If new things don’t excite you, it’s hard to say what does. But for the golf community, it’s clear: digitalization is in charge. Whether it’s prize money being converted into cryptocurrency or transforming the course into a tech-infused wonderland like TGL, golf is heading into uncharted territory. Some are thrilled to witness the golf revolution TGL will bring, but other fans are less than convinced by the nontraditional approach. But what about the players? How do they feel about all this?

“It’s different, and it’s exciting.” No, this isn’t Rickie Fowler (pun intended). These words come from Billy Horschel, and honestly, the excitement in his voice is clear. When asked for his first thoughts on the league, and the venue, Horschel summed it up simply: “When I first walked in, I was blown away.” For the PGA Tour pro, it was a reminder of just how different golf can feel when the setting goes from expansive courses to a more confined, stadium-like environment.

But here’s where it gets interesting—and a little nerve-wracking. It raises a question that hasn’t been on the table for golf players before: How’s the anxiety of playing in front of a packed crowd going to affect them? Horschel described the new TGL arena as something completely different—a place where fans are right up close to the action.

“You think about a basketball player, NHL player, MLB player, walking out to start the game – this is what they must feel walking into an arena,” he said, comparing the feeling to what athletes in other sports experience when stepping into a packed basketball or football arena. The energy is intense, and it’s safe to say that it’s unlike anything Horschel has experienced in golf because playing on the course is very expansive, and open. While playing on the course, you never feel like you are in a confined space, says Billy Ho. 

Sure, there’s excitement about the fresh approach to golf, but there’s also this underlying pressure. Imagine being in front of fans who are just a few feet away, watching every swing. That’s a whole new kind of intensity, and it’s something Woods and McIlroy haven’t dealt with in quite the same way. Horschel himself, who is no stranger to high-stakes competition, acknowledged the challenge. “It’s different, and it’s exciting,” he said. But with excitement comes the unknown—the anxiety of something new.  Will the PGA Tour pros be anxious to play in a confined space? It remains to be seen. 

This isn’t just a shift in venue; it’s a shift in the mental game. For top golfers, playing under pressure is nothing new. But this arena setup forces them to adapt in ways they might not have expected. The big question now: How will golf’s biggest stars handle the anxiety of having fans right on top of them in this new arena-style setting?

TGL has had different views from its participants

Billy Horschel’s all about TGL—he’s been hyping it up since day one. But his excitement doesn’t quite match Rickie Fowler’s take on it. Fowler’s take is a bit more cautious. He’s said that TGL doesn’t exactly feel like “real golf,” but it’s also not just some backyard simulator game. It’s somewhere in between. He mentioned how there are new holes created just for this, and with the synthetic surfaces, it’s going to take a little getting used to when it comes to how the ball reacts and how the shots feel.

Horschel, though, is adamant this isn’t just some gimmick. He’s made it clear that while there are some artificial surfaces, players are still hitting real golf shots on real grass. “When someone hears about us playing simulator golf (they think) it is maybe a little gimmicky, and it’s not that,” he said. “We’re hitting off real grass; we’re hitting real golf shots. Yes, there will be some artificial surfaces, but there is a lot of technology that is going into this. It’s not just thrown together, ‘Let’s do this.’ This is a lot of high-tech stuff.”

But as we get closer to the start of TGL, it seems like Fowler’s may be starting to come around. Recently, he gave the media a peek at the venue while hitting a shot, so who knows—maybe he’s warming up to the whole thing.