The top seeds were sent crashing out in TGL’s St Patrick’s Day semi-final double-header at the SoFi Centre as L.A. Golf Club took down Atlanta Drive and Jupiter Links dispatched Boston Common.
Having been crowned inaugural champions in 2025, Atlanta Drive put themselves in a commanding position to contest a second-consecutive final when they took an early 3-0 lead after Patrick Cantlay drained a 10-and-a-half-footer for birdie on the third with a hammer thrown.
Though L.A. pegged them back with a win on the next, Atlanta restored their three-point advantage on the sixth and maintained it until the penultimate teamplay hole.
L.A. finished the alternate shot holes strongly, however, and back-to-back wins reduced the deficit to the minimum before Justin Rose got them back on level terms when Cantlay declined a hammer on hole 10.
Three holes later, Rose sank a 15-footer for birdie to beat Cantlay again, and when Sahith Theegala parred the 14th with Billy Horschel facing a six-footer to halve the hole, L.A. opted to hammer, it left Atlanta Drive with a tough decision.
Horschel wanted to decline, Cantlay wanted to accept, but in the end, Horschel won out and it left Atlanta needing to throw their final hammer on the 15th tee and hope to win to force an overtime chip off.
As it happened, it didn’t matter as Tommy Fleetwood held his nerve from three-and-a-half feet to send the defending champions packing.
In the second semi-final, the two sides traded blows over the opening four holes, winning two each and they remained tied through eight before a win on nine put Jupiter Links in front entering the singles.
Rory McIlroy had been Boston’s most consistent performer throughout the regular season, but he looked a little out of sorts on the night and a missed seven-and-a-half footer with a hammer thrown handed Jupiter a three-point advantage and three became four when Tom Kim stiffed an approach to the 13th.
It left Boston needing to throw their final hammers on the tee and win both of the closing holes, but McIlroy air-mailed the green on approach to the 14th and Homa cleaned up a three-footer for par and to put the result beyond doubt.
Having lost each of their opening three matches and been rooted to the bottom of the table, it completes a remarkable recover for the Tiger Woods-captained side, and the final will be contested over a best-of-three contest next Tuesday and Wednesday if required.
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