Is TGL a gimmick that turns golf into a video game, or could it be the best thing to happen to the sport and make a physically challenged Tiger Woods relevant as a competitor again?

Neither question was fully answered Tuesday night when Mr. Woods made his debut in the new simulated golf league he co-founded with Rory McIlroy.  While there were plenty of laughs and much trash-talking, Mr. Woods, a 15-time major winner, wasn’t much help to the Jupiter Links Golf Club, which lost 12-1 to the L.A. Golf Club at Palm Beach Gardens’s SoFi Center.

It was the second straight blowout for TGL, following a 9-2 triumph by the Bay Golf Club (Ludvig Aberg, Shane Lowry, and Wyndham Clark) over the New York Golf Club (Xander Schauffele, Matt Fitzpatrick, and Rickie Fowler) in the season-opener last week.

While the new venture is certainly intriguing,  curiosity is bound to fade if future matches aren’t more competitive.  Mr. Woods, who teamed with Max Homa and Kevin Kisner, entered the arena to the song “Eye of the Tiger,” creating energy and excitement. It was all downhill from there, though, in the 15-hole competition that features nine holes of alternate shot and six holes of singles play.

After the match Mr. Homa posted on X, “Apologies to all simulators worldwide. We failed u tonight.”

Mr. Woods, 49, has been more of a ceremonial than a competitive golfer since a serious car accident and several other injuries have limited his physical abilities. He played in just five Tour events in 2024, withdrawing after two rounds at the Genesis; finishing 60th at the Masters; and missing the cut at the PGA Championship, the U.S. Open, and the Open at Royal Troon.

Given each TGL match is played within two hours  in an arena the size of a football field, the physical demand is nowhere near as great as playing four days of competitive golf on a 7,000-yard major championship golf course. The new league offers a format that could make Mr. Woods a relevant competitor again. 

“I’m excited,” Mr. Woods said before the match. “I’m also part of the playing process now. I haven’t been part of the playing process in a while.”

The indoor league is certainly off to a good start. Opening night attracted 919,000 average viewers on ESPN. That’s a larger audience than any LIV Golf broadcast in 2023 or 2024 on CW, and larger than last week’s PGA Tour season opener on NBC.

Mr. Woods’s debut figured to be an even bigger draw after fans offered mostly favorable reviews of opening night. 

 The atmosphere created by 1,500 towel-waving fans, the five-story-high simulator, the digital caddie, and the revolving greens merges traditional golf with high tech, a 40-second clock, and the Hammer, which allows one team to increase the value of a hole by one point.

Each of the six teams in TGL will play five matches during the regular season, with each win earning up to two points. The four teams with the most points make the playoffs with a chance to win the SoFi Cup.

“This is showcasing golf,” Mr. Woods said. “It’s harder for me to play a full-time schedule, but this is something neat and we’re able to bring it to the fans all across the world.”

What was showcased on Tuesday was mostly bad golf, with Mr. Woods hitting into the digital water on the second hole and Mr. Kisner skulling a shot out of a bunker on the 14th hole that hit the flag pole and sent players and fans scurrying for safety.

“We hit six penalty areas,” Mr. Woods said of his team’s performance. “I had two shots out of a bunker and Kis nearly killed someone.”

 There were plenty of laughs about the poor shots. At some point, though, it must get more competitive to retain an audience week after week.

The next two matches should determine if the new league is actually taking root with viewers. The New York Golf Club (0-1) and Atlanta Drive GC (Justin Thomas, Billy Horschel, Patrick Cantlay, and Lucas Glover) compete next week followed by a showdown between Mr. Woods’s Jupiter Links team and the Boston Common Club featuring Mr. McIlroy, the American Ryder Cup captain, Keegan Bradley, Adam Scott, and Hideki Matsuyama.

Mr. Fowler is among those who expects Mr. Woods to find his form. “He’s still one of the most talented guys in the game,” Mr. Fowler said. “He still has plenty of skills. I’m not worried about him performing.”

There are already talks about TGL expanding to the other cities and adding more teams.  There’s even speculation a future team or two could be composed of LIV players.