In a repeat of the inaugural season, Golfism reigned supreme to win the trophy and retain their championship at the Prestige Golfshire Club in Bengaluru, which played host to the second edition of the Trinity Golf Champions League (TGCL). TGCL is an up-and-coming golf league in India which is presented by legendary Indian cricketer and current Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI) President Kapil Dev. As per its founder and promoter, Ateet Gaur, TGCL “is a combination of IPL and the Ryder Cup”.
The second edition took place from September 2-7, which saw eight teams take part. TGCL, which hosted its inaugural edition in the national capital last year, has already seen a 2x growth in its second season. Teams have doubled from four to eight, while the number of players also increased from 100 to 160.
The players — comprising professionals, amateurs and corporate employees — were divided into 20 each in the eight teams: Golfism, Wave Riders, Dakshin Rangers, Chandigarh Titans, Lahari Lions, Chennai Hustlers, Mumbai Warriors and Colombo Lions.
TGCL has also incorporated teams from overseas, as the Mahela Jayawardene-led Colombo Lions took part this year. Now, Gaur says he plans to have teams from the USA, Middle East and Singapore.
“Plan is to go global,” Gaur – who has over 20 years of experience in the sport, through TaylorMade-adidas Golf in various posts and later his own venture, Trinity Golf India – tells Connected to India during an exclusive chat. TGCL uses a Ryder Cup format, where teams compete against one another to win the trophy. Matches included the fourball, foursome and singles format.
Each team comprised two male pros and an equal number of female pros and one non-golfing celebrity golfer. The remaining 15 players were amateur golfers. Players were further segregated into groups based on their handicap. The ranges were: 0 – 5, 6 – 10, 11 – 14, 15 – 18. Each handicap consisted of four players. Players from one particular handicap could only play their opponents from that handicap. For example, players from 0-5 handicap from one team could only play against players from 0-5 handicap from other teams.
Similarly, the pros only played with and against other pros. Gaur says he did it to make it more challenging and prevent the TGCL from being lopsided. Celebrities like Murali Vijay, Murali Kartik, Ajit Agarkar, Mahela Jayawardene – all former cricketers – and ex-Indian hockey player Zafar Iqbal flaunted their golfing skills.
Pro golfers Rahil Gangjee, Pranavi, Vidhatri Urs, C Muniyappa, Hitaashee Bakshi, Ridhima Dilawari, Seher Atwal, and Khushi Khanijau among others took part in this edition of the TGCL.
When asked about their motto, Gaur says, “We want to grow the sport of golf in India and globally.” He says that Kapil Dev, who, apart from being the face of the TGCL, is also an owner in the venture, dreams of making TGCL into a billion-dollar product in the next 10 years.”
“When I explained the idea to him (Kapil Dev), he was so thrilled. This man wants to give back to society in whatever way possible. He loves playing golf and it is very close to his heart. He said ‘go ahead, I’m with you. I’ll support you in whatever way I can’. Today, he’s part of our company, he’s not just a brand ambassador, he’s the owner of the company,” Gaur says.
Finding sponsors a constant challenge
When asked about the challenges faced by the sport currently, Gaur says finding sponsors remains a constant challenge, as the sport isn’t as widely watched as cricket in India. However, he remains confident that the TGCL will be able to plug in the gaps by popularising the sport.
He says that the league provides the perfect opportunity for all to grow the sport. Partnerships with corporates from the TGCL are also symbiotic. Gaur explains that players who are in search of sponsorships can showcase their skills and get a good deal for themselves, not only in TGCL, but their career as well. “A lot of amateurs who played this year are very young. Corporates can sponsor them for the next 10-15 years, if they see the potential. So, the TGCL is giving that platform to both to make that connection.”
This is also in line with Kapil Dev’s vision. The current President of the PGTI wants players to get paid more. “He (Kapil Dev) wants players to make more money,” says Gaur, adding that the TGCL with its corporate partnership can address that issue effectively.
As per the PGTI website, 61 professional golfers in India have had a cumulative earning of INR 1 crore (USD 118,937) at least from April 1, 2006 to October 20, 2024. The overall career earning could be much higher. In 2022, Indian pro golfer Anirban Lahiri took home a cheque of USD 2.18 million (INR 16.7 crore), eclipsing the earning of Shamim Khan, who as per the PGTI website, has raked in INR 50,406,119 during the aforementioned period. Khan’s earning is also the highest as per the website.
According to Forbes, American pro golfer Dustin Johnson was the highest earning player in the sport in 2023. Johnson earned a whopping USD 111 million – USD 106 million from on-course participation and the remaining USD 5 million from off-course events. While the list also includes greats like Phil Mickelson, Rory McIlroy and Brooks Koepka, in 2nd, 3rd and 4th places, respectively, billionaire golfer Tiger Woods made USD 75 million to take the sixth spot. Xander Schauffele, who was placed 18th and last in the list, made USD 33 million, which when converted to INR comes to 2,774,508,155 (277 crore). Needless to say, there’s a huge gap in the earnings between players from India and overseas.
There’s a few more things Gaur hopes to address with the help of TGCL. One of them is bettering the overall infrastructure of the sport in the country.
“Recently, me and Kapil Paaji (Dev) met the honourable Sports Minister of our country and he was very positive. He said we have to make an atmosphere of sport in the country,” Gaur says. He adds that the government is ready to upgrade the infrastructure in the country, but needs support from organisers like him.
The other part that Gaur wants to improve upon is the mindset.
“It’s a myth that golf is played by corporates and the rich only. A lot of top players in India, who are playing currently, come from a very humble background. We need to take the game to the masses to do away with this myth and make the game more popular,” he says. Gaur adds that nearly 500,000 people make a living out of golf in India, in various roles.
Like in many other sports, golfers also start young and play the age groups and then advance to the amateur level. If one excels at this level, they get to move ahead and become a professional.
With TGCL gaining momentum, golf lovers would be excited to see what this innovative league does for the sport in the country. As Gaur says, “India has never thought that sports can be a career, except for cricket. But now the culture is changing.” One would hope that the next world beaters in the sport of golf will emerge from the country, with TGCL playing a prominent role.
