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Mark Schlabach, ESPN Senior Writer
Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry is part of the ownership group that will represent San Francisco in TGL presented by SoFi, the new tech-infused golf league being developed by Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy, the league announced on Thursday.
Curry, a two-time NBA MVP and nine-time All Star, is leading the new ownership group with Marc Lasry’s Avenue Sports Fund. Lasry is a co-founder and CEO of Avenue Capital Group, a global investment firm, and a former co-owner of the Milwaukee Bucks.
Andre Iguodala and Klay Thompson, who helped Curry lead the Warriors to four NBA championships, are also part of the ownership group.
“Avenue is thrilled to be working with Stephen Curry, in partnership with TMRW Sports as a founding TGL team,” Lasry said in a statement. “Our ownership group is excited to become stewards of TGL San Francisco and to represent Northern California, which is the center of tech innovation and is a perfect location for a TGL team in this extraordinary new sports league.
“As we move towards the launch of TGL’s inaugural season in January 2024, TGL San Francisco will be focused on developing an extraordinary team of talented players and we are excited to have Andre and Klay as part of our amazing ownership group.”
Curry, Iguodala and Thompson join a growing list of athletes and celebrities who have a stake in TGL, which is scheduled to begin play in January at a purpose-built arena in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. Other team owners include Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank (Atlanta Drive GC), Boston Red Sox owner John Henry (TGL Boston), Serena and Venus Williams (Los Angeles Golf Club) and New York Mets owner Steven A. Cohen (TGL New York).
Golfer Michelle Wie West, soccer players Alex Morgan and Servando Carrasco and NBA star Giannis Antetokounmpo and his brothers are limited partners in Los Angeles Golf Club.
A sixth ownership group is expected to be announced in the near future.
“Northern California is both the hub of tech innovation and home to world-class golf courses, some of the most-famous players in history and incredible golf fans, which makes San Francisco a natural choice for our next TGL team,” TMRW Sports Group and TGL CEO Mike McCarley said in a statement. “Combining the business expertise of Avenue Capital Group with the championship mentality brought by these NBA superstars, this TGL team will generate a lot of energy in the Bay Area and around the world. We’re honored to welcome them to TGL.”
Curry, 35, is an avid golfer with a scratch handicap. Earlier this week, he was chosen to receive the Charlie Sifford Award for his work in promoting diversity in golf. Two years ago, he launched “Underrated Golf” to provide equity, access and opportunity to high school athletes around the country. He has also funded the Howard University golf team for six years to help the historically Black college compete at the Division I level.
Curry will receive the award, which is named in honor of the first Black player to become a PGA Tour member in 1961, at the World Golf Hall of Fame ceremony at Pinehurst, North Carolina, on June 10.
TGL finalized its 24-player roster this week with the addition of five players, including Patrick Cantlay and U.S. Open winner Wyndham Clark. Along with McIlroy and Woods, major championship winners Jon Rahm, Collin Morikawa, Justin Thomas, Shane Lowry, Matt Fitzpatrick, Adam Scott, Keegan Bradley and Justin Rose will compete in the league.
The league will consist of six teams with four-man rosters; matches will feature three golfers playing for each team in a match-play format on a virtual course with a short-game complex. The inaugural season will include 15 regular-season matches, followed by semifinals and finals. The matches will be broadcast on ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPN+.
Source: www.espn.com