For those who crave instant gratification, there is no doubt that year one of TGL offers frustration. It’s indoor golf, on an untested playing stadium, with an indifferent gallery, played by newcomers to the simulator game. If that weren’t enough, a few glitches and misreads along the way have caused hiccups to turn into major surgery on social media. We saw nearly as many matches (four) over two days this week, as we had during the prior (five) weeks of the season. With nine matches complete, and six that remain, the playoffs beckon. The only lock for the playoffs is The Bay, although the SoCal representative is well-positioned, as is Atlanta. Unless craziness ensues, Boston, New York, and Jupiter will wrestle for the final playoff spot.

We’ve learned that these golfers are not comfortable or talented in ad-lib moments and that the broadcast won’t allow them to be funnier than normal golfers. No doubt, there are golfers among the touring pros with wit and timing, but perhaps they aren’t the ones that TGL wishes to feature or the owners desire for their team. Since the golf and chatter are live, there is no edit option to enhance the comedic nature of the telecast. Live is great, as long as it is passionate, dramatic, funny, or sad. TGL has yet to find the method niche that will make it one or more of those four.

Initially, I loved the idea of a truly-virtual golf course, that doesn’t exist anywhere on planet Earth. Now, I wonder aloud if there is a redundant element to the course that we see each match. Add to that, the constant subbing in and out of golfers, and the entirety of the skill set is lost. We know that alternate shot (foursomes) is challenging enough. What made us think that alternate-alternate shot would not be even more challenging? No doubt, change will come for season two. I’m thinking relegation for the bottom two teams. Drop your thoughts in the comments below.

Anyway: Three tours were in action this week in Kenya, Mexico, and Thailand. It might be the first week in forever when the Lower 48 USA states saw zero action. Some might have seen it as a week of rest, with some golfers opting out of the competitions, but for the three champions, it was anything but. Time to load the spring and release another week of Tour Rundown.

LPGA Tour – Honda Thailand: Yin by the skin of a single stroke

I want you to imagine posting a 62 on day one of a four-day event. I want you to wrap your head around shooting lower on day four, signing for 61. Finally, I want you to slowly consider that you did not win the event in question. Despite rounds of minus 10 and minus 11 in the same event, Japan’s Akie Iwai finished runner-up at the 2025 Honda Thailand tournament. How is this possible? Well, that part is a bit more intricate. Iwai had a fine 67 in round two, and a decent 71 in round three. She totaled 2 under par over her 72 holes, a monumental achievement for any touring professional. Along came Angel Yin, who said “Not so fast.”

Yin opened with a 67 of her own but found herself five back of Iwai after 18. She made up a trio of those shots with a 64 on day two, then surged into the lead by five, posting another 64 to Iwai’s 71. At this point, let’s clarify that there were other golfers in the competition. In what felt like a B Flight, Jeeno Thitikul signed for 21 under on the week, to finish in a distant third place. On Sunday, Angel Yin played marvelous, error-free golf. Three birdies on the front, followed by four on the back, took her to seven deep on the afternoon. Along came Akie Iwai, who notched ten birdies over her first 16 holes, to close within one.

The final two traces were the stuff of great drama. Iwai made bogey at the 17th, to fall two behind. She surged back with eagle at the last, forcing Yin to make a birdie of her own, to avoid extra time. With the steely nerve of a player with more than one LPGA victory, Yin doubled her win total with a four at the 72nd hole. Iwai finished oh-so-close to her first LPGA victory but, with the ability to go double-digits low, that maiden win can’t be far away.

PGA Tour – Mexico Open: Campbell emerges in extra holes

There was monumental back-and-forth throughout the entirety of round four at Vidanta. The 2025 Mexico Open hung in the balance, shifting this way and that, across Sunday afternoon. He of the two gloves, Aaron Rai, looked to be on course for a second PGA Tour title, until he fell away to fourth place, late in the day. Isaiah Salinda surged late, coming within a whisker of the top score of 20 under par. His 19-under finish garnered him a best-ever result of solo third place.

At round’s conclusion, the top two golfers from Saturday were tied at the top. Aldrich Potgieter made four bogeys and four birdies over the closing 18 holes, but his birdie at the last brought him to 20 under par. Brian Campbell began the day a shot back of Potgieter, and he also made four birdies but stumbled just three times for bogey. Like Potgieter, he holed from about a yard for birdie at the last, and the pair headed back to the 18th to settle matters. Pars at the 73rd hole meant that there would be a 74th. Potgieter missed from six feet, Campbell scored from three, and the former University of Illinois golfer had his first PGA Tour title.

DP World Tour – Magical Kenya: JK is no jk, as Kruyswijk wins first

Jacques Kruyswijk had no business playing well on Sunday. The South African golfer had sealed the envelope on a 7-under 64 with birdies at three of his last four Saturday holes. He had a one-shot lead over John Parry of England, a fellow that had won as recently as December, in Mauritius. JK had zero wins on the DP World Tour, and Parry was grumpy after posting 72 on Saturday.

No one told Kruyswijk that he should be nervous on Sunday. No one told him that Parry would make an early run at him, and that he needed birdies to hold off the Englishman. Kruyswijk set to work on Sunday and made four, hard-earned birdies. More important was the zero bogeys on his scorecard. He posted 67, requiring Parry to shoot 66 or fewer, to reach a playoff or an outright win. For most of the day, things were going according to Parry’s plan. He had three birdies on the outward nine, but the South African would not yield. Parry posted bogey at the 14th, a breath of comforting air for the leader. Despite a final-hole birdie, Parry finished two back of Jacques Kruyswijk, and the latter had earned his first big-time win in the professional ranks.

TGL – Presidents’ Daze: The Bay makes a statement

Monday saw three matches contested throughout the day. The first match paired Atlanta with LA, and the two teams fought evenly over the fifteen holes, forcing an overtime tilt for the winner’s point. Patrick Cantlay and Billy Horschel earned extra-time wins to give Atlanta the win. The second match was also a one-point affair, with a total of five hammer challenges being issued. The Bay was able to eek out a one-point win, thanks to a Wyndham Clark win on the antepenultimate hole. Neither side was able to collect a point over the final two holes, and the lads from San Francisco triumphed by six points to five.

The third match of the Presidential Day saw Bay do what Atlanta could not: triumph twice in a row. Boston came to play, however, and it was the same hero (Clark) for the Bay. He defeated noted Boston resident Hideki Matsuyama on the fifteenth hole of the match, to give Bay its fifth point against four for the New England squad. Clark ripped an iron to ten feet at the last, and even though the green team tried to freeze him with a time-out call, the 2023 US Open champ was more than ready. He drained the putt for his team’s third win of the season.

On Tuesday, Jupiter and New York battled, with the basement on the line for the men of Gotham. This one was lopsided, as NYC gathered eight points over the first eight holes, leaving the poor fellows from east Florida with stunned visages. Poor Tom Kim. He’s saddled with two guys that have not responded well to the indoor game. Hey, we can say that about Boston as well, who now occupy the bottom rung of the ladder. NYGC ultimately triumphed by ten points to three, and moved into the fourth playoff position, but for how long? Looking ahead, Boston, NYGC, and Jupiter are all in need of a spark. Only NYGC is trending in the proper direction. Its match this week with LA should tell us all that we need to know about the viability of the team from the five boroughs. Immediately after, Boston will have one more chance to stay alive; a loss to Atlanta will dash its hopes for postseason play.