WTGL adds major sports powerhouse with Rory McIlroy ties as fifth franchise owner is confirmed
Fenway Sports Group has become the fifth franchise owner in WTGL after acquiring Boston Common Golf’s women’s team ahead of the new league’s inaugural season.
WTGL has added another major name to its ownership lineup, with Fenway Sports Group (FSG) becoming the fifth franchise owner in the new women’s team golf league.
FSG is the global sports and entertainment powerhouse behind the Boston Red Sox, Liverpool FC and Rory McIlroy’s Boston Common Golf on TGL.
The company has now acquired Boston Common Golf’s WTGL franchise, strengthening its existing relationship with TMRW Sports and expanding its involvement in the rapidly growing team-golf landscape.
The move also gives FSG its first ownership stake in a women’s professional golf team.
FSG was one of the original ownership groups in TGL and an early investor in TMRW Sports, the company founded by McIlroy, Tiger Woods and Mike McCarley that sits behind both TGL and WTGL.
Its connection to women's golf also stretches back to 2023, when Fenway Sports Management entered into a partnership with the LPGA designed to expand sponsorship and marketing opportunities around the tour.
FSG's WTGL investment therefore represents the latest development in an increasingly close relationship with women's golf.
WTGL's five franchise owners
Team | Owner / Ownership Group |
|---|---|
Atlanta WTGL | Arthur M. Blank and AMB Sports & Entertainment |
New York WTGL | Steve Cohen and Cohen Private Ventures (CPV) |
Motor City Golf Club | Michael Hamp, Peter Hamp and Kevin Kelleher |
Los Angeles Golf Club | Alexis Ohanian / Los Angeles Golf Club, with Serena and Venus Williams |
Boston Common Golf | Fenway Sports Group (FSG) |
“At FSG, we've always believed in investing early in ideas with the potential to grow and evolve the sports landscape,” said Linda Henry, FSG partner and CEO of Boston Globe Media.
“Our investment in TMRW Sports and partnership with the LPGA have only reinforced our confidence in the future of women's golf. WTGL is a natural next step, and we're proud to bring Boston Common Golf to the league and another world-class team to New England fans.”
Boston Common Golf is already established in TGL, where McIlroy leads a team that also includes major champions Keegan Bradley, Adam Scott and Hideki Matsuyama.
FSG was also among the investors that helped provide a significant financial boost to the PGA Tour during its battle for influence with LIV Golf.
WTGL is scheduled to debut this fall at SoFi Center in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, using a team match-play format developed in partnership with the LPGA.
A total of 14 players have already been announced for the inaugural season, including six of the world's top 13 players.
Among the committed stars are Charley Hull, Lydia Ko, Jeeno Thitikul and Lexi Thompson.
Four-time major champion Nelly Korda, however, is not part of the league.
Korda has strongly criticised the decision to create a separate indoor league for women rather than having female players compete alongside the men in TGL, describing the split as a “huge and unbelievable miss.”
That mirrors TGL, where World No.1 Scottie Scheffler has also opted not to participate.
For WTGL, though, the addition of FSG represents another significant step forward.
“Fenway Sports Group has been a TMRW Sports partner from the beginning and understands what it takes to build an enduring team brand in one of the world's most passionate sports markets,” said McCarley, founder and CEO of TMRW Sports.
“Boston Common Golf brings an established identity, a passionate fan base and an ownership group with a record of growing iconic sports properties.”
With five ownership groups now in place and a growing roster of LPGA stars committed to compete, WTGL is continuing to take shape ahead of its highly anticipated debut later this year.
Andy Roberts first joined GolfMagic on a month's work experience back in April 2011.
Andy then assumed the role of GolfMagic Editor in 2015.
