The TGL is up and underway for the 2025 season and in one of the biggest compliments to the product yet, Tiger Woods’ former coach Hank Haney has backed it to have a transformative impact on the whole sport.
TGL was regarded as a success on opening night and the popular sports pundit Pat McAfee has said TGL could inspire a movement across the whole of the USA.
With innovative rules like The Hammer being implemented, TGL very much offers a different take on golf for both the average fan and those new to the sport.
There are many positives for the new format and a few negatives to work on but according to Tiger Woods’ former coach Hank Haney, TGL could pave the way for a big change in golf.
Hank Haney says why TGL could change the game of golf entirely
Hankey has been outspoken on the TGL and has actually backed it to be a success overall for the game.
And now, after witnessing week one first hand, Haney believes TGL can innovate the entire game and especially so, when it comes to the use of shot clocks to halt slow play.
Taking to X to offer some in-depth feedback on TGL, Haney insisted the biggest positive was the use of the shot clock to speed things up.
Why 2024 shone the light on slow play in golf once again
The argument over punishments for slow play and how detrimental it is to the game of golf is an argument as old as time.
And 2024 was no different, with a number of big events and moments bringing the discussion point back to the agenda.
LPGA star Charley Hull has called for severe penalties for those slowing the game down, while even Nelly Korda slammed conditions at The ANNIKA after being slowed down.
“It was crazy. I’m quite ruthless, but I said, listen, if you get three bad timings, every time it’s a tee shot penalty, if you have three of them you lose your Tour card instantly. I’m sure that would hurry a lot of people up and they won’t want to lose their Tour card,” Hull suggested back in November.
In a lighter idea, PGA player Michael Kim suggested punishment for those taking longer than 40 seconds by way of public shaming.
“The one for the general tour is that I think you can set this line at any point, but when you play the PGA Tour schedule, they give you your average time you have spent hitting a tee shot and whatever, and it gives you an overall average,” Kim said.
“Mine is at 38 seconds. Anyone over, let’s say if average on tour was 40 seconds, anyone over 42 seconds – a slow player – they have to wear a different coloured bib so everyone on the field knows!
“Or the top 10 slowest guys, their caddies wear a bib, and these guys are going to get heckled like crazy. This is probably why it’s a bad idea. But public shaming is the only way we are going to fix some of these guys!”
Haney’s suggestion of TGL being a new world for slow play does make sense.
Quite whether the PGA, DP World or LIV tours have the ability or urge to implement a similar rule, remains to be seen.
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