PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. -- If TGL was good for golf, that's great, but was it good for us? Our intentions at Read The Line are pretty specific: We are here to cash winning tickets. RTL predicted 14 of the 19 matches correctly in Season 1, including the postseason. That is a 74-percent win rate on the match winner alone. If you include all 41 TGL wagers placed, we had 26 winners and a positive ROI of +23%.

No one could have predicted how well TGL would perform in Season 1. No doubt the audience numbers proved it did. As you know, RTL is not a reactive golf newsletter. We want to know what's next. I am motivated to report, the leaders at TMRW Sports have done something I believe will make TGL even better; they improved the playability. The changes to their Greenzone are as follows: They have created more hole locations (from seven to 12), improved bunker consistency, added exciting new hole designs, and renovated the green surrounds. The result will be more scoring volatility, and that's what we want. More scoring leads to more holes won, and with our exclusive TGL insider's edge, that means more winning tickets!

Read The Line Keith Stewart explains a way you can win up to $500,000 by predicting the results on TGL in the video below:

You can enter for your chances to win the TGL's perfect season competition here.

Following the evolution of this exciting new sports venture, you start to see what Billy Horschel was alluding to on a Zoom call last week, referencing the tighter 2027 PGA Tour schedule and how it might entice more players to participate in TGL. If TGL continues down this path, and they can promote new stars, more players will be interested in filling that January 2027 void. Three team name patents have been filed by TMRW Sports: Motor City Golf Club, Chicago Links Golf Club and the Texas Golf Club. That last one certainly catches my attention, as I know one goal of TGL in Season 2 must be to get the full attention of the world's number one.

The format, course, and starting lineups

Greetings from inside the SoFi Center. Yes, as you are watching Sunday afternoon, Joe Idone and I will be covering Match 1 of Season 2 live inside TGL's tech-infused home. Many of you are familiar with the match format. We will still see nine holes of Triples followed by six holes of H2H Singles play. One point for winning a hole, and the team with the greater number of total holes won after 15 holes is your winner. Watch out for The Hammer as it will enhance the anxiety in any given moment, doubling the point total available on that hole.

Lineup card:

Match 1 order of play and Singles matchups!

• Atlanta Drive GC (-138): Billy Horschel, Corey Conners, Chris Gotterup
• New York GC (+110): Cam Young, Matt Fitzpatrick, Xander Schauffele
• Atlanta Drive GC has the honor.
• Chris Gotterup vs. Cam Young (Holes 10, 13)
• Corey Conners vs. Matt Fitzpatrick (Holes 11, 14)
• Billy Horschel vs. Xander Schauffele (Holes 12, 15)
• Team managers: Ben Helmrath (ADGC), Kraig Joy (NYGC)
• Sitting out Justin Thomas, Patrick Cantlay, Lucas Glover (ADGC) and Rickie Fowler (NYGC)

Season 2’s new hole designs and hole updates are much improved over Season 1. Force the players to create shots, manipulate trajectory, curvature, and most of all, take risks. A brand-new hole called ​The Stinger​ is a perfect example of this. Better yet, take a look at ​Cenote​. Both are featured this week. Another enhancement to the scorecards you will hear about is the team holes. Each of the six teams has a home hole. A new (or refurbished) design meant to capture the region each team hails from. Those holes will only be played when that team competes, giving them a "home advantage." To further their edge on those holes, the setup will be determined by the home team. Massive rock outcroppings to avoid and home team hole locations, now TGL is really starting to understand what fans want and why it can be unique!

Scorecard:

Course breakdown for Match 1.

• The total scorecard yardage for tonight's design is 6,010 yards.
• ADGC's team hole, Fore-O-Fore is number 9.
• NYGC's team hole, Big Apple is number 4.
• Both team holes in this match were used in Season 1: Fore-O-Fore was called Sidewinder, and Big Apple was called Pin Oak.
• Three new holes are featured in this match: Stone & Steeple (Hole 2, Par 5), Stinger (Hole 4, Par 4), and Cenote (Hole 12, Par 3).
• Stone & Steeple is the first design by Gil Hanse.
• Average lengths: Par 3s (187 yards), Par 4s (400 yards), and Par 5s (615 yards).
• Four of the 5 par 4s are 416 yards or less!
• Holes 10 (The Spear) and 13 (Bluebonnet) had a combined 11 penalty shots in Season 1.
• Hole 1 (The Plank) was the first hole played in Season 1, and holes 5 (Set in Stone) and 14 (On the Rocks) were used in every match last season!

Yardage Book

Where does the edge fall? New York has a stronger starting lineup. I expect more volatility out of the renovated Greenzone and renovated hole designs. The fans want to see scoring, and I think we will. Only 5 of 15 regular-season designs crossed the 6,000-yard plateau in Season 1. New York Golf Club was 0-2 in 6,000-plus yard matches while Atlanta Drive was 1-0. That win was against New York!

Match breakdown

Match 1

All three players in the New York Golf Club lineup have won on tour since August. Matt Fitzpatrick captured the DP World Tour Championship, Xander Schauffele the Baycurrent Classic and Cameron Young the Wyndham Championship. It’s TGL's most interesting team in Season 1—no pundit would have picked them to make the finals after starting 0-2. New York had two 10-point victories in its last three matches, and they made the SoFi Cup playoffs. Most see that lineup (including Rickie Fowler), and they think power, but the truth is, they did it with finesse. No team was better at making long putts (over 30 feet). Second in ball speed with the driver and second in GIRs, NYGC gave themselves a bunch of putts to make.

Chris Gotterup and Corey Conners maintain the OWGR resume of Cantlay and Glover, but neither brings exceptional scoring ability from close range to ADGC. Gotterup’s length and aggressive style will serve ADGC well in the lead-off spot. Chris is a much better matchup against Cameron Young. Gotterup can challenge him off the tee. Young’s career season with the putter and stronger approach play still gives him an edge. Corey Conners replacing Lucas Glover couldn’t be a more exact exchange. Glover and Conners are two of the best ball strikers (and inconsistent putters) on TOUR. Neither poses a huge threat to challenge Matt Fitzpatrick on his recent summer-fall scoring streak. Conners is 78th in scoring average on the PGA TOUR and 99th in birdie average. Those numbers will have to improve if he plans to make an impact in this 15-hole match-play sprint.

Experience is another factor we will weigh heavily in Season 2. Neither Chris nor Corey has played a TGL match. In fact, Gotterup just arrived this morning! There was a defined learning curve for all the teams in the first campaign. With three savvy Season 1 stars on the Big Apple roster, I believe the result will be the same as I predicted this morning: New York GC wins this afternoon. Back the Bronx Bombers and look for opportunities on the live betting board for NYGC to take the early lead after 3 and 6 holes.

For more betting breakdown, here are my new H2H leans.
Individual matches:

Looking for another lean (or two), here's my breakdown for the six head-to-head holes.

• Gotterup versus Young: Gotterup and Young both have enough ball speed to carry the neck on The Spear. Unlike Cantlay, Gotterup gets greenside in two, and they halve the first Singles hole. Bluebonnet was won 13 times in 17 matches last season. One of the trickiest short par 4s in the TGL inventory, Young’s experience outmaneuvers Gotterup’s go-for-it style. Cameron takes Hole 14.

• Conners versus Fitzpatrick: Corey Conners will hit the fairway on Hole 11 and both GIRs in this matchup. Fitzpatrick will have to make birdies to beat him, and that's exactly what Matt has been doing, collecting eight top 10s in his last 12 starts with a win! Fitzpatrick has gained in nine of his last 10 starts with the putter, while Conners (just like Glover) has gained in just three of his last 10 on the greens. Matt takes Loot on the Line (Hole 11). A hole that has been won five times in eight matches. On the Rocks is the most popular hammer hole in TGL. Partly because it is almost always the penultimate hole, and partly due to its birdie efficiency. I'd again bet that hole live, based upon the situation.

• Horschel versus Schauffele: Both of these guys were successful in Singles play during Season 1. Horschel won 13 points in H2H play through the regular season and playoffs, while Schauffele ranked second in H2H points. One caveat: Xander only played in two regular-season matches, while Billy played in seven of ADGC's eight matches. Hole 12 (Cenote) is a brand-new design. Tough to discern how this hole will play out based on the radical design. The final hole (Quick Draw) looks like it will favor the longer player, but in 11 matches, it has only been won six times. Players hit the green in two less than 50% of the time. Lots of halved birdies here, and that will be the case again.

Match 1 starts this afternoon at 3 p.m. ET and can be viewed on ABC! I'm guessing broadcast television rights are why the TGL decided to go against Week 17 of the NFL schedule. Who knows, a couple of FanDuel users may see the live betting odds for TGL on their app highlighted. If that happens, Match 1 will see a few extra fans invest in the outcome. The type of momentum we all would like to see continue as Season 2 kicks off!

Match 1 Card

Match 1: Atlanta Drive Golf Club vs. New York Golf Club

Match 1 winner:

• New York Golf Club (-120)

*- odds from FanDuel