The latest chapter in the rivalry between the cities of Boston and Los Angeles was written in the TGL’s fifth match of the season Tuesday night in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. It was the latter which proved victorious at the SoFi Center as the Los Angeles team of Collin Morikawa, Justin Rose and Tommy Fleetwood took it to Boston Common Golf to the tune of 6 to 2.
The win represents Los Angeles’ second of the season and pushes them to the top of the season-long standings. Meanwhile, Rory McIlroy’s Boston Common is the first team to accrue two tallies in the loss column and are at serious risk of missing the playoffs. All this while perhaps their second-best player, Hideki Matsuyama, has yet to play as Keegan Bradley and Adam Scott played for the second straight week.
Los Angeles got off to a hot start with a pinpoint iron shot from Morikawa. It became apparent this would be a common theme from the two-time major champion as his approach play set up numerous birdie opportunities for his side. The Englishmen cashed in enough during the Triples portion of the match to command a 5 to 0 lead after the initial session.
With only six holes remaining, the match was essentially over by the time Singles rolled around and even more so considering Los Angeles refused to throw the hammer and were in possession of it for the entire night. Bradley nearly buried his tee shot on the par-3 12th for the shot of the night and put the first Boston point on the board against Rose, but by then it was too little too late.
Here are three takeaways from the league’s fifth match
Additive statistical package
With enough matches under the belt, TGL has been able to roll out season statistics on specific holes including longest drives, green in regulation percentage and team winning percentage. Combine these numbers with the launch angle and ball speed numbers that are produced by players, and it makes for a great addition to the viewing experience.
Technology still an issue
The first two holes of the match featured two technical difficulties. A recurring issue has been the ball settling on a spot on the simulator that is simply not possible on or around the in-arena green (this also happened last week on the putting surface). The second came when Fleetwood struck a shot into the simulator, but it did not properly read it so he was forced to take another swing. For a league built and backed by this technology, these kinks need to be ironed out.
First look at a tight turnaround
The PGA Tour really ramped up last week with the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am with all six TGL competitors playing on the coast of California. Making the cross-country trip to Palm Beach Gardens, the six players remained engaged in the competition, although perhaps with a little less pep in their steps. The blowout nature of the match certainly didn’t help, but it is something to keep an eye on the next five weeks or so.
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