo – who teamed up to win 19 major championships – announced the formation of TMRW Sports, a tech-focused startup that will showcase “progressive approaches to sports, media and entertainment.”
“I am thrilled to be part of this exciting new adventure, which will leverage technology to bring new approaches to the sport we love,” Woods said in a statement.
There are plenty of company speeches, even for a press release, but we already have an example of how it could turn out in the world of golf and with the future of the PGA Tour. Woods and McIlroy have started planning a series of events one day away. from the golf course to play in the stadiums with a focus on technology, as reported Sunday by Golfweek. It is now easy to see how TMRW Sports can be the epicenter of these efforts.
The one-day events are designed to complement the PGA Tour schedule and will launch in 2024, according to multiple sources familiar with the concept. Initial thinking suggests that the showdown – which will be technologically advanced and staged with a live audience – could run from January to March, with an ending to take place later. Discussions on broadcast and game partners are ongoing. A source from NBC Sports says the network has an option to be the media partner in the venture.
Details on the plan were shared with Tour members who attended the player-only meeting held on August 16 during the BMW Championship, for which Woods made a special trip from his Florida home. It was presented as a long-term opportunity for players to create equity in the venture, which will have private funding as well as corporate partnerships and sponsors. The proposal was positively received by players in the room, according to a source familiar with the conversation.
This coincides with a meeting reserved for the players Woods and McIlroy drove last week in Delaware at the BMW Championship, where the duo helped launch a vision for what the future of the PGA Tour could look like. As two of the three or four most successful PGA Tour players of the past quarter-century, Woods and McIlroy have earned the right to take ownership in the world of golf at this weak time and are clearly embracing the their leadership roles.
There is also money to be made in the process of everything. Both Woods and McIlroy have invested in numerous companies affiliated with or adjacent to the PGA Tour’s business interests, including apparently TMRW Sports, which is likely to host, manage or host And organize these one-time future events.
This is a good thing for the PGA Tour. When the two most recognizable, famous and possibly successful golfers of this century are rallying troops for your organization – and even building societies to get behind it – you have a lot to gain and a bright future. . The PGA Tour should be encouraged by how the past few weeks have gone and the fact that the era of Tiger and Rory taking immense ownership of both the PGA Tour and golf itself has officially begun.