What happens if the simulator glitches?

The technology powering TGL, the indoor golf league founded by Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy’s TMRW Sports, is stunning.

The 3,392-square-foot simulator screen into which players will hit is 24 times larger than the screens you might find at, say, your local Dick’s Sporting Goods. Shots will be tracked by 18 Full Swing radar devices and eight Top Tracer optical cameras, each built to compute with incredible accuracy the path, spin and trajectory of a golf ball traveling 170 mph or faster. The green, which players will hit to when faced with short-game shots of 50 yards or less, sits on a 41-yard-wide turntable; beneath it are 567 hydraulic jacks that can create peaks and valleys across every inch of the putting surface.

“There’s so much technology,” Mike McCarley, CEO of TMRW Sports Group, TGL’s parent company, said at a media event last month. “Bigger and better than I could have ever imagined.”

The TGL’s $50 million arena in West Palm Beach, Fla., is indeed unlike anything the game has ever seen, and it will be fascinating to watch it come to life when the league debuts Tuesday. But all that splashy tech also begs a question: What happens if it doesn’t work?

We’re not talking about a doomsday scenario here in which, say, the simulator’s main frame crashes or a Cameron Young missile gashes the screen — but more so what happens if a smaller-scale glitch interrupts play or threatens the integrity of the competition? Because if you’ve ever played simulator golf, you know the technology is imperfect. Shot data on any given swing can be inaccurate. Shots can fail to register at all. Really bad shots can miss the screen entirely (okay, that’s more due to human error). Who knows, the machine could even reset just after a player has made contact.

Unlikely situations? No doubt. But if we’ve learned anything from the traditional version of this crazy sport, let alone a version relying on tens of millions of dollars worth of largely untested technology, the most unlikely situations can and do happen.

TGL knows this, which is why the league’s official rules include procedures for “inaccurate computations” and “unregistered shots.”

The league has not yet released all of its rules of competition, but it did share with GOLF.com how tech hiccups will be governed — and in short, yes, if something goes awry and a shot is not accurately recorded, it can be replayed. But as ever with golf rules, the specifics are nuanced.  

Here, in italics, is how that section of the TGL’s rules book reads:

The referee or booth official shall have the ability to deem a shot during screenplay an “inaccurate computation” at their discretion to maintain the integrity of the match and facilitate the competition. They will also have the authority to deem a “re-hit.” Scenarios where this may occur include, but are not limited to, the following:

+ Shot not captured – If a ball is struck and the competition technology fails to capture it, then the referee or booth official shall invoke a re-hit. The attempted shot is not counted towards the player’s total shots attempted. The only exception is when both the referee and booth official decide the ball was in fact mishit (commonly referred to as a “shank”). Then the shot will count, and the next player will hit from the previous position. 

+ Inaccurate competition technology reading – If a ball is struck and the competition technology produces an output that is clearly and obviously incorrect, then the referee or booth official shall invoke a re-hit. The attempted shot is not counted, and the ball is reset to its previous resting position.

+ Ball strikes object before it strikes the Screen – if a ball is struck and it collides with an object, including but not limited to the following: the lip of a tee box, another player’s club, tracking technology, then the referee or booth official will invoke a re-hit.

+ Interference – A clear and obvious disruption that impedes a player’s ability to start their swing or complete their shot and compromises the integrity of the competition as ruled by the referee or booth official; the player has a choice to accept the result of the shot or re-hit. If the player opts to re-hit, the attempted shot is not counted, and the ball is reset to its previous resting position.

A TGL spokesperson said TGL’s full slate of rules will be made available before the opening match.