Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy get major new signing for LIV Golf rival league

Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy's high-tech golf league, TGL, is inching closer to its launch, and a new recruit has been unveiled who will play a defining role in the action.

The innovative league, set for its January debut, will feature 24 top PGA Tour players in weekly televised matchups at a bespoke arena in Florida. This state-of-the-art, 1,500-capacity arena boasts an enormous simulator screen for longer drives alongside a dynamic short-game area.

Come Jan. 7, the SoFi Center in Palm Beach Gardens will welcome Woods, McIlroy and other star names including Justin Thomas, Collin Morikawa, and Justin Rose for TGL's inaugural event, where they will tackle virtual holes designed by renowned golf course architect Beau Welling.

Welling, tasked with developing a selection of holes for use in TGL's season-one catalogue, shared a sneak peek of two designs he has crafted, aiming to blend authenticity with innovation for the digital courses.

He said: "We are very excited for the world to see the designs, how unique they are and how different TGL is. We’re going to have some of the best golfers in the world playing a version of golf that is new and different, and, to me, that is very exciting."

The first hole that will be used by TGL that has been revealed is "Quick Draw", which is set in a canyon. The par-five poses big questions with its tee shot, encouraging players to attempt a risky shortcut that dramatically reduces its length.

If players choose the safer route, the hole will stretch a massive 720 yards. However, if they're brave and aim for an island fairway, across a 310-yard carry, the hole is a mere 538 yards from tee to green.

Welling's "Craic On" par three has also been revealed, drawing inspiration from the UK's links courses. It's a simpler design at 175 yards with three bunkers surrounding the green, but wind will be a factor built into the simulator and it will serve as the hole's main challenge.

"I think our main thing initially was we kept wanting the golf holes to be representative of 'real golf holes' and what I mean by that is picking real-life landscapes and putting golf holes within that, and with time we started to realize that this hybrid virtual-real world created opportunities that were beyond that," Welling added.

"You could start to imagine golf holes in places that you might never imagine golf holes... I started realizing that this was an opportunity to go do something you'd never be able to do, and we ultimately took advantage of that."