DETROIT — Jackson Koivun, golf's hottest young star, is officially joining Motor City Golf Club for its inaugural TGL season, a move announced Monday that signals momentum for the league entering its third year. The expansion team representing Detroit will feature the former World No. 1 amateur and Auburn standout at the SoFi Center in 2027.
Koivun was already tabbed as 2027's most anticipated young player after an eye-popping collegiate resume and a rapid rise as a pro. He stared down Scottie Scheffler to win the 3M Open in just his third start as a professional, earned a spot on the U.S. Presidents Cup team, and emerged as the only unbeaten American that week after delivering several significant moments, including a Tiger Woods-like club twirl down the 18th hole in his key singles match against the International Team's top-ranked player Si Woo Kim.
The signing arrives at a prove-it moment for TGL. After a new-and-shiny debut in 2025 and a 2026 season that added new holes and smoothed gameplay quirks, many initial player contracts and the league's TV deal with ESPN were set to expire after two years. Last week TGL announced ESPN will remain its media partner going forward, the WTGL is barreling toward a fall launch, and five-time major champion Brooks Koepka — one of the greatest players of this generation — was unveiled as a new cornerstone of Motor City GC. Koivun's addition suggests the league is also the place to be for the next generation.
Much of TGL's model is built on proximity. West Palm Beach, Fla., and surrounding towns including Jupiter, Palm Beach Gardens and Hobe Sound is home to legends Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods and current stars Rory McIlroy, Matt Fitzpatrick, Justin Thomas, Shane Lowry, Patrick Cantlay and Keegan Bradley, plus next-generation players Cameron Young, Chris Gotterup and now Koivun. That matters for a league with an intentionally intimate footprint — the SoFi Center holds just 1,500 seats — where the goal is to be the coolest ticket in town on a weeknight. Pros have cited TGL as a chance to bond with teammates and bring families, and the PGA Tour's new limited early-season schedule points to tighter alignment between Tour play and TGL.
Questions remain for 2027, including murmurs of offseason trades, formalized expanded rosters, which main characters from 2026 return — big-hitting major champion Ryan Fox is one name to watch — and the Tiger Woods question of whether he will tee it up for Jupiter Links next year. Others will commute from further afield, with Ludvig Aberg, Michael Thorbjornsen and Michael Brennan based near PGA Tour headquarters in the greater Jacksonville area and Justin Rose, Max Homa and Collin Morikawa traveling from England, Scottsdale and Las Vegas. For Koivun, the choice to start his year at the SoFi Center before expected starts at Augusta National, Pebble Beach and St. Andrews points to belief in TGL's future.